Weston Bend State Park

We started our day with breakfast at Panera Bread. I had a bacon and spinach omelette and Em had yoghurt with berries and granola (muesli). Yum!
We've started The Artists Way program which involves writing three pages of freehand (stream of consciousness) writing first thing of a morning. Today we dutifully took our notebooks and pens to Panera Bread and even got them out, then Em mentioned that there was a state park she had found online that had old tobacco barns on the site and walking trails. We looked out the window at the melting snow and bright blue sky and promptly closed our notebooks.

The drive was meant to take 45 minutes, but we made it there in 25. Today was much warmer than yesterday, but still below freezing, being around -2'C. The sunshine and lack of wind made it feel warmer, though we did keep our gloves, beanies and warm coats on for most of the day.

A little after 11am we arrived at Weston Bend State Park. The boom gates were down with a 'closed' sign attached to it. There were no signs to prohibit pedestrian access though, so Em parked the car and out we piled. I took my trekking pole (mum, thanks so much for suggesting I bring this. I've used it many times so far), and Em carried the tripod.
We started out on the bike trail which led to a narrower trail that connected (eventually) to the main road. It seemed to cover everything we wanted to see in the time we had available -- keeping in mind that we move slower than regular walkers due to our frequent photographic stops.

The photo below shows fox tracks in the snow. We also saw deer and rabbit tracks, but didn't actually see any of the wildlife aside from evidence that they had been there.
Being winter, we had the trail almost exclusively to ourselves. In the three hours we were there, we saw only one other person, a hiker with a overnight back-pack and a black dog. I couldn't imagine sleeping outdoors in the temperatures we've been having lately, but maybe he does (or did). Whatever his intention, his outfit seemed pretty serious and destined for an overnight stay.
We crossed one creek (frozen of course) on the bike path.


These protuberances (fungi, perhaps) grew on several trees midway up their trunks. This one made photography easy, however, because its host had fallen down beside the track.
Here comes Emily carrying the tripod. We hardly used it, but for the photos that we did, it was worth the trouble of carrying... of course, I say that because *I* didn't have to carry it. :-)
This is one of those tripod shots. I messed around with the exposure, hoping to retain the pure white of the snow without burning out the trunks around it, but I'm not sure I was so successful. This was the type of scene that seemed so photogenic but I had a hard time finding an angle that worked, and even this shot I don't like so much.
Among the bare trees were thick vines, warped and twisted like serpents from a monster movie.
I like this shot, purely because of the fallen snow. I do love snow!
Here we left the bike path and veered inward to a smaller (goat) track that led us back to the main road. Of course, the yellow bench offered a photographic opportunity, and the tripod worked a charm.
The track led us through gentle valleys and up wooded inclines. Every step offered a more magical view than the last, and I found I was taking photos almost every step of the way.
With the sun well up (having gone noon) and the temperature nearing zero (celcius), the snow was melting from the trees and ground. Here I captured snow that was left in the shade of a curved tree limb.
Fragments of fall leaves resolutely clung to some trees, creating a beautiful multi-dimentional and seasonal picture for me to attempt to capture.


Looking back on the way we have just come. Of the three different paths we took, I found this the easiest because of the narrowness of the path and the sometimes rocky ground underfoot -- it provided much better traction.
After leaving the narrow trail behind, we reached the road and turned left to the lookout -- and wow, what a lookout! It seemed the entire Missouri River valley was laid out for our eyes to behold.

The river below, far below, was still partly frozen but free flowing.


Just in case you thought it looked sunny and warm, this is what we were wearing and the wind (though not very strong) was bitterly cold. Not as cold as yesterday, thankfully, but still too cold to go for very long without gloves.
While on the viewing platform, we caught sight of a soaring bird. I snapped off a few photos, out of habit (birdwatching will forever be in my blood), and later discovered that this, my friends, was a Bald Eagle!
It's a juvenile bird so it's lacking the bold white and brown that everyone associates with this species, but there is no doubt that this is America's proudest bird and an amazing sight to see. Of course, Emily and I weren't even aware that we had captured images of a Bald Eagle until we got home and pored through our $3 thrift store Audobon bird book and then ran a few google searches to confirm our suspicions. Through a thorough (and margarita assisted) process of elimination we determined that this bird was in fact America's natural symbol of freedom. How incredibly awesome! We saw a Bald Eagle!! *whoops and hollers*

Even more awesome is that there was a birding day that's being run while we're in Chicago for people to see this very bird, and we were disappointed that we'd miss it. Heck, who needs a specially set aside birding day... we can find a Baldy all on our own! :-)

We were so elated at the view (and even before we knew what kind of bird we had seen), that we snapped a self-portrait. We might have been cold, but we were happy! :-)
From the observation platform we headed to the tobacco barn, via a pitstop behind a closed toilet block. I can now say that I've pee'd in the snow. *goofy grin*
This used to be a working tobacco farm. The barn has been restored and given a new roof, but apparently the parks authority still considers it to be a liability risk because they have signs up prohibiting people from walking around or behind it. Oddly enough, it's not too dangerous to go inside though... clearly it's just going to fall apart sidewards, not collapse on unsuspecting tourists. ;-)
Aside from its use as a tourist attraction, it also serves as a storage barn for crap. I tried to keep the worst of the junk out of frame.
The barn has several doors, this was one set and I liked the sunlight burning through the gaping cracks. It's almost supernatural.
Outside is evidence of the snow that fell overnight.
From there we made our way back to the car which was parked behind that red building you can see there at the top of the far away hill. Though it seems as though that building a mile away, it really didn't take long to get there... maybe all those gym work-outs are helping afterall. ;-)
Soon enough we were facing the last hill, the killer with the last remaining snow. It wasn't too slippery, but it was steep at the last section, my thighs and calves sure as hell felt it.
Oh, and when we reached the top, we saw that the gates were open. Argh! But, having walked the roads and trails made this day so much more memorable, so I wasn't complaining at all.

Back at home, Em headed to work and I lounged around and behaved in a very 'on holiday' way. I did spy some birds out the window though, some American Robins, and snapped this shot before the birds noticed me and took off.
We had dinner in, and after all the walking we'd done, we passed on gym for today, choosing instead to have a quiet night indoors.

All in all, I had an incredible day! Thank you, Em, for finding this place and letting me experience it.