For a number of years now, Beth Jukuri and her granddaughter have been going on hiking adventures. Now her little brother is joining in the fun, too. Beth said they recently went on a hike in the morning and her granddaughter was in charge of packing the backpacks with treats and of course a stuffed buddy for her little brother, just like she used to do when she was his age. The little guy is not even 2 years old yet, but Beth said he does remarkably well going so far, carrying a backpack on the hikes and actually loves the hills. Beth and her daughter, the kids Mom, started both these kiddos young, so they’ll be enjoying the outdoors for many years to come. After they took a break to enjoy some of those treats big sister packed, they went on to find some interesting mushrooms and what looks like a christmas tree, but is actually a type of woody fungus. You never know what you’ll find exploring in the woods.

It’s getting to be that time of year when the Hummingbirds will be heading south from the Keweenaw. Victor Carpenter has an interesting video explaining what the Hummingbirds are telling you if they suddenly stop coming to your feeders. The lead-in says: “Your hummingbird feeder is still full and the birds are gone. Before you assume you did something wrong, understand this: an empty feeder is not silence. It's information. In this video I walk through the five real reasons hummingbirds stop coming, in the order they actually happen across a season. Nesting females switching from nectar to insects for their chicks. Staggered fall migration driven by day length, not by your feeder. Fermented nectar and black mold, the cause nobody wants to hear. A single territorial bird holding your entire yard hostage. And the extraordinary spatial memory that determines whether they come back next April. Along the way: why the "take your feeder down or they won't migrate" advice is flat wrong, why a praying mantis on your feeder rim is not there for the sugar, and why a motionless hummingbird hanging upside down at dawn is almost certainly alive. Keep it clean. Keep it in the same place. They are keeping records.”

What a fun day for Beth and her grandkids!
I was so fortunate to grow up within walking
distance of my Grandma's house and her
brother’s farm, where we always went for
walks in the woods and along the fields.
Special days for them to always cherish.
Love the third photo, with the hikers taking a
snack break (and some color starting to peek
from the trees above). Cool fungi too, but that
bright red one sure looks poisonous :(

Hi
It's good to see kids enjoying the out-of-doors. I
confess the little boy has a skill I haven't: I don't
have the least desire to go backpacking.

My mom took me and my kid brother on bike trips to a
local bird sanctuary. Boating and swimming in inland
lakes downstate was a normal part of summer. And of
course our place up north fostered a love of the out-
of-doors. Blessings to my mom and grandpa, and to all
adults who take kids outside.

This is awesome, Beth. What a wonderfully exciting
childhood these kids have. Good for you, Beth.
Adorable pictures.

I so love their adventures, and now they bring
their little man. This Grandma=SHEro! (Female
Hero!)

Those little hummingbirds sure do have excellent
memories, one Spring in a prior home, I was filling
bird feeders outside, I did not have hummingbird
feeders out yet, and one came up behind my head,
it's little wings beating my skull...needless to
say, the hummingbird feeders went up!

I agree, Kathyrn;
It’s nice to see kids
outdoors and having
fun. Ah…to be a kid again.
And humming birds that
aren’t humming is
rather overcoming.

This brings back great memories when I first took my very young son on a similar walk through the woods behind our house.

He called it his "Big Adventure".

D. A., that's a memory he'll treasure. Good for you.

By the way, I belatedly saw your question about
vehicles and the Bridgewalk and answered it. Take a
look if you haven't already.