Packing

I'm getting ready to head north to International Falls tomorrow.  So I should be packed.  I'm not.  Most of my camping stuff is on the floor of the living room, but I really have to dig in and get packing.

This is not unusual for me.  When I was getting ready to leave home for the Peace Corps, my Mom was super frustrated at my not packing weeks ahead.  So I let her pack my stuff, and she packed, unpacked, repacked, and by the time she was done, my stuff was beautifully packed, and she was far less frustrated.  And I didn't have to pack.

But today I have to pack.  Really.

Practice Run

I don't camp nearly often enough.  Or something.

When I talked to the guide about camping at Voyageurs, I asked about temperatures, and he said I could expect 40 F or so at night, and 60s during the day.  60s during the day is nice enough.  But 40 at night can be a bit chilly.

So I started trying out my sleeping bag, well, one of my sleeping bags, which is down and rated to 45.  It's super cozy and comfortable, and was quite nice down to 60 as it was in my room with the window open and fan on.  But the other night, it was supposed to get down to 40, so I decided to practice.

I went to dinner with friends, so it was a bit dark as I started to put up the tent, which was fine, since I'd put it up once before.  (This is a newish backpacking tent.)

Degression: whoever is designing tents these days deserves kudus.  They're so much easier than before.  This tent is even easier than my car camping tent, which has cloth tube-like things to put the aluminum "poles" through (the "poles" break down into foot or 18 inch pieces that fit together like magic).  This tent has hooks that fit over the "poles" so they're even easier.  And the poles fit into the tent bottom so that it's not a struggle to get them bent up at all.  (My old one is a bit more of a struggle, though I've gotten pretty good at it with practice.)  And the rain fly fits more closely to the tent than with the old one, which could be good or bad: less air flow which can be good or bad, depending.)

End digression:  I put up the tent, and took extra clothes for over my base-layer, and an extra blanket.  And in the night, I woke up cold enough to pull over the extra blanket, but not cold enough to want more clothes.  So I think I'll be okay down to below 40, if I take the extra clothes just in case.

I feel better having checked it out, and slept outside again the next night, which was a bit warmer, and things in the tent were great.

A few years ago, I bought an earlier version of this little solar lantern, two of them, and they're just so helpful in all sorts of ways!  Worth the weight!

Next Adventure

 For a few years now, I've been looking at Voyageurs National Park and thinking I'd like to visit.  But Voyageurs is sort of unique, different from most National Parks.  Most parks, at least the ones I know more, you can drive in and there are camping spots, maybe a lodge, so you can car camp or even, if you're a backpacker, park at a trailhead and hike into the backcountry to camp and hike more.

But Voyageurs is pretty much set around a couple of lakes and mostly, you need a boat to get to the "frontcountry" spots (the sort of spots one might normally drive to and car camp), or a boat to get to a trailhead to hike to backcountry spots.  There are a couple backountry spots that you can park at a trailhead and hike to, and I considered those.

Digression:  I remember being in the backseat when my family was on a trip, I think along Highway 1 in California, probably south of San Francisco, and seeing a biker with a backpack and panniers, and thinking what a cool, amazing person that biker must be, and wishing I could do that sort of thing.  But my family didn't do much like that.  I biked in the way kids bike, all over my neighborhood for hours on end.  We car camped but only as a way of going waterskiing at Berryessa or Trinity.  

I remember us once, probably when we rented a houseboat on Shasta, taking a short ranger hike.  But that's the only hike I remember taking with my family.  

In fact, when I went with my Mom on a trip to The Grand Canyon, Bryce, and Zion (part 1, part 2, part 3) and my Mom mentioning that she didn't realize people actually wanted to hike.  She was 81 at the time, and we went on short walks in the flatest areas we could.  (I really like that I can look back at trips with blogger!)

End Digression

The point of that was that as an adult, and especially now as a retired adult, I can be my version of that biker if I want to.

So, anyway, I've been really hesistant to make plans to go to Voyageurs.  I don't think my kayak can fit my camping stuff and don't feel confident that I could paddle however far I'd need to to get to a camping spot.  I kept telling myself that I should make some calls to the guide companies the park lists, and to the park, and figure out how things work.  On Friday, I finally did it!  And the upshot is that I've made arrangements with a guide's taxi service to get a ride to and from a campsite and a tour of Rainy Lake, and have reserved a recommended camp site (the guide was super helpful: this site looks North across the lake, and should have a great view IF the Northern Lights are visible, and great views of dawn and dusk.)

