The Presumscot, I presume?

One of the [many] wonderful things about Portland, Maine, is its close proximity to so many lovely places to hike around. I've shown you several of these locations in posts from earlier visits (just click on the "Maine" label on the right) and my short New England sojourn last week gave me new opportunities.

A short drive from my kids' house is the delightful woods you can see above and below here.

We're on a path traversing the Presumscot River Preserve, part of a longer trail that would take more energetic hikers (or those with longer legs) all the way to the seashore. After a short while our walk began to parallel the river with the somewhat odd name...

...before it ended at the [supposed] falls. Here's a warning sign for paddlers about the upcoming white water, whose graphic is somewhat misleading...

Actually, I wouldn't call this stretch of river a falls at all, but it is a pretty gnarly set of rapids, and portage warnings are for sure appropriate...

As you can probably tell from these pictures, the woods here are really nice, even though, unfortunately, we were a bit too early for fall color—it will be amazing in a few weeks!

still green!

But, as often on wooded hikes, there's more to see than just the trees (see what else there is in a redwood forest here). In this preserve a highlight was the fungi, reminding me in some ways of the amazing mushroom garden we discovered almost a continent away, in the very different ecosystem of the New Mexico mountains.

I have a feeling mushrooms are more often a sight along walks in the woods in Maine than New Mexico, and Portland's been getting a lot of rain lately. We even encountered a group of mushroom collectors; but we were happy just to enjoy seeing and snapping these scenic growths...

But, of course, the main attraction during all Maine activities is the great company that joins me for them!

Wordless Wednesday: what a good idea!

Double my pleasure

Henry blogged for the first time in a year the other day; I know I haven't had that long a hiatus, but it sometimes feels that way.

A crazy summer of upset travel plans and super-exciting family happenings just didn't leave me with enough mental energy to blog. But I'm going to try to get back into the swing of things today.

Here's a taste of the most wonderful of the news that's kept me from the blogosphere:

Yes, that's TWO new granddaughters, born within a month of each other. Both are doing very well and providing endless Gramma-fun.

I'm in Maine right now visiting the New England granddaughers and not only is the Gramma-ing fantastic, but the weather is, too! It's lots cooler than at home and will be getting downright chilly before I head back south. Hopefully before that happens the beginnings of fall color will be apparent, but even now there are neat things to see on walks around the area.

These lovely morning glories (although still blooming into the afternoon) are climbing over the fence around the community garden.

Usually I'm disappointed when I see the photo I've taken of a really luminously-colored flower, but these are so richly pigmented that I think their purple glow comes through pretty well in the pixels.

Some more flowers spotted at the garden...

Aren't these blooms bright and cheerful?! And they're big, too. Here's a shot with sleeping baby in it for some scale:

Of course, since fall is approaching, fruits are part of the picture, too. We went apple picking yesterday at what I think you'll agree is a very productive orchard...

Stay tuned for more Maine scenery and kid pix!

a young apple-picker

Wordless Wednesday: Florence remnants (?) over Baltimore

Wordless Wednesday: our little forest