Picnic at the Marina...

What do you do on a beautiful day, that doesn't cost much money and is interesting to everyone in the family?  A picnic of course!  We usually go to one of the beautiful wooded parks that we have around here. However, there is an allurement to the water that we found hard to resist that day...maybe because it was so hot, and maybe because half of us really wanted to fish.  Whatever the reasons were, we decided to head out to the marina and spend our day there and also in the adjoining state park.

Perfect view for lunch!

We made our sandwiches and wraps right on the spot. Turkey Cheddar
wraps with homemade hummus.

After a satisfying lunch, we all headed off to our respective spots.  Some to fish (caught and released, one Rock Bass!) and others to walk along the beach shore and then the walking path that borders the lake.

We also took a long hike in the woods later in the afternoon.  It began to drizzle, so the woods became an inviting place to hang out.

Found a few fun things along the way...

Lighthouse...it was trying to rain.

Yellow Tiger Swallowtail "puddling" in the sand.

My brother, who's a naturalist, says he thinks this is crown 
vetch.  It's so pretty and looked great along this fence
line...!

Being by the water is so refreshing.  It was such a nice day and a great mix of land and water.  The boats were fun to watch come in and we ended up being outdoors for many hours; getting recharged and ready for the week.  It was a pretty great week and I hope yours was great too...blessings to you all!

Photo Hike

Okay, here's an easy way to hike without ever leaving the room.  It doesn't rid you of excess calories or build any muscle, but it is visually refreshing and that's almost as good.  We have so many great parks in our area thanks to an excellent park system.  So our "hike" on this day was at Hogback Ridge.  (The name comes from the fact that the high ridge with two steep valleys on either side resembles the bony spine of a hog.  Makes for a good story at least!) It's not a difficult place to hike because of the 1300 foot boardwalk, but the steps going down to the river compel you to exercise, hands down. So, enjoy the journey and hope you feel as refreshed mentally as we did once we were finished. 

Trekking on the trail, boardwalk style

This boardwalk is pretty easy for most strollers so this makes a family friendly park.

Early evening hike 

Approaching the steps to the river 

Going down was a bit harder than going up because of the steps.

Trail going to the river

We'll be there any minute now...

The prize...

The Grand River in all its grand style.  Love the reflection on the water...

Eye Candy

Beautiful, but icy water

Not just admiring the scenery, but checking out for Steelhead Trout. Huge fish that swim  up the creeks for winter and head back out to Lake Erie in early Spring.  Sometimes there are a few stragglers left behind.

Lovely white Trillium wildflower

If you don't want to hazard the steps going down to the river, then up on the ridge is another short trail that runs alongside it.  It has an overlook as you go along and then the boardwalk is replaced by gravel.  It's a nice short little walk and we usually head back up here after we walk along the river a bit.  There's usually so much to be seen and done by the river, that this feels like a nice wind down to the rest of the hike.  You can also find a few spots to walk down to the river along this trail that aren't as "treacherous" or as long as the previous steps.

Approaching the overlook, overgrown some, but a nice place to rest.

Last bits of sunshine

Boardwalk ends and gravel trail begins...

If you have a stroller here, be prepared to walk fast, it's a pretty steep  incline!

View of the water from along the trail.

A lone Violet makes a statement

Almost finished

Sunset on the trail

The reward?  Coffee and a chocolate almond biscotti at the local coffee house.  Perfect.

Have an amazing day!!