Greetings blogosphere! It’s that time of year to display scenes from the end of spring and the beginning of summer. I’ve talked before of my walks to Willow Pond and many of these photos are taken on these walks. I love to watch the transformation of the wild black raspberries that grow abundantly along the path. You’ll see that in the gallery below which reaches back to early spring but I wanted to show the progression:
Next are some photos of blooms from my walks:
In early summer we visited Itasca State Park. It’s such a beautiful place and we always find the Showy Lady’s Slippers, Minnesota’s state flower. This year the blooms were just past peak but there were still many lovely blooms to enjoy. You can see some petals browning in the photos below. I didn’t include one photo where many blossoms in one clump had turned brown. The last two photos are from the Wilderness Drive, a scenic path full of greenery and lakes.
Finally a look at some wildlife around the neighborhood. Duck and geese families and of course some herons:
travels with toby 
Nice collection! It really shows the variety of plants and animals, colors, shapes and textures. Beautiful!
Thank you!
What a place. Nice to see spring again!
Yes indeed.
The areas where you walk are lovely. Do you ever pick the wild black raspberries?
Thanks! I agree, they are lovely. I never have picked the raspberries and never have seen anyone else pick them……until yesterday! There was a couple with a bowl collecting them.