Last week nine people came out to hike the West Battle River section from the highway south of Gwynne to the ski hill. This section has some of the grandest views on the Waskahegan Trail.
This hike was postponed from earlier this summer due to the overwhelmingly soggy conditions. And that’s why no one was surprised by the huge population of mosquitoes. Mosquito netting worn over the hat is the way to dress these days.
Sixteen people came out on a brilliantly sunny day to hike the Middle Coal Lake section from Kjorlein Corner to the pumping station.
It was a great day for watching birds. In the trees along the lake we saw several waxwings and we listened to the song of yellow warblers. We stopped to observe a flock of four pelicans bobbing on the glittering lake. They tolerated us for some time. Then suddenly they were flapping their wings and lifting off. Glancing up, we saw cause of the disturbance — a blue heron flying like a jet over their heads. The large bird moved too fast for the camera, but one of our pictures captured its feet.
In bloom at this time are blue columbines (Aquilegia) in the shade, wild onions (most likely the Prairie Onion or Allium textile) and prairie smoke (Geum) on the sunny slopes, and masses of high bush cranberry (Vibernum) on the margins of the woods.
Blue ColumbineWild OnionPrairie SmokeHigh Bush Cranberry
The trail has many ups and downs, including some places with rope railings to help you along. This is not a trail for long stretches of easy strolling. However, the views are magnificent.