I'm a little anxious because I'll really be alone out there, but I'm also excited for a totally new challenge.

Tagging Monarchs

 Last weekend, I went to a state conservation education program on Monarch butterflies.  We learned about butterfly biology and migration, and learned about the current generation of "super generation" monarchs, the butterflies that will make the massive migration south to Mexico (from the upper midwest).

We also learned about infections with something called "OE" (read more at Monarch Watch).

I had thought that Monarchs eat exclusively milkweed, but that's wrong.  They only lay eggs and have larva succeed on milkweed, but once they're adults, they eat all sorts of flower nectar.

Finally, we got to participate in a monarch tagging project.  Here I am, squeezing a tag gently into place on a monarch wing before turning it loose again.

The tags are marked pieces of plastic (I think) with specific numbers and adhesive on one side.  You record the number, then press them into place.  (Check Monarch Watch for more info, linked above.)

Anyway, it was a superb program, very interesting and a lot of fun.  The other people involved were mostly seniors, like me, with a few teens. 

Progress

 I finished painting the bench (see this one and also this other one for previous bench adventures), and with help from a visiting grad school friend, reconstructed it and moved it back to my little porch:

It's bright and cheerful there.

***

In bigger news, I've made reservations for my next couple of big adventures.

First, I've bought tickets and made arrangements (except for the rental car) to go to my Peace Corps group reunion and also to visit a friend and a second cousin and her Mom (my first cousin once removed) on the way back.  So that's pretty exciting.

Second, and this is so big it's almost scary:  I've made reservations for a trip to Europe and bought tickets.

The plan:  fly to Amsterdam and stay there a few days, then go to Barcelona and stay at an air bnb.  Then go to Berlin and stay at an air bnb.  Then back to Amsterdam for a few days, and fly out.

Exciting and terrifying.

***

I've also been working on getting into better shape.  My garmin tells me I have the fitness level of a 79 year old, and that's bad.  So I'm trying to run a bit (couch to five K), bike a bit, and walk a bit.

I have until mid October to be in shape for, say, a 5 mile hike with my RPCV friends.  And then until early next year to be able to wander all day in Amsterdam or wherever.

I rode 18 miles on my bike on a very easy trail at 13.5 mph average yesterday.  And the day before I walked in a local park (so paved, but up and down) for 4 miles.

More to come...

Week 14/66: The Year Begins... Again

I've returned from my adventure, about which I'll be blogging in the next few days, if only so I can enjoy seeing the pictures later.  I had a fabulous time, but because of the fire, didn't actually go to Yosemite.  Another time, I hope!

On Monday, the day after I got home, I started coming down with a nasty cold.  Ugh.  I've been coughing and sneezing, and barely sleeping.  Today, fortunately, is way better, especially about the coughing.

There are now 52 weeks, one full year, to my sabbatical.  I feel like I've wasted a bunch of time, but I had a great vacation, and cleared my mind, and should be ready to get back to work.  (It would help if my brain weren't clouded by coughing and sneezing stuffs...).

Here's a quick rundown of the trip:

21 July: left home.  Drove west.

23 July: arrived at Donner State Park for camping.  My site was beautiful, and not too far from the water.

24 July: a semi-relative (in that blended family, not really a relation, but family nonetheless) came and we went white water rafting.  I probably hadn't seen this person, E, since I was maybe 10 and she was 18 or so.  Back then, she was a scarily cool teenager, and I was a not-cool kid.  Now, she's just plain cool, and fun, and a pleasure to know better.  In the morning, before rafting, I rode my bike around the lake.  Glorious.  I did more of that, too.

26 July: I drove down to Sacramento to stay with my cousin, M.  The problem with living so far away is that I haven't gotten to spend a good long time just chatting with certain cousins since we're both adults.  We corrected that, and M is more fabulous as an adult than she was as a kid, and she was a pretty amazing kid.  We visited a used bookstore, REI, rode bikes, and talked, read, and talked some more.

29 July: On Sunday, M and I met her sister, A, and went to Big Basin State Park to backpack.  M had made arrangements when she figured out how bad the air at Yosemite was, and that the authorities were evacuating parts of the Park (though not the part where we were planning to be).  She also texted our aunt (who's more my generation than not), K, to invite her to camp with us.  K texted back to say that she couldn't come Sunday, but would "run in" on Monday morning and hike out with us.

