Loda Lake- Spirit of the Woods Hike- June

It was a multi-purpose hike day for National Trails Day- the first Saturday in June!

The Spirit of the Woods Chapter of the NCTA started with a 3.2-mile hike, some of which was on the NCT, and some was on a spur.

The spur took us to Loda Lake.

Some of you will know that Loda Lake is a wildflower sanctuary- the only one in the entire National Forest system in the country.

We were treated to a tour by the Forest Service Botanist, Carolyn Henne. This isn't a great picture, but it does show us looking at plants beside the trail while she talks about them.

I always learn things when I'm there because the plants are always in slightly different stages of their life cycles.

One of the best pictures of the day is poison sumac. You can see the bundles of leaves and the unripe berries forming on separate stems.

The Prairie Smoke is looking great. They have planted a variety of native plants in a sort of showcase garden.

Also blooming in that garden was a lot of Hairy Beardtongue, Penstemon hirsutus. I believe the butterfly is a Pipestone Swallowtail.

Best personal find of the day was some round-leaved sundew, a carniverous plant. There were also pitcher plants on site.

After that tour, we all went to Pete and Julie's cottage where they fixed burgers and brats, and we all chipped in with a potluck. This was followed by our annual meeting.

I saw lots more plants, but these are the best pictures. Long day, but all great.

Miles walked in 2026: 180.3
NCT Hike 100 Challenge 2026: 59.8

NCT in Newaygo County 1.8 miles. Birch Grove Trail 1.4 miles, Loda Lake 1.7 miles

See Practically Perfect in Every Way

Poison Hemlock

 
The pictures are a throwback to last summer, but I just finished writing an article about poison hemlock for the North Star. (North Country Trail magazine). It's all I've accomplished today. Last night at work was hard and I slept most of the day.

This is a plant you don't want to fool around with. It was used by the ancient Greeks to administer capital punishment... eg. the death of Socrates.



Key features are tall plants with dark green fern-like leaves and a flat cluster of white flowers. The stem is smooth and hollow. It may have purple mottling. Will grow anywhere but prefers moist soil.




I blogged about this plant once before, but pictures in different settings and lighting can help us learn to recognize the plant. You're welcome.

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Bad Plant, Good Pictures

 
Here's a fairly common plant that everyone should learn to identify. It's poison hemlock, Conium maculatum. Yes, this is the hemlock that caused Socrates death.

It looks similar to wild carrot, but with a little careful observation you won't confuse the two.



For one thing, this is much taller than the carrot (Queen Anne's Lace) when it blooms. These are just in bud, but they are about five feet tall. You should be looking at those tall stems with ferny leaves in the foreground. "In the foreground" is a bit troublesome to me. These were growing right beside a rail-trail, and it seems to me this plant is dangerous enough that the management authority should be killing it.

The leaves of poison hemlock are dark green and very fern-like. In fact, in the spring it comes up in a clump that looks very much like a fern.



Here's one difference you can't miss. These stems get big and woody, and they are splotched with purple...maculate. What? You don't know that word? Sure you do. It's the opposite of immaculate, which means clean. (I know what it means even if my house never gets to that state.)



It will get a large umbel of white flowers, just like the Queen Anne's Lace, and all the other carrot relatives. This one is just forming the head of buds.



So many important food plants are in this family, the Umbelliferae (or Apiaceae): anise, carrot, celery, caraway, fennel, dill, parsley, parsnip, to name a few. But you sure don't want to mess with this one. A lot of plants get labeled poisonous that can give you a stomach ache, or diarrhea, and those aren't good. But this one is the real deal. Get the juice on your hands, and lick a finger, and it can kill you.

It likes poor or disturbed soil. It's often one of the first plants to grow up around construction sites. You're welcome.

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