Nature

Spotted on my bike ride this afternoon

/ Roadtirementvintage / 50 Comments

Today while very humid, was really a decent day for a bike ride. Part of my diet regime is also a renewal of exercise. Bike rides in the neighborhood fit that bill nicely. No fancy multi-geared hand brake bike here. Nope, I have a simple coaster brake bike. Works for me and best of all I know how to ride it.

There is always something to see while pedaling around the area. Today’s ride definitely served up some neat observations. Here goes! I’ll share some photos of the flora, fauna and other stuff I saw.

A citizen added a touch of patriotism to this sign at a boat access ramp

Originally a WWII concrete practice bomb, they once lined the road with chains stretched between them

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The concrete practice bombs had two of the iron loops enabling them to be loaded in the bomb bays of the planes. They were used during WWII at Camp Atterbury at Edinburg Indiana, and repurposed for the road side chain marking. The wooden sign is next to a boat access ramp leading to Big Blue River.

A big ol’ groundhog was eating apples from nearby tree

City maintained, note the volunteer maple saplings in the center

 

 

 

 

 

 

Like I mentioned, bike riding is a big part of my new diet and exercise ‘program’. I have been riding at least twice a day with a goal of at least 3 miles each ride. I know compared to real serious riders, that’s not much, but for me it is an accomplishment, and I’m trying to increase my distances each day.  So today I have pedaled 5.25 miles, consumed one shake and one salad. Don’t know about tonight’s supper yet. Probably another shake. Blood pressure is still down.

The beard sail

One funny thing happened to me today during the ride. It was the first time I was pedaling at, for me, a rapid rate and wham! here came a strong headwind. It made my beard feel like a sail, and actually created quite the resistance.  Felt really strange.

A neat feature at a park

/ Roadtirementvintage / 20 Comments

This afternoon Sher and our son and I went on a ‘hunt’ for a Geocache at a nearby park. We had looked it up last night on a map, and there it was! So off we went.

Explanation of how the swale works

This Geocache was not one of those hidden boxes or log books. This one was a feature at the park. We went in search of a Water Quality Bio-Swale. Yes, a feature that is designed to collect pollutants from rain fall runoff.

That’s the swale in the background

It actually looked like an ordinary swale for rain runoff. This one had a more complex design than you normally expect. There was a thick layer of sandy soil in the low part of the swale which filtered any pollutants. A layer of gravel at the bottom surrounded a  perforated drain pipe in which the storm water runs off to a nearby river.

The story of Indiana’s state tree

The swale banks were planted with trees native to Indiana. One of the park volunteers was mapping the location and species of each tree while we were on site. He informed us that there will be individual ID signs on each tree and a brochure with detailed info coming soon.

Another “One year later” post

/ Roadtirementvintage / 15 Comments

Taken June 20, 2020

Taken June 30, 2021

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is another look at our backyard flower and herb garden. These two photos show the same herb plant 12 months apart. We planted this sage in early June, 2020. We did harvest and dry some of the sage last fall. The other shot was taken this afternoon. This sage has really grown a lot.

In the upper left corner of today’s photo you can get a glimpse of the chives plant. In the lower right corner you can see leaves of one of the Asiatic lilies highlighted in another post here.

A dragon approaches

/ Roadtirementvintage / 18 Comments

OK, it’s a storm cloud, but to me it looks like a dragon’s head

We have been needing some rain, and this system did bring a nice shower. While we are not getting the extreme heat like in the Pacific Northwest, our temps have been in the low 90’s with stifling humidity. The weather forecasters say the “Muggy Meter” is pegged today.

One year later

/ Roadtirementvintage / 25 Comments

Taken on June 20, 2020

Taken on June 25, 2021

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This Black Cherry was one we got free from the Conservation Service and Indiana DNR. The first picture was taken on June 20, 2020 shortly after being planted. The sapling was then in a cage for protection, and the top visible rung on the cage is less than 2 feet high.  The second picture was taken on June 25, 2021. The tree is now a little over 6 feet tall. Black Cherry trees normally take 8 to 10 years of growth before they produce cherries. We’ll report back in June, 2030.