Stonefort Nature Trail

We headed up the trail as a small creek headed down in a space between two hardier bluff sides. This was the last day of trails on our trip to Giant City and Stonefort was the shorter and nearer on the loop we intended to make on the day, so we made our way along the incline to the top of the cliff.

When the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) back in the 1930s built the trails and lodge in the state park, they discovered rocks and Indian tools on the cliff. They rearranged rocks to create a wall which they figured was the configuration of the orignal "fort" wall.



Fort Wall?

What was the use of the area? No one knows for sure. One of the two most widely mentioned theories for the site's settlement was that the "fort" was that it really was a fort used as a defensive establishment. Given the nature of the bluff looking over the valley and that the only access point would be through the top of the bluff, a stone wall along that access definitely would provide an excellent defensive position. The other leading theory was that settlers used the space as a large pen, with the wall being used to confine gathered animals. However, no direct evidence supports fully either of these two theories.

After looking at the fort, we walked along the bluff edge. Yes, the trail literally came to the edge of the cliff and we caught a good view of the valley and of the steep dropoff to the base of the bluff.



Viewing the Bluff

If it were wet, the trail along the cliff side I wouldn't suggest taking. But since it was dry, it was nice to get a real view of the terrain. After winding along the edge, we took one more look of the stone wall and headed back down.

The trail is relatively short, but for its size, it does offer an interesting slice of the past and scenic views. I'm definitely curious how the valley looks in summer from the trail along the bluff edge. It's definitely worth hiking.

The End of Spring Snow

Within a few days, the patches will be gathering on the grass and alongside fences. It's time. White fluffy stuff is floating in the air again. Already I spot it on the pavement sticking to the fresh oil of a construction zone.




Gathering


The calendar reads almost June. This is the rite of passage--the trees releasing to the breeze their offer of another generation. The snow is lazy lounging snow. It's time for lemonade and barbecue and soaking in the warmth of summer sun.




Picnic Snow


In this post are photos from the backyard of my old aprtment during last year's blizzard. Perhaps I'll catch a few new shots over the next week or so.




Blanketing the Lawn

Manhattanhenge

Photo by Roger Rowlett


It's a biannual event that takes place in New York City, when the setting sun lines up with the east-west streets of Manhattan. These dates are usually around May 28th (appropriate for today!) and July 12th or 13th.

Being in the Chicago area, I'm now curious to see if there is something similar in Chicago. At some point, the angles of the east-west streets here would match the setting sun, but I have never thought about it. Time for research...

But for today, if you'd like to see more photos, check out Flickr: Manhattanhenge Tags

Spice and a Touch of Sweetness

Last Thursday, I stir-fried in the wok some chicken and peppers spiced by sprinklings of cayenne and black pepper. The flavored heat offered a good opportunity to pair with the dish an off-dry white, which often is a speciality of many small American wineries across the country. Southern Illinois is no exception, and Sandra and I tasted several solid selections during our trip to the Shawnee Hills area.

With the chicken, I decided on Von Jakob's Traminette, a grape varietal made by Herb C. Barrett in the 1960s when he genetically crossed the French American hybrid Joannes Seyve 23.416 and the German Gewürztraminer. For more viticultural information, you can check an analysis from 1996 by Cornell University, 'Traminette' Grape.

While not the packing the same intense spicy floral notes of the parent Gewürztraminer, the Von Jakob's offering shows good aspects of the varietal: apple with a splattering of more exotic fruit like pineapple with good acidity and weight. The wine complemented the food well. The slight sweetness soothed the spice of the dish, and the mouth feel was just right as neither the wine nor food hogged the stage diminishing the other's flavor. There weren't any troubles finishing the bottle with the meal.

For more about the winery, you can click: Von Jakob Vineyard.

