One evening after fishing the shoreline of Perch Lake for smallmouth (Jambe Longue got one), we went up to the campground to chat with Bob and Judy Bernhardt of Trout Lake, and Grit and Alice Turner of Holt. All are agate hunters, artists, craftsmen, lapiodaries. Judy and Bob had their lab MacKenzie with them as well. Nothing quite like socializing over a campfire eh.

"Okay, okay so it's a little muddy...."

Nothing like a frog-strangling rain storm to help you pack the truck.

We broke the trip in half, stopping for the night at Gates Au Sable Lodge outside Grayling, and of course availing ourselves of the trico and blue wing olive hatch the next morning.

Jambe Longue trying to float a size 26 trico over a small rising fish. The hook up was not to be. We departed the river, skunked.

I love the birch groves and I'll close with this shot -- a wonderful one to remember and within fifty yards of the Big Lady.

Once in awhile I catch a fish, this smallie off the dock on a Sneaky Pete, and did not see another bass in the water for nearly eight weeks.

Respite for rockpickers. Jambe Longue and I take five.

Sandhill crane, seen along the Adams Trail.

Lesser yellow legs, more or less out of its normal range. We had three out front, prolly a male, female and chick. They run all around the shallows, turning like Pavel Datsuk with the puck.

Looking east from Black Beach.

Huh, guess we took more naps than I realized!

These folks won't soon run out of wood, eh.

These plains run from Fox River Road north to the Adams trail, above the Driggs, etc. Story goes that stump lengths reflect snowfall of winter when they were cut, but I've read since then that's not correct. Visually very interesting place, and consider nothing has grown back since these were cut in early 1900s or so. The earth may recover, but not all that fast sometimes. Imagine what all those white pines would look like when still standing.

Little fellow! Toad in a hat. Sound like title for a children's book.

Lady bug on a driftwood log.

Spidey on a tree near Lake Superior campground.

The road back to Deer park from the mouth of the Two Hearted. Very dusty, but freshly graded and a lot less washboarded than at other times.

So, we drove up CR 500 then angled east toward the Two Hearted and came upon this FedEx truck. This driver has to have the greatest route in America. Except in winter.

The way it works sometimes is that if I dont' tell Shanahan it's okay to take a walk, he mule dogs, hoping I will come along. When he goes into mule-dog mode, you can't move him without superhuman strength. And he knows it.

Geez, all this work. A guy's gotta have a nap in the sun once in awhile!

Agate patterns abound in nature, layer upon layer.

See? More agate patterning.

Max Stinson and Robochef Peterson, post-plinking with 30/40 original 1896 Krag-Jorgenson (180 grain bullet).

Father and Daughter take a break from agate hunting. Max Stinson of Deer Park, and Jen Gabriel of Los Angeles.

Hanging snakes out to dry.

Brook trout water of the best quality.

Our front yard on Muskallonge Lake.

Looks like a bear....

Making morning notes.

Moon beams.

Found on beach. No idea what it is, except BIG and ugly!

This is the right way to decorate the little building out back, eh.

You have to pick debris from bloobs before putting pans into freezer. After couple days we empty frozen berries into Baggies. We brought home three gallons of wild bloobs, enough to last breakfasts for winter. Great crop. Last year berry pickers were still picking in October. This year? We'll see.

Sunk in sugar sand at Rainy Lake. But Lonnie and Donn walked to cabin *4-5 miles and called Mike Brown of Deer Park Lodge, who got Jeff Ross of Pine Stump Junction to come pull the Green Streamer loose. He says to me, "Don't you know this is Chevy country?"

"Uh Heywood, are you SURE you want to sit there?"

Fella hailing from Texas has a place over in Paradise. Great chainsaw carvings. Right on M-123 and worth a stop.

Red squirrels and chippies would come over to red pine by the deck every day and yell at us. No idea what their major malfunction was...

Grand Marais had a musical festival while we were up that way. This was one of the detritus of the celebrants. Nice.

Da yoop, roughly outlined in agates.

I had heard this year that hummingbirds suffered 90 percent losses during migration through Tennessee and that this accounts for fewer sightings this year. But in checking I can't find any evidence of this claim. This hummer came to the red flowers every day for a sip.

Signing books after reading at Friends of the Tahquamenon Area District Library, August 12. Yeah, I dressed informally!

Here we're pulling out of Crystal Falls, headed down the hill from the courthouse, at the end of oh-dark period and dawn a-borning oot east.

Rocks, rocks, rocks and if you're out on the Superior Beach some nice Roll too!

Talk about a weird and unique cloud...

Evening cloud, or UFO hovering over Da Big Lady?

Our home for a couple of months, 12 x 25 feet and two vehicles out front.

Wonderfully creative and artsy canoe carrier on pickup truck bed.

Soo Locks. Jambe Longue wanted to see the locks in action, so we watched a small Coastie boat go through, leading a huge dredge.

Beach monster -- placed there by Jambe Longue for the Gabriel Girls (Allie, Anna and Ari). We'll see how tough the monster is against Lake Superior winds.

So, this black comorant swims nonchallantly over to Great Blue Heron, and thence the staredown begins, eventually won by the cormie.

Signing books at Mary Carney's shop in Brevort. Great little bookstore with terrific collection of Michigan and outdoor (naturalist stuff).

Boyne City: First time I ever sat outside to do a book-signing. Bands on every corner, lots of people, it was fun.

Duct tape has many creative uses. I never leave home without it. The Gabriel girls brought the camo roll to me, thought I would belend in better than with bright silver. Thanks to you, girls!

Does this not look like an ET, or mummified remains inside the log?

Force Meets Wine Queen

Beauty is grass deep

Birch grove near Limpy's Camp in south Marquette County.

Downy chowing down on suet cake

Yo, you lookin at me?

Pads on Blind Sucker Flooding

Zigged instead of zagged. Fisher on H-13.

Your standard evening sky over Muskallonge Lake

Loon on Rainy Lake

one of two ripe thimbleberries along the Paint River in Iron County.

Biggest rainbow I've ever seen.

Three-banger. If you look closely you will see a third rainbow, just left of the left one. Unbelievalble. Nobody at the lake had ever seen such a thing either.

Sunrise on Lehman Road

Sunset from Blind Sucker Rivermouth.

D-does that sky mean ttt-trouble?

Good boy, Shanny. Daily exercise time.

Yowser!

Yard pilleated

Rain squalls south of us, moving east.