Author Archives: makielb

We walked the trail at Wild Iris Ridge south-west of Eugene yesterday. The trail was dominated by Oregon white oak and Pacific Madrone, which is pictured above. The trees were covered with lichens, which is typical of trees in Oregon. This is an Usnea called Methuselah’s beard. Another interesting lichen is Lobaria pulmonaria, Lungwort. SpottedContinue reading “Oregon – Wild Iris Ridge (part-1)”

The homeless tents about a quarter mile away. On a cold, rainy day it’s a sad place, but makes me thankful for everything that we all have. Susan and Milly making twist-twist dough. It has to sit in the refrigerator for about two hours. So it’s time for a walk in the rain. On daysContinue reading “Oregon – rainy day”

We found this on a walk in the neighborhood. Note sure what’s going on here, but the mosses seem happy. A nicely branched liverwort that I am working to identify. It is quite nice finding liverworts on the bases of conifers along the streets in Eugene. Getting ready to watch the Red Wings play afterContinue reading “Oregon – discoveries and a hockey game”

When you are half-way across the Continent you want everything that you see to be something that you can’t see back home. But that’s not reality. But seeing birds or plants that care common back in Michigan is still fun. We started a walk the other day with a flock of crows at the corner.Continue reading “Oregon – A walk in Eugene”

The first photo is from Ann Arbor. Over the past eight months I have collected a large number of photos of cannabis related material (stores and billboards) just as a fun little project. I have now added some “weeds” from Oregon. I had never seen prices advertised on a street-side sign in Michigan. Apparently, inContinue reading “Oregon – a little weed and more”

Milly and Oscar singing happy birthday to Grandma. Milly watching the Red Wings game when a goal was scored. Monroe Park, waiting for Milly’s karate lesson. The street trees in Eugene are quite large and always a pleasure for me to see. As ere the patches of rosemary in the park, available for anybody toContinue reading “Oregon – fun with grandkids”

Oregon white oak is a common tree that can be a dominant tree in many parks where conifers are not typically found. It was nice being able to get a photo of the leaf, terminal bud and a small acorn. Usually, these are quite high overhead. Additionally, the trunk and branches are sometimes home toContinue reading “Oregon – natural history”

We have seen quite a few loons on the coast, most have been Pacific Loons. A treat at the Visitors Center at Yaquina were two Townsend’s Warblers with a bunch of chickadees. The birds were moving non-stop in a feeding frenzy. There must have been a lot of little critters in the bark and needles.Continue reading “Oregon – Birds and more”

For Susan spending her birthday with Alexis, Milly and Oscar was the perfect day. Scanning the beach at Fogerty Creek State Park during low tide, and looking for birds on the rocks. Breakfast at Gracie’s Sea Hag in Depoe Bay, Oregon. Looking for the best views of Sea Lions. Waiting for dinner to arrive atContinue reading “Oregon – a special day”

Our day started at the port in Newport where we were looking for sea lions, but as usual were distracted by everything, such as the above Chestnut-backed Chickadee. We were, however successful in finding hundreds of sea lions. After leaving Newport we headed south and stopped at Beaver Creek State Park, where there were aContinue reading “Oregon – Newport to Florence”