October Beach Days....................

So, cold and rain does not stop us. As long as we can we will be going out and having fun. Winter is way too long. So let's make it as short as we can.
Laura and I headed out just for a ride but we ended up in Leland, yes, on the beach. We could see the rain so knew we had a little time. I wanted to get some pictures of the Fall colours while the leaves are still one the trees. Well today we had a dust of snow so these days are getting fewer.
Off we go.

There were still some colours out there.

Some chilly Seagulls waiting. Waiting for what?

We stopped in Lake Leelanau for coffee and a scone. Yum, Blueberry. Watched some birds at their feeders.

And I loved this pumpkin outside.

We sat inside while it rained. Didn't last long and so we went on to Leland and to the beach. The sun was out again and there was a rainbow

It came and went and eventually made a whole bow. Meanwhile we looked for blue stones without much luck. I did find some nice flat oval stones that will make nice necklaces. (we hope)


I love the beaches at this time of year. Dramatic skies and howling wind. It was not cold, just very windy. We could see the rain coming and knew how long we had to get off the beach.
One thing that was very troubling was that we found about half a dozen dead water fowl. I wonder why? They may have got cold or drowned in the storms? I have no idea. One strange thing was that one of them had the body of a small rodent a few yards away.
Does Laura look a bit cold?

The sun came and went and the sky was beautiful

Across the river, the harbour and Leland Fish town


We could see the rain coming so we left.

As we left this young guy was on his way down to the beach, haha

We had to go home because we had a late start, so even though I don't have to get back for Tristen anymore we still have to be back for Reina by 4ish


Lovely old barns on M72


We were going to go out today but were too tired. It got really cold and rained too so just as well we decided not to go. There wont be too many more days like this one. Snow was all around us, it wont settle yet but it won't be long.

Not Quite The Same.................

Laura was working today so we had Reina for the day. I got my work done and laundry actually put away. It's a nice sunny day so I asked Gerry if he wanted to go for a walk. Maybe, he said. Reina said yes so Granddad had to get into the mood.

The colour is certainly past the peak now. The woods were lovely though. I am not so keen on these paths that have so many people on them, but saw plenty of ladies walking alone. That's encouraging.

We missed having Tristen. Reina ran around but it's not the same without your companion. So we phoned him when we got home.

I was hoping for some good pictures but nothing spectacular, although it was good to get some exercise. Much more fun when me and Laura go. Gerry is not much for walking far and didn't fancy going for a drive.

Apparently someone thought it would be fun to have some fairy houses in the woods. That would be great but then people have build their own and they are sort of trashy, The ones actually put there are built with natural things.

The ones put there by kids or others will end up all over the woods by Spring and become junk laying around.
Nice idea but not thought through.
Well we didn't do much else but I did take this from the top of a subdivision that looks down on the town

Dead Mans Hill.............................

Out for the day with Edna. It has been a very pretty day, sunny and bright. It was quite warm too. I went out for the day with Edna. She loves to drive and I do not. She knows all the back roads all over the state and I do not.Anyway, we didn't let a beautiful day go to waste.

So we went north in the hope that the colours are changed, while not at their peek, or maybe past the peek? I don't know, but beautiful either way. I don't know all the roads but somehow we ended up in and around East Jordan and Alba. We stopped for lunch in a very very small town and it was awesome food as it often is in some of those small places. Sometimes we take a picnic but some days its just nice to find a quiet place and enjoy a lunch out.


Some colours were brilliant, some muted but it was a lovely ride.


We stopped by "Dead Man's Hill" I copied the sign and that explains it for us. It was windy on the top of the hill. Exhilarating. I love the wind like that, the nip in the air so fresh and clean. I wished I could have been alone but there were a few people taking in the view across the Jordan Valley.




I would have loved to have gone for a hike but that was for another day.

The fungus on the trees, so pretty.

It is hard to capture the colours on film, especially from a moving car, but I tried.

The sky was pretty all day, layers of clouds.

The seeds make a pretty picture also. Anyway it was a lovely day with a lovely lady.

It would have been a perfect day for hiking but then again, it's bow hunting season. So as it always is at this time of year, the beauty of the forest is tainted. We can't really hike unless we wear bright orange. I prefer to stay away. It's safe enough in these places because most ban hunting, but not all so one has to be careful.

A chilly day at the beach.....................

Laura and myself do some crazy stuff. It's a wonder we don't get hurt sometimes. That usually involves animals but we do lots of silly things. I taught her well (eye roll).
Well this Monday, a week or so ago (when my computer was gone) we went to the beach. It was a cold day but we wanted to get out.
The beach was empty just as we like it. I love this time of year. The weather is milder and as the leaves turn its very pretty.



We were not looking for stones this day but, well when you see a Petoskey stone, can you pass it by?


Only a few trees had changed. It should be the peak sometime this week.

We didn't see any animals. Sheesh!!!!! A couple of butterfly is all. We went up through the woods just in case there was something to see. When we got off the beach (Otter Creek) we stopped to look at the river. We saw BIG rainbow trouts in there. Very pretty.

The rest of those roads was mainly farm land and the conservation for the national park has saved many that can be explored.

Not a lot to see, no birds, no deer, nothing up in the woods. When we got back down Laura noticed a snake and chased it off the road. This guy was not so lucky. Poor thing.

We did stop at a ruin that we always pass by. Nothing to see though

Up in the woods we passed some riders. Always pull off the road or go slow passed horses. You never know. When I had a horse people could be really stupid, some liked to see the horses act up and would scare them.

Oh I forgot, we did see one deer. It was bounding across a meadow and stopped to enjoy some apples

Later on Laura picked some pears from a field that used to be a farm. we did see two Bald Eagles on that road but no pictures. I love these silo's and I think I take a picture every time.

On the way home the county had finished the bike path that now joins the trails and we were able to get a good look at this lake. We remember years ago it was just a swampy area and the trees died as it got bigger. Now its a lake. There is a farm there and the lake is almost up to the barn now. Unless the park service do something they will loose the barn. Its good to see nature working

On our way home we took a detour along a country road we like. Stopped to talk to this girl who is pregnant

She seems lonely. Across the road were her friends and family. I have stopped eating beef and pork. However I wish all cattle could live out their lives in wonderful pastures like this.

They were very curious and came down from the woods and back fields to check us out. The old bull in the back field was not happy though so we didn't stay long.


I love cows. I have had a few experiences with them though and learned a few lessons. Cows are curious so don't ever run, they will think you are going somewhere and run after you. Trust me, I know.