Last Saturday I ventured out to Oxley Nature Center’s North Woods area. Oxley is pretty popular but most people stay close to the main unit which is a couple miles away from the North Woods. I have been hiking it for years and I love it because I hardly ever see anybody.
The trail was dry for the most part but I got to one section where it looked like I might be up to my knees. I backed out and went via a different route. I don’t mind getting my boots muddy but I hate walking in deep water where I cannot see the bottom.
Much of the trail is in a “tree tunnel” where one is shaded from the hot sun. I love looking up through the ceiling of the tunnel.
Much of the trail is raised and its a good thing.
I saw a ton of frogs. The bigger ones would squeak like a dog toy while they were jumping. That kept startling me for some reason. I was thinking that I had stepped on them. I loved this guy. He was up periscope and not jumpy. During my outing I saw one rat snake, a deer, and tons of birds and squirrels. I was really out a little late for the wildlife. And as usual, I didn’t see any other people.
So above is the route. Kind of short I know but just right on a hot day.
A good time was had by all. I used lots of deet but I did manage to bring four ticks home with me! I had to enlist my son to pull one off my back. Pro Tip: my MIL told me that Blue Dawn dishwashing detergent will cause the ticks to let loose. It has to be blue, not pink. Guess what, she was right!!
I am linking with Our World Tuesday
Good tip about the ticks. It looks a lovely walk.
I like the tree tunnel – some shade but still a part of nature.
So green and lovely. Our surroundings here have gotten all yellow. 🙂
Nice to know about the blue dawn for ticks.
(Don’t moist finger tips make it easy to catch them, too? )
So lush and green!
What a lovely place to hike ~ love frogs ~ Sorry you had to get ticks and yes Blue Dawn does work ~ Great photos, though.
Be Safe, Be Well,
A ShutterBug Explores
aka (A Creative Harbor)
Perfect place to hike these days (well, always but quiet places with few people are even more valuable now). So perfect except for the (yuck) tics. I hate those things. …a good tip…blue Dawn seems to be a miracle product…saved oil soaked birds in the Alaska spill and sure a better way to un-imbed tics than ones we used to use (not for many years now… we and most of our kids had close encounters when we lived in Eastern Washington State in our early years. ).
That water looks yucky, I wouldn’t step in it either. The frog is adorable. I think that’s quite a good distance when it’s hot and humid. Glad there’s lots of shade!