Winter Hikes

Hiking is such a fantastic break from the day to day.  With the very mild temps that we are having this January I had to schedule a hiking date for our little family.  This hiking trail ended up being a little more of a walk than what I would consider a hike and a little less than spectacular (highway noise can be a bummer on a hike!) but it was still such a great break and we enjoyed ourselves just the same.  Just good old quality time. 

With the sun setting so early there is some really beautiful light in the afternoons.  During the week it can be hard to enjoy as many of us are busy plugging away at computers in the afternoon hours but it is lovely to stop for a few minutes to take notice of it on the weekends.  This weekend was packed with work for the shop (packing up etsy orders and creating iPhone cases) and packing (we are moving!) so I appreciated the quiet moments among the trees with my husband and pups.

This week I am looking forward to...

• A first meeting of a brand new book club (it has been so long since I have been in a book club!)
• Researching art fair application options
• Starting to select photos for the 2011 album and for our weekend getaway albums
• Packing (can't wait to move!)

Hears to having an awesome week!

Romance on a hike

Or maybe romance should be in full on color?

Most of the time I prefer color.  And on the occasion that I love a shot in black and white it unwavering.  But this bridge has me torn... I love the green.  Full lush green trees put me at ease yet there is something almost dramatic with the black and white.  So I am posting both versions because that is the beauty of digital- options!

Lake Superior & Madeline Island

As we were so close to the Lake Superior shore while camping in the North Woods, we had to make a quick trip to check out this great lake.  It was beautiful... lakes have such an effect on me.  I am completely smitten with being on a lakefront (as mentioned before).

We spent a bit of time visiting Bayfield and then took the ferry to Madeline Island, one of the Apostle Islands.  The bonus part of camping next to a bear trap is that all of your food and cook out gear is already packed in the car... making it easy to picnic at the beach in Big Bay State Park.  The dogs weren't allowed on the beach so a ways into the bay hiking trail we found a cliff that was navigability... shhhh.

It was a lovely day at the lake, if too short.  We spent much of the rest of our quick trip talking about lake houses, specifically the where and when and dreams of large family get togethers.

Exploring the North Woods Wisconsin

Over the fourth of July weekend we headed up to the North Woods of Wisconsin for a very quick visit.  It completely exceeded my expectations.  Loved it.  The dense forest, wildflowers and smog free big blue skies won me over.

For our third annual camping trip, we camped at Copper Falls State Park in one of the walk to sites.  It was the best campsite yet.  Even if we were next door to a bear trap... I was kind of freaked out about camping in bear country, even if they are only black bears.  But we made it through the weekend with zero bear encounters.

It was a whirlwind of a trip but we fit in a visit to Lake Superior and Madeliene Island... more on that shortly.