Love Those IN Spring Wildflowers!

Sparky  had her final 6th chemo treatment. After feeling pretty good having been on steroids for three days, off she went for another 12 mile bike ride on the Pumpkinvine Bike Trail. The steroids make you pretty peppy!

The wildflowers are popping up in quick succession. Last week it was toad lilies and trillium, this week it's wood geraniums, garlic mustard, and blue/purple phlox.

purple phlox

purple phlox blanketing the sides of the trail

Although the trilliums are winding down, there were some beautiful ones still standing. These pink ones were rare!

Golden ragwort is in bloom as well... Pretty but toxic leaves and roots if ingested.

And....we have the mayapples, very appropriately named as there will be pretty white blooms under their little canopies in another couple of weeks in May. Sparky likes to call them "nature's little umbrellas."

Somebody is indulging their fairy fantasies...These little fairy doors are so cute, just placed randomly at the base of a couple of trees along the trail.

Rocky, the trail snake, has grown from just 3 rocks two years ago, to over 237 painted rocks! He's made it through two winters, and someone lovingly clears away the mud and sticks debris so he can keep growing. 

A beautiful day all in all for a bike ride...Sparky hopes to keep riding for a long time! Hope you are enjoying the beautiful spring weather wherever you are!

Sparky and Eldo

Life is One Long Ride, Enjoy the Journey

Sparky LOVES riding her bike, as anyone who follows our blog knows. This post is yet another tribute to one of the nicest bike trails in the US, the Pumpkinvine Bike Trail leading out of Goshen, IN to Shipshewanna, with some other trail spurs along the way. Even though it is not a Rails-to-Trails, it's a beautiful paved path most of the way. Because some day Sparky is going to be too old to ride, she wanted to make another post about riding the Pumpkinvine in late October so she can look back on these photos and reminisce about the different seasons on the trail....Here is what she saw on her 16 miles today from Goshen to Middlebury and back.

Less than two weeks ago, the trail was a canopy of mostly green leaves. Now, it's all shades of yellows, browns and oranges. The trees changed so fast!

Riding the trail, the carpet of leaves on the ground would change from a swath of yellow.....

To browns in another section, then oranges, and reds yet in another section of the trail, even a swath of green.....

The flaming sumac are predominate on the trail now. With many of the trees having shed their leaves, the sumac really stand out.

The farmers have harvested their corn but the soybeans are still standing....

There was a section of trail that had raindrops still glistening on the leaves, the patterns were cool! No matter how she tried, she couldn't capture the sparkle of the dew drops, when looking at them without the camera phone, they looked like rhinestones on the leaves. Through the lens, ordinary raindrops. Nature is so beautiful, especially on this trail. Even decaying leaves (at left) look cool.

Not only are there the usual fall colors, there was a small shrub or bush that was PINK!

If you're been following us, you might remember Rocky the Trail Snake? Someone with a little whimsy started a painted rock snake with a head and about three rocks way back in the early summer. They posted a sign about adding to him with a link to a FB group for him. "Rocky" has grown to a length of over 160 rocks by now and is about 26 feet along at the side of the trail off on the berm. He has been lovingly attended to by someone sweeping away the fall leaves so you can see how he's grown. Here is a section of the newest rocks. People are so clever with painting them!

Somebody added a really big rock with a Halloween theme painted on it, two ghouls with "return of the living" painted on it.

Soon Rocky will be hibernating but it has been fascinating to see his growth and the participation of the riders and walkers along the trail, as they added cool additions to his tail.

Another cool thing about the trail is they have regular events and others scheduled to use the trail. There is a running race this weekend, Sparky saw some runners on the trail today getting their mileage.

We are really enjoying fall's beauty... A big cold front is coming in soon...Highs in the FORTIES, lows in the twenties and thirties for the next two weeks. We are ready. Bought an ice scraper, Sparky bought her boots and we are stocking up on fall and winter clothing. That's something we really didn't need while we were traveling out on the road, following the sun and staying where it was warm most of the time.

Sparky will probably change her tune when the first icy sleet comes to Elkhart, IN, but she has lots of crafting projects ready to go for those bad weather days, and she is subbing a LOT, keeping very busy. Eldo is doing lots and lots of research about all kinds of things. 

The latest on the rig is it has been painted, but a part is still on hold! Probably another couple of weeks before we can pick it up. We are having it winterized and not traveling anywhere at this point in time, we are going to settle in for the season.

We know we won't have any travel stories for awhile, but occasionally, we will venture out of Elkhart and will keep you posted. Thanks for reading and staying with us, if you are!