The Great Midwest
Susan and I just completed our Fall tour of the upper Midwest and I’m sharing here a couple of posts resulting from this expedition, posted recently on woodrisebooks.com, my new outdoors blog.
Read more "The Great Midwest"The Peak of the Season
Back in the car, I started a drive to a much different part of the park but noticed a tall yellow mushroom under a row of spruces. I stopped at the next lot, loaded up the pack and returned on the off chance that this had been a Porcini.
Read more "The Peak of the Season"Hens in the Woods
I found that I liked Chicken of the Woods but I found that I liked Hen of the Woods (the drab giant prize at the end of my hike) even better.
Read more "Hens in the Woods"Off the Beaten Track
It’s actually easy to have miles of woodland trail to yourself in any of the eastern states.
Read more "Off the Beaten Track"Embrace The Wild – Keep the Change
Ownership of some of the land we’d just passed through had changed since we’d last visited and we were now barred from entry. This favorite stretch, first described by me in my book The Dying Fish, was now part of someone’s private preserve and we aren’t allowed in.
Read more "Embrace The Wild – Keep the Change"Maturing With Mushrooms
Through it all though, I’ve become much less fearful of these fruits of the forest floor (or decaying logs, or trees…) That’s what knowledge is good for – conquering fear and inspiring more curiosity.
Read more "Maturing With Mushrooms"Deep Woods
When I talk to novices about getting into the woods, I ordinarily downplay the role of gear in preparedness, persuading instead that the emphasis should be placed on mental and physical preparedness.
Read more "Deep Woods"Columbine Creek
Our companion shook his head with some certainty. “No, I haven’t seen any. People found out about the trout and came down and kept them all. It just got fished out.”
Read more "Columbine Creek"Muskies Eleven
The muskellunge resembles the more common pike (no minnow itself) but greatly outclasses it in size and sometimes simply eats pike for breakfast.
Read more "Muskies Eleven"Flaco the Free Bird
The threat of starvation was mentioned more than once, reasonably, since this bird had only ever had food handed to him. It was also notable though that the two other stories sharing Flaco’s page were a piece on the rats infesting the mayor’s row house rentals and the sad story of a pink NYC pigeon.
Read more "Flaco the Free Bird"
the dying fish 