THEY THRONGED TO RIVER BEND Nature Center Sunday afternoon.
Walking the trails, this a rare one that wasn’t snow-covered and icy.
More warm weather outdoor enthusiasts than I’ve ever seen at this nearly 750-acres of woods, prairie and water on Faribault’s east side.
Handcrafted signs guide visitors along trails.
Bare-headed baby tucked in mother’s arms. Elementary-aged boy in helmet zipping his scooter down a tarred path. Elderly couple snugged on a bench.
Trees tapped to collect sap in bags.
Folks clustered around an evaporator that cooked freshly tapped maple syrup.
Kids played in water with sticks similar to this scene.
A trio of kids crossing a stick bridged across a rush of water.
A family picnicking.
Guy in shorts; boy in snowpants.
Abdi studies by the swamp.
Abdi, a native of Ethiopia, benched by the swamp/pond studying for his medical lab class in the quiet of nature, away from his noisy apartment building.
A 20-something teaching archery to kids just outside the interpretive center.
And us, threading our way along still icy trails, slushing through melting snow. Me, grabbing my husband’s hand to keep from slipping, his snow boots gripping the ice, mine not.
Patches of green grass mingle under water with dead leaves.
My eyes grasping for green and finding it in patches of emerging grass.
The brightest green discovered–moss on a log.
Green moss on dead logs.
The tiniest of green plants poking through the dormant prairie grass.
A snippet of green cedar upon snow.
Searching for signs of spring.
Trees reflected in a “lake” of water from the snow melt.
Finding it in watercolor paintings.
I’ve never seen this much water roaring over the nature center waterfall.
Water roaring over limestone in a three-tied waterfall.
Water rushes down a trail.
Slogging through water, with grass and dead leaves squishing beneath our boots.
Sunday and sixty degrees. Glorious. Spring.
And then came blizzards (northern Minnesota) and tornadoes (southwestern Minnesota) on Monday with temps plunging into the 20s and 30s overnight. A wind advisory remains in effect until 10 a.m. today for a portion of Minnesota sweeping from southwest/central to southeast with sustained winds of 25 – 35 mph topping at 50 mph, according to the National Weather Service.
No April Fool’s.
FYI: According to an article in The Marshall Independent, a twister was sited near Taunton Monday afternoon with structural damage from the storm reported five miles north of Minneota. On Monday, a tornado warning and a blizzard warning were issued simultaneously for a portion of southwestern Minnesota.
In Yellow Medicine County, the West Central Tribune of Willmar reports structural damage from a tornado at three farm sites southeast of St. Leo.
© Copyright 2014 Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
Crazy Spring weather! I’ll take it though. The commute in this a.m. was a bit dicey. Freezing rain is no fun; thankfully the salt trucks were out in short order.
Late March through April are the two months when the weather seems to swing on a pendulum, back and forth b/n winter and spring.
Last year May was included…ugh. That snow storm was brutal even though its affects were short lived.
Shhhhh. I don’t want May to hear us whispering about her lest she get ideas to present us with another snowstorm this year.
Yup….quite something. Looking around at the world politics, rampant/widespread lack of morality/ethics and devastating weather in so many places, one may begin to surmise that something’s afoot (hints of which may be found in The Book). Stay warm! Windy, drizzly and miserable here. Hugs…………………..
Truth be told…
That is one commodity (truth) that is under siege and subject to interpretation by many, however, there is a day coming when Truth will be revealed to all…………………….
So true.
That’s the Mid West. You don’t like the weather? Wait an hour it will change. Wondering what Thursday’s weather forecast will bring?
You are spot on correct. Yeah, I heard more wintry weather in the forecast.
Mother Nature is on a tear in MN lately:( So not nice – at least you got a chance to get outside, explore and enjoy 60 degree weather. I am sure the Cabin Fever is at an all time high lately! Happy Tuesday:)
Yes, Cabin Fever runs rampant. Possibility of another major storm moving in on Thursday and Friday with mega snowfall, this time in southern Minnesota.
It is snowing here today – guess April and maybe May are the months to make up for what was lacking in Jan, Feb and March – ha! My parents are going back to MN at the end of this month and are in an RV – I think they need to rethink that – brrr:( Stay Warm:)
Well, I hope that by the end of April, the snow has stopped.
I should probably have said, “April Fool’s” when it started snowing today – ha:)
Oh, yes, April Fool’s. Our April Fool’s jokes on the farm were always so original, like “The cows are out!”
Ha! – love it – the cows are out – chased my fair share of farm animals growing up – try catching 170 lbs of pig.
I did not like when the cows/steers/heifers got out. There I was, a skinny little girl expected to stand my ground against these gigantic animals. When they charged toward me, I jumped away and that did not make my dad happy.
I imagine catching pigs was equally as “fun.”
Cows are brutes and pigs are just good fakers when it comes to catching them – go left, you go left and then the pig fakes a right on you – ha!
You know your swine. I only know bovines.
Is it now any warmer? I just can’t believe how insidious this winter had been. It’s like, ‘will it ever end?’ I do hope this is the last blast and from now on the snow and ice will melt. However, the images are stunning! xx
I wish I could tell you our winter of cold and snow has ended. But, alas, that is not true. Winter storm expected Thursday into Friday for Minnesota.
This looks very much like a place my son and I hiked last Friday. Like you, I found some green in moss and that was about it. Still, it was great to be out, even if we, too, had to cross some icy patches. Hope real spring comes for you soon!
No “real” spring soon as a winter storm is forecast for Thursday into Friday.