Spring – Neaton Adventures

Quarry Hill Park-Rochester-Minnesota

May 4, 2024Posted in Adventure, hiking, Minnesota, Nature, Outdoors, Photography, UncategorizedTagged Adventure, exploring, hiking, Hiking Adventures, Minnesota, Nature, nature photography, Outdoors, Parks, Quarry Hill Nature Center, Quarry Hill Park, Spring, travelLeave a comment

Today’s hiking adventure was at Quarry Hill Park.

We began our rainy day hike by the Quarry Hill Nature Center.

We hiked the paved trail past Harry L. Buck Children’s Pond.

There are a variety of trails to choose from at this park. Due to the rain it was a bit muddy and slick in places.

The fragrant wildflowers and blossoming trees captivated our senses.

Four deer appeared right next to where we were on the trail. With all the new growth it was hard to see them.

The trail had been nice and wide until we crossed over the creek.

We hiked the narrow trails through the forest area. Nature’s soundtrack was on point today. The birds were singing, the squirrels were playing, and the sounds of rain pitter pattering on the leaves was very therapeutic.

We arrived at the quarry. Due to all the rain, we were unable to hike down into the pit. A return trip later this summer is a must!

A trail led us around the quarry allowing us to take in all the different views.

Down the hill we went. It was a bit slippery in places.

Once back at the pond, we decided to end our hike due to being soaking wet and a bit chilly

Today’s hiking adventure was 3.1 miles.

Fort Snelling State Park-St. Paul-Minnesota

April 15, 2023Posted in Adventure, hiking, Minnesota, Minnesota State Parks, Mississippi River, Nature, Outdoors, Photography, UncategorizedTagged Adventure, Coldwater Spring, exploring, Fort Snelling State Park, hiking, Hiking Adventures, Minnehaha Falls, Minnesota, Minnesota State Parks, Mississippi River, nature photography, Outdoors, Parks, Spring1 Comment

Today’s hiking adventure began at Fort Snelling State Park.

We parked by the Thomas C. Savage Visitor Center and began our hike towards Pike Island. Let me backup a bit, this past winter Minnesota experienced its 3rd snowiest winter. This past week, the weather was in the high 80’s which meant the snow melted fast! As we neared the bridge to cross over to Pike Island we noticed…well…as you will see in the picture below, the bridge was surrounded by water. Since we didn’t have a canoe, we needed to change our hiking plans.

We decided to hike the paved trail towards Coldwater Spring. The weather was cool and rainy. It sure was nice to see little bits of spring beginning to pop out.

In the distance, we could hear running water. We exited the paved trail and began to explore the unpaved trails. A mini waterfall surrounded by colorful graffiti appeared.

As we entered Coldwater Spring, more signs of spring began to appear.

We continued to hike the unpaved trails towards Minnehaha Falls.

The Mississippi River was flowing fast. Areas that were normally dry were now flooded.

The trails led us up and down the cliffs. The heavy snow storm we had a week ago did lots of damage. Many trees were down, thick branches were snapped, and even the cliffs weren’t immune to the damage.

The trail close to the river was underwater, so back to the paved trail we went. The Ford Parkway Bridge can be seen in the distance. There is an island in the middle of the river. Currently it is under water, however, you can still see the tops of the trees.

We took the staircase back down to the trails closest to the river.

The water is close to the top of this bridge’s archway.

The trail crosses under the Steel Bridge also known as the Minnesota Veterans Home Bridge.

The closer we got to the Minnehaha Falls the louder the rushing water became.

Minnehaha Falls

As we looped back towards our starting point, more signs of spring began to appear.

We crossed over an old bridge and down an old staircase. The trail at the end of the stairs was flooded.

We hiked the paved trail back to our cars.

Today’s hiking adventure was 8.2 miles.

Pine Point Regional Park-Stillwater-Minnesota

May 21, 2022Posted in Adventure, hiking, Minnesota, Mississippi River, Nature, Outdoors, Photography, UncategorizedTagged Adventure, exploring, hiking, Hiking Adventures, Loon Lake, Louise Lake, Minnesota, nature photography, Outdoors, Parks, Pine Point Regional Park, Spring, Stillwater, Washington County, Washington County ParkLeave a comment

Today’s hiking adventure began at Pine Point Regional Park. This Washington County Park allows the trails to be used for hikers, bikers and our equine friends. The paved Gateway Trail cuts through the park. Most of the bikers we saw stayed on this trail. The trail map showed four different color coded looping trails. We decided to hike all four.

We began our hike on the yellow trail. This non paved trail led us through the woods and to a prairie.

The trail continued to Louise Lake. We briefly detoured from the yellow trail to the blue trail so we could hike alongside the lake.

The terrain changed just as frequently as the weather did. The sun began to shine, and the green of the forest became electric.

We hiked past several marshes that were higher than usual due to all the rain we have had lately. The frogs sang to us as we stopped for photos.

This next photo is my favorite of the day. The mirrored reflection is very serene.

The next trail we hiked was the blue trail. The trail was covered in thick grass and dandelions.

The green trail led us through a grove of birch trees as we hiked towards Loon Lake.

The youth of spring is nearing its end in Minnesota, however, we were able to see some crabapple blossoms and baby ferns growing.

Last but not least, the red trail. The trail was covered with luscious green grass. The giant open field was covered in small pine trees.

We found a giant mushroom, which I believe is called a Dryad’s Saddle.

Today’s hiking adventure was 6.3 miles.

Sunfish Lake Park-Lake Elmo-Minnesota

May 14, 2022Posted in Adventure, hiking, Minnesota, Nature, Outdoors, Photography, UncategorizedTagged Adventure, exploring, hiking, Hiking Adventures, Lake Elmo, Minnesota, nature photography, Outdoors, Parks, Spring, Sunfish Lake, Sunfish Lake Park1 Comment

Today’s hiking adventure was at Sunfish Lake Park. The park offers single track bike trails and hiking trails. The dirt trails were surprisingly dry due to all the rain we received this week.

We hiked by a small lake that was surrounded by birch trees. The birch trees mirrored themselves in the water creating an amazing view.

Everywhere we looked the colors were electrifyingly bright. The green was so vivid with spring’s new growth.

Even the mushrooms were out catching some sun.

The trail led us to a beautiful restored prairie.

After a quick stop at the Nature Center for a beverage refill, we hiked the trail to Sunfish Lake.

Along the trail was a giant tree that spoke to me to come closer. I am glad I listened. I found a little gnome couple hanging out with some mushroom friends.

Today’s hiking adventure was 6.4 miles.

Spring Lake Regional Park-Prior Lake-Minnesota

April 2, 2022April 2, 2022Posted in Adventure, hiking, Minnesota, Nature, Outdoors, Photography, UncategorizedTagged Adventure, exploring, hiking, Hiking Adventures, Minnesota, nature photography, Outdoors, Parks, Prior Lake, Spring, Spring Lake Regional Park, Three Rivers Park District6 Comments

After a week of rain, ice and snow, today felt like Spring! The sun was shining with fluffy clouds scattered across the sky; a perfect day for a hiking adventure. The trails throughout the park were well marked and nicely paved.

The winding trail allowed us to see different tree groves and areas of wetlands.

We even found some pussy willows.

Even though the trees are bare, they offer their own beauty as they dance with the wind.

We briefly left the park to visit the still frozen Arctic Lake. The lake is on the Mdewakanton Tribally owned land.

As we looped back to our starting point, we stopped and watched people play pickleball at the Spring Lake Park Pickleball Court. I definitely need to learn how to play pickleball!

Today’s hiking adventure was 6 miles.