Backyard Activity on a Snow Day
- At January 23, 2013
- By Kim
- In Kim's posts, Local Happenings
5
Yesterday school had been cancelled, temperatures were hovering around zero, and there were flurries of snow and critters alike outside our windows. We spotted cardinals, chickadees, nuthatches, juncos, blue jays, downy and red-bellied woodpeckers (apparently named by someone who confuses bellies and heads), and of course our friend squirrel, who as usual was up to mischief on our angel statues. On a day requiring a lot of bravado to venture out in the elements, we were grateful for nature coming to us.
Notes regarding photos:
So you want to try photographing your backyard birdies? This is what I learned. Unless you have a good zoom lens, it is hard to get the little guys in focus from very far away. So lure the birds close. We have a suet holder on our deck (seems suet is akin to bacon for woodpeckers) and a little feeder suction cupped right to our window (it may drive your kitty even closer to insanity, but is awesomely fun if you are a backyard bird nerd like myself). I also sprinkled seed on the ground to attract ground feeders like the junco (we use thistle and safflower seed to thwart the squirrels from chowing it all down). Switch your camera to burst-shot mode if it has it and crank up the shutter speed (I used ISO 800). Make a big pot of coffee, perhaps put on your footed pajamas (if you own some, to which I will not admit here), settle in by a window with camera in hand, and be patient.
Winter at Hickory Meadows
- At January 11, 2013
- By Kim
- In Kim's posts, Places
- 1
We love Hickory Meadows. Where else, excluding use of a Star Trek transporter, can you get from the city to 112 acres of wilderness in less than 5 minutes? That’s speedy fast folks!
We might even love winter at Hickory Meadows more than any other season (no offense to the peepers in spring, sun-drenched meadow in summer, and fall colors of course). When the snow falls, several miles of trails provide a great beginner cross-country ski track as well as some sledding hills back in the wooded area for when the kiddos get tired of walking and would rather slide.
On our trek back we were rewarded with the colors of an amazing Northern Michigan sunset against the snowy white fields and the cozy smell of bonfires up the road at Hickory Hills (the city-operated downhill ski spot).
Cora loved the ice designs that the creek had made as it gradually froze over. I imagine it has melted with these warm temperatures, but we will be anxious to see the new shapes that form when winter returns in a few days. The eyes of a 7-year old saw some shoes, a rug, some ghosts, some waves, some leaves, and a face! What do you see in the ice?
For the trail map, click here.
Ladies’ Night – Downtown TC
- At December 07, 2012
- By Kim
- In Kim's posts, Local Happenings
- 3
A few photos of the lights and shoppers out in downtown Traverse City
on Ladies’ Night.
Twigs and Swigs No. 1 – The Commons
- At November 21, 2012
- By Kim
- In Kim's posts, Places
- 1
As residents of Northern Michigan, there’s not much we love more than our outdoors and our local eateries. So we are starting a series of posts providing a suggested combination of the two. It’s called..wait for it…”Twigs and Swigs,” (trust me, that took a lot of collaborative creative brain power to come up with that one!).
The trail system at The Commons, a personal favorite, is number one in the series. For those of us with kids, or those of us who are kids at heart, this spot provides an outdoor playground. Downed branches are balance beams, willow trees are jungle gyms, the rocks in the creek beg a game of hopscotch, but watch out for the dude in the photo below! Art afficianados, don’t feel left out, enjoy the juxtaposition of the work of our local Banksys and nature’s own art displays long the trails.
Once you’ve worked up a sweat, fallen out of a tree, slipped into the creek, and decided you should try your hand at graffiti; perhaps it’s time to move on to the swigs! At The Village, you can’t really go wrong. But with the chill of fall upon us, may I suggest warming up with a hot chocolate with gobs of whipped cream on top at Cuppa Joe. Delish…
Footnotes:
The photos in this post were taken along the trail to the left of the Underground Cheesecake Company (not marked on the map) and the trails behind the TBAISD building and Greenspire Montessori (yellow into green and then purple).
We at Northern Swag are not suggesting you actually try your hand at graffiti (at least not publicly).