A is as wonderful an adult as M, though quite different.  We drove together and had a lovely chat along the way.  Our hike in (the long way) was about 8 miles, and boy was I tired.  My tuna dinner was GREAT in that eating outside when you're really hungry way.

30 July: True to her word, badass K met up with us at our campsite in the morning and hiked out with us.  It was so good to get to talk with her, too!

When she got there, A pulled a birthday cake out of her pack, lit it, and we celebrated my birthday.  I was almost in tears because it was so unexpected and kind.  (She'd backpacked it in!)

After hiking out, we went to have dinner with my Mom, and that, too, was very good.

31 July: Rosie the Riveter National Park.

1 August:  My Mom and I drove over to Santa Cruz and then up the coast to Pescadero, where we stopped to visit the Pigeon Point Lighthouse, then up to Half Moon Bay and Princeton.

2 August: We had lunch with my Aunts, four sisters who are just lovely.

3 August: San Juan Bautista

4 August: New Almaden Quicksilver Mine

5 August: Up to Pt Reyes, and then to Fort Bragg

6 August: North to Richardson Grove State Park, the Avenue of the Giants, with a detour to Shelter Cove (because on my map it looks like you can go north, but you really can't without much more serious four wheel drive than my Subaru.  Or so said the locals hanging at the volunteer fire department).  Ended the day in Eureka.

7 August: Drove through Redwood National and State Parks, and up to Coos Bay.

8 August: Drove up to Tillamook before heading inland to Portland, where we had dinner with my second cousin, D, his wife and son.  So long since I've seen D!

9 August: North on 5 to Seattle Area, where we had a snack with old friends of my Moms, and I left her with them before continuing up to Bellingham to see my friend C and her husband, D.

10 August: with C, went to Mt. Baker for a short hike.

11 August: with C, went to a local fair

12 August: with C, went kayaking, then decided to try out paddle boarding.  So fun!

13 August: started back home, spent the night in Idaho

14-15 August: Glacier National Park!

16 August: Drove to Yellowstone and camped with thousands of loud people.

17 August: Drove through parts of Yellowstone, then out through the Lamar Valley, and out the North East Gate.  Then I took 212, the Beartooth highway, east.  Holy cow, it's beautiful but sort of scary (WAY scarier than Highway 1!).  Drove all the way to Miles City.

18 August: Visited TR National Park, and drove across North Dakota to Fergus Falls.

19 August: Home!

Week 4/66: Keep On Keeping On

Today, I went on what's probably the longest hike I've ever been on, 7 miles (according to my Garmin).  42 floors up (46 down, according to the Garmin, which makes no sense, because I hiked a circular trail, and ended up where I started, so I went down as much as up.  I wonder if the Garmin doesn't think it only counts if there's a certain steepness?)

My first 5 miles went really well, I averaged just over 2 miles an hour (with my 15 pound pack).  But I slowed down considerably in the final mile, especially.  I was really tired.  My total time was 3:45.

I pretty much hit all my current Garmin goals and more.  (My current step goal is 7k, but I'll change that to 8k for this coming week.  My floors goal is 10, but since I don't usually hit that unless I go for a hike, I'm not changing it.  And my intensity minutes is 200, which I may move to 250.)

I meant to take a picture during the hike, but by the time I finished, I was really done.

I had a really good violin lesson this past week, and now have even more to practice on!

What I didn't do this past week was pretty much any real work.  And that needs to change this coming week.

A bit about my hike, so I don't forget.  I went on a small part of the Ice Age Trail called the Chippewa Moraine, starting at the Dave Obey Interpretive Center, and did the Circle Loop, with an extra two miles of Ice Age trail (out and back, one mile each way).

Edited to add (on 6/11): I also finished the three level 2 training sessions last week.  So that small project should be done!

Week 2, Gone Camping

As I posted back in January, I'm looking for an adventure for my sabbatical.  It turns out, a couple of my cousins do some backpacking, and so they're arranging a short backpacking weekend in Yosemite!

But I'm unsure: unsure if I can be fit enough, unsure if I know what to do, and so on.  But a friend of mine suggested some "backpacking lite" as she called it.  The idea is that we'd take a ferry to an island where you then backpack a short distance to campsites, and then you're done with the carrying a pack, and just hike around.

One place that works really well for this is Rock Island State Park, up in Wisconsin.  So that's where we went.

