Piney Ridge Hills

My agenda when I'm not on the North Country Trail this month is to hike hills. One of the best places to do this is to take some of the trails that Cathy and I often do at the State Park. These trails are not on the park maps, so they don't get heavy use by the tourists. Locals like that. These are wooded dunes, and they are quite hilly.

Cathy and I went fairly early in the morning. It was actually still chilly when we started. I like this benched place on the trail.

We were hoping to discover some trails we hadn't been on before, but I don't think we succeeded. We thought maybe we were on a different one, but came to Hamlin Lake at the same place we usually do, right across from the open dunes.

Then we followed the bluff along the lake to Inspiration Point. You can see the bench at the left of the picture. I took this shot just because it's a different angle from what I usually show- the view from the bench. It really is a nice place no matter which direction you look.

From there, we dropped down to Hamlin Dam. Here's the usual view above the dam.

We tried to find another unexplored cutoff from the main trail back to the car, but again, it was one we'd hiked before. We did find some Forget-me-nots. These are the alien ones, but it's pretty rare to find the native ones.

Best find of the day? Sandhill cranes walking around in a wetland area.

The tracker I had on said we only walked 3.5 miles, but we walked for 2 hours, and Cathy and I are not that slow! We aren't going to admit to under 4. So there.

In other news: Did I tell you I have a new phone? I'm trying to get all the stuff transferred from the old one. Today was the first test of using a tracking app to see how the battery does. It didn't drain too much, and I had it on for 2.5 hours. Then, this afternoon, the new case for it arrived. I think I like that... the phone is larger, so the case is too. I'd be a little happier if the whole thing were smaller, but a working phone is a plus!

I got the lawnmower going. It runs. The tires hold air. The blades do not engage. Sigh. Always something. I watched videos, and have the switch apart, but I need to go to the store for the next step. I couldn't talk myself into that today.

Ludington State Park, MI. Piney Ridge Road to Hamlin Dam and back. 4 miles.

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