About the Swing

Bagger Vance: What I'm talkin about is a game... A game that can't be won only played...
Rannulph Junuh: You don't understand...
Bagger Vance: I don't need to understand... Ain't a soul on this entire earth ain't got a burden to carry he don't understand, you ain't alone in that... But you been carryin' this one long enough... Time to go on... lay it down...
Rannulph Junuh: I don't know how...
Bagger Vance: You got a choice... You can stop... Or you can start...
Rannulph Junuh: Start?
Bagger Vance: Walkin...
Rannulph Junuh: Where?
Bagger Vance: Right back to where you always been... and then stand there... Still... real still... And remember...
Rannulph Junuh: It's too long ago...
Bagger Vance: Oh no sir it was just a moment ago... Time for you to come on out the shadows Junuh... Time for you to choose...
Rannulph Junuh: I can't...
Bagger Vance: Yes you can... but you ain't alone... I"m right here with ya... I've been here all along... Now play the game... Your game... The one that only you was meant to play... Then one that was given to you when you come into this world... You ready?... Stike that ball Junuh don't hold nothin back give it everything... Now's the time... Let yourself remember... Remember YOUR swing... That's right Junuh, settle yourself... Let's go... Now is the time, Junuh...

The above dialogue is from "The Legend of Bagger Vance", which is a Hollywood attempt to show golf and life. I watched it for the first time on Memorial Day. The movie is a solid bit of work, sort of "A Field of Dreams" for golf. While I do think the movie was a bit over the top in getting its point across at times, I still think it's a worthwhile effort with the above conversation being a good example.

Almost Passed By

Traveling the wine trail in the Shawnee Hills on the way to another winery, we approached the sign for Orlandini Vineyards. Sandra and I hadn't plan to stop there, but we decided to stop and take a look and a taste. The place was definitely off the beaten path--welcome to gravel--but we found it with relative ease.

They had a fairly small, but nice overall selection. One wine, the Chambourcin & Cabernet Franc blend, in particular, stood out. It's predominately Chambourcin with just a touch of the noble French varietal. With good fruit and structure, it reminds me a lot of Mediterrean blends from Southern France or perhaps even Spain. Some of the characteristic foxiness of the Chambourcin shows, but it gives a pleasing complexity to the wine.

We bought four bottles on the trip and opened one a few weeks ago. It's a real value at $12, beating out many wines at that price point in terms of flavor and depth. It went well with sandwiches on our small picnic. I think it would pair well with a light roast too.

The winery doesn't have a web site, but you can find additional info about it on the Shawnee Hills Wine Trail site:
More Information on Orlandini Vineyards

Views of Chicago from Construction Sites

On Smugmug, another great gallery of Chicago photos has been added to jimojimo's collection. This time the photos were taken by Jim Horton from the Aqua Tower.

To see them, click:
City Views from the Aqua Tower by Jim Horton

Also, as a little tease from a past post, Ken Derry has an excellent collection of photography on Smugmug. He has added a couple of new galleries and has a book coming out soon. Here's a small showing of his work:


Sunrise over Lake Michigan (copyright Ken Derry)

To check out more of Ken's work, click:
Ken Derry's Photography

In Betweening

The Spring semester wrapped up a week ago and the Summer is still 2 1/2 weeks ago. So I'm between sessions; this should allow me a chance to catch up on posts. I'd still like to write a bit more about being down in Giant City State Park, plus a few more topics which have crossed my mind in the past month. Also I just came back from a trip to Ohio, so there's plenty to mention about that (and photos to show) too.

Until then, something to consider from Douglas Adams, author of Life, the Universe, and Everything from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series:

There is an art, or, rather, a knack to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.

First and Second

Cito Gaston has them playing good ball out of the gate. After thirty-four games, the Toronto Blue Jay record is 22-12, best in the AL. This mark is deserving as much as anything can be for league manager. Cito has earned his mark.

I remember '92 and '93 when the Jays took the stage during baseball's Fall Classic. They were one of my teams when I was little and followed the game. It had nothing to do with winning. Toronto was an expansion team in 1977, and in the late 70s, they were bad, very bad, cellar dwelling in the AL East. Still, there is something about blue jays, the birds. There is something about that shade of blue like the color of sky. There was something to me being young and seeing those jays on a baseball cap.

So when Toronto won their first series in 1992, I followed it a little. I can't say for sure against whom they played. I figure that it was Atlanta, since the 90s was the Braves' decade even if they only won one title. The Jays backed the championship with another in '93. I remember the Phillies' Mitch Williams and Joe Carter, the RBI man in the middle of Toronto's lineup. I remember Carter launching one for a dramatic walk-off homerun.