 We drove and drove and drove, eventually getting on a ferry to Washington Island.  We drove across Washington Island, parked the car, got our gear, and then took a people (and gear) ferry to Rock Island.  And there we were, on Lake Michigan!  It's amazingly clear!

We went on Friday, and got settled and went for a short walk Friday.  We made dinner (dehydrated backpacking food because we wanted to try it).  And then it started raining.  A LOT.

But the next day, we walked to the Lighthouse and went on a tour, and then walked some more, over 8 miles total.  And then there was thunder and lightning.

Before the rain, though, I did have a chance to take a couple pictures, including a selfie in Lake Michigan.  The water IS amazingly clear, but oh so cold!

 Sunset over "Michgan Ave," the main trail from our camping spot to the boathouse.

All in all, we had a great time.  We spent Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights, walked more than 8 miles both Saturday and Sunday, and about 4 each on Friday and Monday.  I learned that I shouldn't forget hot cocoa!  But my little stove worked great, and one fuel cannister lasted the whole time.

I also learned that I need to get better long pants for camping.

One of the best parts for me was that I got to see a LOT of migrant birds!  The trees weren't as leafed out as they are further down south, and so it was way easier to see birds.  (I usually miss that part of the migration period because I'm grading.)  I got really good views of Red-eyed Vireo, also Chestnut-sided and Blackburnian Warblers, Redstarts, Indigo Buntings, a flying snow goose, and some more common birds (Grey Catbirds, for example, and Ring-billed Gulls, and Double-crested Cormorants).

And now, back in the North Woods, and making a list of the things I want to get accomplished this coming week!

I really, really need to get more exercise to try to be ready to go to Yosemite!

Countdown to Break

Officially, it starts at 5pm today.  But this morning, the parking lot was way less full than usual.  (Generally, if I'm not parked by 8am, I wouldn't get a space there and would have to park further away; today, I could probably get there at 9am and find a spot.)

I have two hours of teaching, a couple hours of grading/record keeping, and then, spring break!

What with going to the UK last semester, being on 65% pay sabbatical this coming year, and getting my house painted inside (partly), my budget doesn't support travel this break.  I'll keep busy dogsitting my favorite neighbor dog, doing some grading (one big stack, one small stack), reading, putting stuff in my house back together (post painting), and exercising.

My cousin has planned a backpacking adventure for late July, so the exercise thing is urgent.  I have about four months to be ready to hike with a pack on for 8 miles in the Sierras.  I'm so very excited!

I recently realized that a friend of mine from my Peace Corps days published a memoir (in 2011), ordered it, and it came in the mail yesterday.  So right now, I'm going to force myself to grade instead of diving in to see if I'm mentioned.  (Ego!)


On other news: I have a certain colleague who really likes to complain.  Right now, she's chairing our personnel committee, something I've done (for two years), and complaining about how it's unfair she has to do it this year.  Alas, I don't feel much sympathy, since she avoided it for several years, during which time I did it, and someone else did it.  It's a thing we pretty much all have to do, so to hear her act as if it's all some grand departmental plan to punish her unfairly just doesn't sit well.

A Little Adventure before I Go

I have 8 days before I need to be on a plane to London!  I'm excited, overwhelmed, and more overwhelmed.

I've now finished all the big projects that absolutely have to be finished before I go except the whole class prep project.  There are two other projects I should also get further on.  But at least I've taken steps on one of them.

My friend, K, who's going to house sit has moved in.  So far, this arrangement is working out really well.  I hope he enjoys living in the house!  (He's a really good guy, and easy to get along with.)

I started riding my bike again this past weekend, just on a local trail.  And on Sunday, I was thinking about cutting my ride short to work on something else, so I turned off the trail onto a road in order to be able to turn around more easily, and saw a sign that pointed to a landing and said something about the joys of taking your kid fishing.  But I'd never heard of this landing, and it's only about a mile off the bike trail.  I rode up the road, which I'd thought ended at the gravel mine (visible from the trail crossing) and realized that it turned and went on from there.  What I found was a little park area, with a gravel/packed dirt and pothole parking area, a few picnic tables, and a little paved boat ramp with a sign saying that it was four something miles up river to the landing near campus, and 5 something miles down river to a landing further down.

I had a plan.  It wasn't a particularly cunning plan, but a plan.  I could put the kayak on the car with the bike inside, and drop the kayak at the landing near campus along with my life vest, paddles, and so on.  Then take the car (with the bike) to the new landing, leave the car there, and ride the bike up to the landing near campus, lock it there, get in the kayak, and go down river.  So I could do my own drop off and pick up because it's fairly close.

