Sunday, March 7, 2010

Springbrook Nature Center March 7, 2010



I really hate the piles of dirty snow that are now all that is left of the past winter’s storms. It is all so pretty when it first falls. The pristine beauty of clean, fresh snow covers everything. But after a couple of days the sand and gravel that are spread for traction turns the snow by the roadside into a dirty grey. It gets even worse as the temperature warms and the snow melts. The leftover, half melted mounds of snow look even dirtier as only the crusty, grey ice remains.


But, I knew of one place that that the snow would still be white and beautiful, Springbrook Nature Center. It is 127 acres of woods in their natural state located within the northern suburb of Fridley, MN. I used to walk there often when I lived in that area, but got out of the habit when I moved. Lately I have felt the need to return.


I would like to share with you some of the pictures that I took today. As you can see by the picture at the top, I did manage to find a little color in a moss covered stump. I also came across three women who were part of an effort to capture and band birds in the park. One of them directed me to a stump that had been literally ripped to shreds by woodpeckers.



In the coming weeks I will try to document the seasonal changes so that you all can enjoy it with me.




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8 Comments:

Blogger Caroline said...

What a great place! Nice photos, the woodpecker was really interested in the tree wasn't he/she! I can't wait to see the weather changes and how spring takes hold of such a cool place! Thanks for sharing your photos!

March 8, 2010 at 7:53 AM  
Blogger MB Moellenhoff said...

Thank you Caroline! I love this place. It reminds me of the farm I grew up on in rural MN.

Although it is a little drab w/o the green, this is a good time to see features that will be covered soon by foliage. Yesterday I took the Beaver Pond trail. On some of the photos you can see trees that have been knawed down by the beavers. Once it starts to green up they will be harder to see.

I love walking there. The longer trail goes thru a marsh. There will soon be numerous ducks and turtles. I wasn't certain of the conditions so I have been staying on the shorter trails.

I look forward to sharing these with you!

Mary

March 8, 2010 at 8:19 AM  
Blogger j said...

What a gorgeous place, and a great idea to photographically capture the changing seasons. I can't wait to see more pictures!

March 8, 2010 at 9:48 AM  
Blogger MB Moellenhoff said...

Hey Judy, Thanks for dropping by. I am glad you enjoyed them. I think my favorite season there is Fall. The colors are beautiful, particularly in the late afternoon when the light is just right.

Mary

March 8, 2010 at 11:08 AM  
Blogger Rottlady of the Ozarks said...

Some beautiful pictures here Mary! I've never seen a tree ripped by a woodpecker before, that's pretty cool. You probably wouldn't have even known that's what had happened if someone didn't tell you, at least I wouldn't!

March 8, 2010 at 6:50 PM  
Blogger MB Moellenhoff said...

Hey Elizabeth, I have seen that before, but not to that extent. It was cool running into the ladies though. They invited me in to watch the bird-banding. That was really cool!
Mary

March 8, 2010 at 7:50 PM  
Blogger lauhal63 said...

Makes a long winter bearable!

March 14, 2010 at 10:30 AM  
Blogger MB Moellenhoff said...

Indeed it does Laurie!

March 14, 2010 at 12:26 PM  

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