Kenora Ont

While here for a family reunion, I got these lovely shots of the Lake of the Woods. Incredible history here as it is the home of our ancestors - my Grandparents. Such beauty. The city of Kenora sits on the banks

 

Float planes are common in this area as a means of travel for both commerce and pleasure.

 

 

Devil's Gap Rock, Accessible by boat only Devil's Gap Rock is not exactly a spirit rock although it is a very popular attraction. It was painted as a prank in 1894 by two brothers and over the years has been repainted by others. There is no road to the rock but it can be viewed by boat.

 

 

Boat houses located on one of the many islands on Lake of the Woods.

 

 

 

The Joker is on You!

 

This incredible specimen was located at our motel in Ignace Ont. The owner of the motel was an avid collector of life size Super Heros and cartoon characters. This one of the Joker stood about 7' tall and reality of his hair screamed out Photo.

 

Wawa Ont

                                    A misty start to the day on Wawa Lake.

 

Anyone wanting to go for a sail?

 

 

A bit of Touristy décor at the General Trading Post

 

Irresistible kooky totems

On the road to Kenora

Some of the lovely scenery along the road to Kenora Ontario

Terrace Bay Ontario

 

            Beautiful Rossport Ontario, located along the shores of Lake Superior

 

                                                      Flowering clover

                             

 

Blind River Ont

After a long day of driving, we settled in the small town of Blind River for the night. Not much time for picture taking as trying to make miles today.

 

 

This is a view of Lake Huron on our way to our next stop.

Tobermory Lighthouse

A view of the Tobermory Ont lighthouse from inside the ferry as we headed out of the harbor.

 

Rose Mallow

We came across this plant at a grocery store. The blossoms were huge and plentiful and so beautiful. Yellow and white were also available.

 

The Wedding of Alyssa and Phillip

Located at the beautiful Hessanland Inn, on Lake Huron, Alyssa and Philip saying their vows.

 

                                                           Cheers!

                                         Did someone say Ju Jubes?

 

Some of the beautiful day lilies located around the grounds at Hessanland Country Inn

 

 

Less than a mile away is Lake Huron, where guests of the Hessanland Inn have a private access to the beach.

 

 

Found this little guy in one of the many ponds at the Hessanland Inn.

Hot Wheel City

Located in Detroit Michigan - I had to drive by this store quite a bit that morning and it kept catching my eye- time to pull over for a photograph.

 

Wind Turbines near Chicago

 Some where west of Chicago representative of this area.

 

Fun in the Dells - day #5

 

Mt Olympus Amusement Park.

 

 

Some of the landscaping on the Pirates Cove Mini Golf Course.

 

Touring the Upper Dells - Day #4

The Upper Dells has some very interesting rock formations.

 Taken with my Windows 7.5 phone -

 

Light rays filtering thru the dense forest above us.

Coolpix S6300

 

 

As it was an extremely hot day, walking through this cool moist area provided relief from the heat. Not a good place to be for those suffering from claustrophobia as the rock formations close in tightly around you. A really cool place to visit - and yes the pun is intended.

 

 

 

Conditions were perfect for the ferns. This photo is a good example of how extreme the rock layering is.

Menomonie Wisconsin - Stout - University of Wisconsin - Day #3

The stone barn is representative of the corn growing areas in  the Menomonie area. Haze blanketing the area is caused by the forest fires in Northern Saskatchewan.

 

 

This beautiful building use to be the private residence of Louis Smith Tainter. It now houses the alumni association.

                               Elaborate Faces adorn portions of the house.

 

Beautiful floral beds accent the grounds.

 

Wisps of flowers frame this doorway.

 

A dancing water lightshow was one of the many highlights of the Tommy Bartlett Show ( A variety show, featuring water skiing), in the city of Wisconsin Dells. This one taken with my windows 7.5 phone.

 

These two floral photos were taken at a  dairy farm specializing in cheese. Sadly the motor gave out on my cooler, the cheese melted  - no Wisconsin Cheese for me. Cheese in Wisconsin is so much cheaper than we in Canada have to pay. Taken with my Windows 7.5 phone

 

Menomonie Wisconsin Day #2

Crystal Caverns near Menomonie Wisconsin. One of USA's largest underground caves. Hard to take any pictures here do to the poor lighting.

 

 

Who can resist flowers!

The Phoenix - Eau Claire Wisconsin

While stopping in Eau Claire, I came upon this light, while walking along the river path. The history of its existence, I found to be not only interesting but also inspirational and thus felt it earned a place in my blog.

 

A company call Phoenix Manufacturing occupied this site. Although it sustained Eau Claire's economy thru difficult time, it left a wake of disaster in its wake. The rivers became dumping grounds. An 1891 publication boasted that "Few cities have as a convenience a way of dumping sewage". Children made balls and water wings by inflating pig bladders they found near the slaughter house. By the end of the 20th century, concerns about sanitation, flooding and public access played a part in the reclaiming the rivers and their banks. The City reclaimed this site and removed - and this is what I find unreal- 34 tons of tires, 16 tons of steel debris, 60 cubic yards of treated timbers. Contractors excavated and processed 7600 cubic yards of contaminated soil. This are is now developed into a beautiful park and THUS as the Phoenix is associated with rebirth, It became the symbol displayed on this light.(It also represents the Company that had occupied the land)

 

Sunrise Fargo ND - Day #1 of Summer tour

First Real travelling day on my Summer Road trip. I took this at Fargo North Dakota at 5AM - the smoke from forest fires in Washington created this haziness and the incredible picture of the sun.