And that's what I did yesterday.  I was a little anxious about it, especially worried about what if I missed the landing somehow?

The thing is, right across from the landing is a ski jump, and that's visible from pretty far away, and not easy to miss, so the chances of my missing the landing and having to go another five miles were low.

The weather was good, and I told a couple friends what I was up to, and texted them before I got on the water with my eta (and then when I got out again).  But still, doing things all alone makes me a bit apprehensive.  It doesn't usually stop me doing them, but it makes me worry a bit along the way.

Here are some pictures from the adventure:

My kayak at the first landing.  (There's an ice rink right near, owned by the city and university jointly, and the city rec people were kind enough to let me leave my life vest and paddles and such there.  I used my bike lock to lock the kayak to the sign, probably illegally.  But it was out of the way at least.)

At the second landing, ready to get on the bike!

Bike parked at the ice rink, and locked up!

Kayak loaded and ready to go!

Gorgeous day on the river, mostly very quiet and calm.

Ski jump in the distance!  (Why was I worried I'd miss that?  I blame my recent reading of The Mill on the Floss, where Maggie becomes a "fallen woman" because Stephen purposefully "misses" landing at the town where they were supposed to land, and ends up going so far that they have to be sort of rescued by a ship and spend the night on it.)

A much closer view of the ski jump.  I really don't know how anyone has the courage to slide down that and fly through the air.  But they have big competitions here during winter.

The landing (with my car parked up the hill).

Pulled out!

Packed and ready to go back and pick up my bike!

All in all, it was a really lovely adventure, and I'm glad I went.  I'd like to try the next leg, too, maybe next summer!

Shy

My Mom and I are on a road trip now, and we went to Mt. St. Helens.  Unfortunately, the mountain was a bit shy.

 

But here's what it looked like when my Peace Corps reunion group went for a hike less than a week ago.

Next up, the Columbia River Gorge.

A First

I went camping yesterday. 

I went up to an island park, complete with my car packed full.  How full?  I think the Lewis and Clark expedition had less stuff.

Maybe not quite, but there was a lot of stuff.  Some years ago now, I bought a tent for a specific purpose, though I no longer quite remember why.  I used it once for that purpose.  And I lent it to a friend about five years ago.

 

When I thought about going camping recently, I aired it out and found the friend's reading glasses (a different style than my own).  So it's been a while.  I wasn't sure I'd enjoy camping, even, so I made a one night reservation, and figured if I hated it, I could leave and come home and never go again.

 

 

I got my camping spot and set up my tent.

 

As you can see, it's a beautiful site.  There's water!  (But there were surprisingly few bugs, which was great.)

I had the Retirement Fund with me.



So I went for a paddle, a couple of hours, first up the river, and then back down.  It was beautiful, and quiet.  I saw some other boaters, but mostly fishing or paddling themselves.

Then I went for a 20 mile bike ride, first scoping out the nearby town, where I found a diner.  Towards the end of my ride, I stopped at the diner and had dinner, and then road back, making it to my campsite in plenty of time to get stuff ready.  And then it was time for bed.  I was really tired, so I was lying on my sleeping bag, trying to get the energy to take out my contacts  (I did).  It was semi-noisy until it got almost totally quiet at 8:45.  After that, there was the occasional kid noise, but almost nothing.

And then it was morning!  I made my coffee (elixir of life!), and had some basic breakfast, and then I paddled around the island.  And as I was reaching the landing, I saw something swimming in the water.  I thought it was a muskrat, but hoped it was an otter.  So I paddled closer.  (I was a good ways off.)  And then it turned towards me, and it had a tan muzzle.  And round ears.  My eyes got big, and I stopped, and it swam a bit faster towards the shore.  So I paddled a bit faster.

And Yes, I saw my first bear!  It wasn't huge, but it was definitely a bear.  It got to shore, and jumped up, and went off into the underbrush.

That was pretty much the highlight of a really good camping trip.  (Short, but good.)


Meanwhile, I did some birding recently and saw a couple new birds, some of which I even got pictures of!  (The first is a Least Sandpiper; there there are Red-headed Woodpeckers.)

XKCD Project: Time

Animated, here: XKCD Time

Here's a bit on it at Boing Boing.


(Hat tip to While Looking for Something Else)


(And now, look!  There's a site dedicated to deciphering the language in *Time*!)

