Different Shades of Wonderful: West Dupage Woods Forest Preserve

It is very impressive to me that the counties between Lake Michigan and the Iowa state line have preserved vast acres of land in between all the developed areas. Dupage County is where I am; it is just west of Cook County, which is where the city of Chicago proper is. I am pretty sure most counties in this part of IL have seen the wisdom of land preservation, and the forest preserves are such a wonderful respite from the congestion and togetherness of big city living. I have visited a few in previous years, and hope to take in quite a few more while I am here this time. To see what they look like in Dupage County, click here: http://www.dupageforest.org/

I spent the good part of a very warm afternoon in West Dupage Woods Forest Preserve, the closest one to my place. I was the only human in sight, so I texted Charles to let him know where I was in case I was never heard from again. There was a sign warning that the trail might be flooded, but of course, I ignored that and forged on, only to end up ankle-deep in mud at one point. But the trail was lovely and so quiet, and I think I walked about 5 miles in the preserve. My only observed living companions were swarms of mosquitoes outnumbering the bountiful dragonflies, elusive calling birds, a solitary chipmunk, and peek-a-boo frogs.

There are several ponds in this preserve - above is the one closest to the parking lot where I sat for a while at a picnic table and just watched.

Lots of berries ripening along almost every trail - future feasts for the wildlife!

Tiny crab apples taking on the first blush

Lots of these along the trail. It's kind of nice to be arriving just as the wildflowers are blooming here.

I really need to get a wildflower identification guide - but aren't these petite wonders pretty?

The happiest flowers in the forest

The only bird capture of the day - indigo bunting. I'm so glad they have them here, too!

About those peek-a-boo frogs: When I approached the picnic table by the pond, I could hear (more than see) frogs sort of leaping up out of the muddy edge and into the water. As I sat and looked for a while, I began to realize that I was seeing frog eyes peeking at me from the water. There were dozens of them and I was so amused watching them watching me that I almost didn't notice the mosquitoes enjoying my company. (I hope my frog-loving friend, Martha B, especially enjoys these photos!)