Southwest corner of the county

The Jordan Township Cemetery, the Huff Warner Missouri River Access, and some of the Loess Hills Wildlife Area.

These are of the Ingemann Danish Church and Cemetery South West of Moorhead on county road E54. Built in 1884.

Summer Hills

The first two are in Pioneer State Park, and the bottom two were in Preparation Canyon State Park, both of which are West of Hwy 183 South West of Moorhead.

Down by the riverside

These were taken at the Decatur Bend Oxbow along the Missouri river. The one that got away this time was a beautiful blue heron, but hey, the ladybug almost makes up for it. I understand that Decatur Bend is a great spot for watching bald eagles in the Fall and Spring. They must all be up in Alaska during the summer heat.

On the Mighty Mo in 1804

These were all taken at Louis and Clark State Park, aboard the "U.S.S. Best Friend," a 2004 replica of the Corps of Discovery's keel boat.

Back in time

Above is one more from Lighthouse Marina. The three below are all from the "Museum Complex" in Onawa, Iowa. A Vietnam era Huey Bell helicopter, a one room school house from the turn of the century (19th to 20th, not 20th to 21st), and the main room of the Berry family log cabin, circa 1800 something.

Rodney and Mo

The two above were taken at "Peter's Park" around the Rodney Pit. The one below is across the Missouri from the pier at Lighthouse Marina.

Friday afternoon in the country

The two above were shot at the Oldham Recreational Area in between Soldier and Turin.


These are of the Soldier Country Lutheran Church a few miles back into the hills off of Hwy 183 outside of Soldier Iowa.

Call of the wild

These were taken at the Davis Wetlands, a marshy wildlife area just north of Turin, Iowa along the Little Sioux River.

Down by the banks of the Maple River

These were taken at a gorgeous curve in Hwy 175 called "Grey's Landing" along the Maple River. The "One that Got Away" on this hike? Two huge blue herons. Wow. But hey, at least I got these butterflies. The white one is on whats called a "Lead Plant," just one of the many flowers you'll find on the native prairie here. There are lots of wetland plants and animals too, I saw orioles and meadowlarks and ducks (of course, I failed to capture any of them on film either). There were lots of deer tracks in the natural sand beaches (you heard me) along the edge of this loop in the Maple and some kind of fish was jumping at the sandpiper that flew over the pond (yet another bird I couldn't get a picture of).

Alone in the Woods

These three were all taken at a lovely place called Whiting's Woods, West of Mapleton and East of Whiting. As steep as the trail is and as deep and lush as the canopy is, you'd swear you were hiking along the Appalachian Trail instead of just enjoying the beauty of the Loess Hills right here in Western Iowa.

Nice Fixer-Uper

I love my summer job. Besides the Charter Oak Achievement Days and Monona County Fair, I was assigned to take pictures and gather information on parks and recreational areas and attractions for a special Monona County Guide. On my way from one of those, to another, I ran across this old brick building along Peach Road between 160th Street and Highway 175. Not everything photographers shoot is perfectly "pretty." Before I spotted this, I swear I saw a buzzard perfectly framed in a broke out window of a decrepit old shack. Would've been such a great shot- but of course I was driving along at 55mph and by the time I slowed down and turned around it had flown away. That's just one of my "fishing stories" for today.