Posts Tagged ‘Wintervale’
Wintervale Big Trees 9
[John and Cyndie are currently on vacation in Iceland with our friends, Barb & Mike Wilkus. While we are gone, I am featuring the results of the big tree survey I did in August on our property.]
…
The ninth tree brings us back to the oaks again. It also brings us back to the crown jewel tree I’ve already made a reference to in an earlier post. It is the tree we are calling the Mother Tree. It is deserving of another look. A year ago this tree dropped so many acorns we started referring to the trail that passes beneath it as “ball bearing alley.”
Measuring a circumference of 145 inches, this mother oak is calculated to be approximately 220 years old.
.
.
Wintervale Big Trees 8
[John and Cyndie are currently on vacation in Iceland with our friends, Barb & Mike Wilkus. While we are gone, I am featuring the results of the big tree survey I did in August on our property.]
…
The eighth tree is also a maple. It is located just beyond the bird-pecked tree, near what we call the “Middle Trail.” There isn’t anything particularly distinguishing about this tree but its girth caught my eye and earned it a spot in the survey. Deservedly so. I left the vine in place for the photo to show what we need to constantly address. I uprooted it and pulled it off the bark immediately after taking the picture.
“Be gone with you, $*@%# vine!”
Measuring a circumference of 105 inches, this maple is calculated to be approximately 150 years old.
.
.
Wintervale Big Trees 7
[John and Cyndie are currently on vacation in Iceland with our friends, Barb & Mike Wilkus. While we are gone, I am featuring the results of the big tree survey I did in August on our property.]
…
The seventh tree is another maple. From behind the labyrinth, I walked to the trail that leaves the backyard at the bottom of the hill near the red raspberry garden. It may not be long for this world as the reference I gave the tree is “bird pecked.” It looks like a variety of woodland creatures are hollowing residences out of the body of this noble gem, both up high and down low.
Measuring a circumference of 95 inches, this maple is calculated to be approximately 135 years old.
.
.
Wintervale Big Trees 6
[John and Cyndie are currently on vacation in Iceland with our friends, Barb & Mike Wilkus. While we are gone, I am featuring the results of the big tree survey I did in August on our property.]
…
The sixth tree is an oak located in the woods behind the labyrinth. It lost a large limb a few years back and the debris from that still hasn’t been fully processed and cleared from beneath it. I fear the cleanup is one of the things on the “todo” list that may never truly get done to completion.
Measuring a circumference of 125 inches, this oak is calculated to be approximately 180 years old.
.
.
Wintervale Big Trees 5
[John and Cyndie are currently on vacation in Iceland with our friends, Barb & Mike Wilkus. While we are gone, I am featuring the results of the big tree survey I did in August on our property.]
…
The fifth tree is an oak that is not that far from the first two I measured but on the other side of the trail, closer toward the house. It is referenced as “leaner” because the trunk is growing in a distinct lean away from the trail.
Measuring a circumference of 122 inches, this oak is calculated to be approximately 175 years old.
.
.
Wintervale Big Trees 4
[John and Cyndie are currently on vacation in Iceland with our friends, Barb & Mike Wilkus. While we are gone, I am featuring the results of the big tree survey I did in August on our property.]
…
The fourth tree I measured is a stone’s throw from the chicken manure spot, toward the middle of this section of woods, away from the trails.
It is also a maple tree. I referenced it as “swing arm” because of a massive lower limb that stretches out and absolutely begs to have a swing hung from it. I would need to clear out a bunch of small trees in the vicinity to make a swing viable. Maybe someday?
Measuring a circumference of 117 inches, this maple calculates to approximately 167 years old.
.
.
Wintervale Big Trees 3
[John and Cyndie are currently on vacation in Iceland with our friends, Barb & Mike Wilkus. While we are gone, I am featuring the results of the big tree survey I did in August on our property.]
…
The third tree I measured is just down the trail a bit from the first two and I referenced it in my notes as “chicken compost” because we used to dump the chicken manure beside it.
It is another maple tree. There are five maples in total in my survey.
Measuring a circumference of 101 inches, this maple calculates to approximately 145 years old.
I wonder what it was like in Iceland when this tree first sprouted from the ground…
.
.
Wintervale Big Trees 2
[John and Cyndie are currently on vacation in Iceland with our friends, Barb & Mike Wilkus. While we are gone, I am featuring the results of the big tree survey I did in August on our property.]
…
The second tree I measured was chosen because it was right next to the first tree.
Based on the leaves that are hard to see because they are so high up, I believe it is an elm.
Measuring a circumference of 95 inches, this big elm calculates to approximately 120 years old.
.
.
Wintervale Big Trees 1
[John and Cyndie are currently on vacation in Iceland with our friends, Barb & Mike Wilkus. While we are gone, I am featuring the results of the big tree survey I did in August on our property.]
…
The first tree I measured was chosen for its prominent location and because it was the tree that first caught my eye when we initially visited the property with the intent of purchasing these 20 acres.
It is a Maple with a big burl knot growing on it.
Measuring a circumference of 98 inches, this precious specimen calculates to approximately 140 years old.
.
.
Animals Again
We are headed home this morning after a long stay at the lake that included the holiday weekend. It’s been wonderful despite a rather scattered weather pattern that limited the number of warm, sunny days. I have thoroughly enjoyed the luxury of lying around in the mornings without jumping into clothes to walk the dog the moment we wake up.
At the same time, we do miss Asher and the horses. Our home and animal sitters have been sweet about providing frequent anecdotes about the activities at Wintervale. 
Apparently, Mix has developed some connection with one of the pigeons that has taken to perching on the post closest to where Mix’s feed bucket is hung. That’s something we’ve never seen before. That doesn’t really surprise me at this point, since we’d never seen the horses mangle one of the gates before, either.
I’m mentally prepared to need a little time to readjust to home life and the latest activities of our animals. Based on past experience, it won’t take long to get back into the swing of things. Before we came up to the lake, I’d only been home a few days from my week of biking and camping with friends on the Tour of Minnesota. I’d hardly recovered from the euphoria of that trip before diving into the power-lounging and lake swimming of the last ten days up at Wildwood. Settling in for real at home is something I’m looking forward to.
Well… settling in for 10 days or so before we return again to the lake for another 4-day weekend.
At least our animals will have had plenty of opportunities to get used to us occasionally disappearing on them for days or a week at a time with increasing regularity. I hope they sense how often we talk about them with people who ask about our lives in the country. Even when we are away, we bring the spirits of our animals with us to share far and wide with everyone who shows interest.
They really do mean an awful lot to us.
.
.
