First Fall Nature Hike

I love nature and love Fall! Since the weather was just right to put on long sleeves and the sun was out, we headed to a local bike path. This path runs just south of where we live and along a river as part of our county’s park district. The diversity along this path is great for impromptu nature studies. (We have NOT been along this path since it was cold enough for winter coats and their were snow flurries out!)

We found all sorts of nature goodies along the way! We saw a small waterfall from the stream that flowed into the river. We saw a variety of butterflies like cabbage whites and painted lady’s. Princess discovered a walnut right around the first bend. Lil’ Red found a leaf as big as his head! Eldest took pictures of goldenrod and other plants for me. I found some sort of mushroom which I want to add to my list of things to learn about.

We also discovered how few nature tools where in our van and that we would definitely want to pack one of our nature packs for our next nature adventure! We own all sorts of tools like binoculars, magnifying glass, bug catchers, bug boxes, dip net, and butterfly nets. We had NONE of these supplies which would have been great to catch the tiny thumb-sized frogs that hopped across our path! Princess was very upset that she couldn’t catch one!

What is your favorite season? Do you take impromptu opportunities to head outside when the weather is nice? What things do you see?