Cito managed those winning teams, though the team floundered quickly after the championships and he was fired. The label was that Gaston was too much of a players' coach--too soft, too easy, too disinterested. Yes, he was and is a players' coach. He lets players go out and win a championship and two titles is as many as a more reputable coach like Tony La Russo has ever won. That's also one more than Lou Pinella or Bobby Cox, but that didn't stop gneral managers from overlooking Gaston for a long time.

Yet he returned to baseball as a hitting instructor, and when Toronto offered him a chance to manage again last year, he took it. He had the desire to see the players hit the field and play. He knows the game. When asked about the Blue Jays' early success, Cito replied "They’re winning because of their talent, not their manager."

Indeed.

No Stars

On Friday night, the community college scheduled a special viewing at the telescope located on campus. Sandra and I decided to make it an evening and picnic before the presentation started.

Clouds patterned the sky as we parked and headed to the observatory deck. I wasn't quite sure which way led to the telescope, but I picked what look like a trail and stepped forward into the the school's nature area. Tall grasses, wildflowers, a pond, and birds which I have never seen elsewhere surrounded us. The footing was a squishy damp in places, but we made progress along the water to the path which led to the observation deck.

A sign announced that that viewing was canceled due to cloudy skies. Yes, it was mostly cloudy, but I figured we could see something. After all, the night promised a full moon. Undettered, we decided, since we had food, that we should go ahead and picnic. So we spread things out along a seating bench on the observatory deck.

A little pepperoni, some drink, aged Irish cheddar, and asiago-peppercorn bread. It was simple and satisfying as a big fat reddish moon appeared above a line of clouds to the far east. Melodies filled the air as numerous birds scored the scene of the setting sun.

Then deer captured attention's light. First, a single deer to the north ventured from the tree and brush line. Sandra and I both stared. The deer stared back, almost as if the deer was expecting us to invite it over for dinner. Minutes later, more deer, including a few yearlings, appeared. They watched us and nibbled on spring vegetation. The young ones pranced across the open grass.

The moment unfolded at the edge of the woods on a night when the focus was tossed aside due to cloudy skies. Yet little tinkling diamonds needed to be seen, even if they weren't the stars.

Waiting for Deer

The slowly unwinding tale of the trip to Giant City continues...

Later, near dusk, after hiking the Giant City Nature and Devil's Standtable trails, Sandra wanted to see some deer. The first two days, we spied a few near the cabins around sunset. This time she wanted to be prepared and really get a view. With camera in hand, I sat next to her on a bench outside the cabin and waited.

Five minutes. Ten minutes. No deer, yet a somewhat familiar sound carried to us, and we looked around.



Gazing Skyward

It was a soft knocking, one we had heard on the trail before. Sandra's eyes zeroed in on the branch and caught it.



Woodpecker!

It wasn't the large-winged bird that we startled early, the pileated woodpecker. This was a much smaller cousin. Still it was amazing for us to see the small animal on the mostly severed branch of a nearby tree.



Little One on the Tree

For minutes, we watched and I took dozens of pictures as the woodpecker inspected the branch, rising to where the limb cracked.



A Thorough Investigation

It's stunning how moments can be themselves. We sat outside, searched for deer, and found none as we waited that late afternoon/evening. Yet, the moment stood apart due to a completely unexpected little knocking, just one small bird going about its daily life.

More Night Sky Viewing

Over the past several days, more fantastic images have appeared on the site Astronomy Picture of the Day. In particular, check their May 1st post:

On April 22nd, the Lyrid Meteor Shower visited planet Earth's sky, an annual shower produced as the Earth plows through dust from the tail of comet Thatcher. Usually Lyrid meteor watchers see only a drizzle. Just a few meteors per hour stream away from the shower's radiant point near bright star Vega in the constellation Lyra. But photographer Tony Rowell still managed to catch one bright Lyrid meteor...

For more of the explanation and the image, visit Lyrid Meteor and Milky Way.