Road Trip

Last night, my athletic team went for a team dinner (with family folks) to a pizza place an hour or so outside of town (good pizza is worth a ride). And then we took the scenic ride home, along the Lake of Charlemagne's Son, and through a couple small towns there, where my friends S and L pointed out their favorite restaurants and snack places. We stopped finally for an ice cream cone at one of these places before finally heading home.

From the back seat, the road looked well-paved with a good shoulder, and didn't seem to have many steep hills, so this morning, I decided to drive back out and ride my bike along the lake from one small town up to a bakery in another small town and then back, and if I felt like it, up a bluff to the birthplace of a Famous Local Author.

When I got to the Town of Charlemagne's Son, I saw a tourist information place, so I stopped and went in to ask about riding trails or roads, and about the birthplace stuff. I like these sorts of small town places because you invariably get to talk to someone who loves the town and the area and will share hints about fun places to see and go. And sure enough, that was the case today.

It turns out, we're from the same area, and she's from very close to my college town, so we chatted a bit more, and she gave me some pamphlets and information and told me I could leave my car in their lot while I went for my ride. So off I went.

The road was, indeed, well paved with a good wide shoulder, but it was a bit hillier than I remembered from the car.

Here's the thing, though. I'm really happy to say that I feel pretty confident on the usual hills around here, so I wasn't overwhelmed by these, and had a really good ride going up and down. It's a surprisingly good feeling to have, this feeling that the hills around here are okay and that I'll have fun and be fine for 20-40 miles on them (so long as the paving is decent and quiet or the shoulder wide enough). I don't know how to explain it, because it's a really new feeling for me to have this sort of physical sense of myself.

I wasn't the only one who went out for a ride today, though. Every other biker in the area was on the road, too, except they had motors on their bikes, often big, very loud motors. And they went a whole lot faster. They also don't look silly wearing lycra and all. But I'd nod at them, and mostly they'd nod at me, and we seemed to have a sort of okayness about each other. I'm sure some of them were thinking that even a bike without a motor is better than no bike at all, and I was certainly thinking that they looked like they were having almost as much fun as I was.

Then I reached the bakery. In a town (of the Stone a Woman who didn't want to be Forced to Marry Jumped off of) with a double digit population marker, there's this absolutely great bakery. I parked my bike on the porch next to a rocking chair and went in to see what was what, and there were pies, and cookies, and this and that. I asked for a pie suggestion, and the bakery guy suggested Passion Fruit Cream Pie, and, as he said, when was I going to have another opportunity to have Passion Fruit Cream Pie? So I did, and he was right. It was refreshing and sweet without being at all cloying, light, flavorful, and every so foodgasmic. I ate my piece on the porch in the rocking chair, and people coming up to the bakery commented on the happiness of my face eating the pie. My pie hole was very pleased, that's for sure. And it showed.

I also bought some cookies to bring home, three each of lavender/ginger sugar cookies and chocolate oatmeal cookies. (The nice bakery guy gave me two bags so I could fit the cookies in my jersey back pockets.)

And then I headed back, and eventually reached my car again. 26 miles, and my legs are tired.

I took a lavender/ginger cookie in to give to the woman I'd chatted with at the tourist information office, to thank her for her help earlier.

And off I went to see the fake log cabin that stands in for the long gone real log cabin where the Famous Local Author was born. I took some pictures, even, though it's Not the Real Cabin, and the landscape in the area looks nothing at all like it sounds when one reads the Famous Local Author's work.

Around the Not the Real Cabin are fields of corn and soy (I'm guessing soy wasn't a big crop in those days?) I grew up in the suburbs, and though we grew some veggies in our yard, we didn't grow soy. In fact, I don't think soy is a big crop where I'm from; at any rate, I've never seen soy up close. Usually these days, I see a big field, but I don't feel right about getting out of the car (or off the bike) to get off the road and go to someone's field. Here, though, the field was right up next to the tourist area, so I did go over to look at how soy grows. And I even took a picture. To me, this seems like the bean pods are still pretty immature, but only a couple weeks ago soy was flowering around here, so they seem to grow pretty fast once they get started.

I thought I'd share the picture since I'm guessing a lot of folks haven't seen soy growing up close and personal. This blog is nothing if not educational, right?

ps. Since coming home, I've eaten one of the lavender/ginger sugar cookies. They sound weird, but it sure tasted good!