Fall 2011 Madison - getting to know our new area





One of our first day trips from Madison started with a "Farm Art Tour" near Reedsburg.




Silo dragon.




I took this photo for the scenery, only later noticing the symmetry between barbed wire and power lines.





Framing the picturesque rolling farmland.




Amanda enjoys a home-made ginger-snap bought along the way.




On the way home, we stopped at Devil's Lake State Park.  The lack of people in this photo is misleading - the place was mobbed on this warm October Saturday.




We hiked along bluffs and through woods until sunset.




Then we descended through a cleft in the rock to get back to the trailhead.




The next day was almost as balmy, so we took our kayak over to Lake Wingra (which is right in our neighborhood).  The lake is home to a huge number of coots.  




We padded through a maze of branches into a hidden lagoon, where we saw a heron and some turtles.




Paddling back toward the park where we started.  Note the droplet hitting the smooth water.




On another day, walking through the arboretum woods near the same lake.




The arboretum has a very healthy turkey population.




On a different walk in another part of the arboretum, we came across a very red-leaved tree.




With a pumpkin from the farm art tour, we carved a jack-o-lantern with cat, bat, and moon..




Walking by Lake Wingra in the evening, we saw a long procession of coots swimming from under a bridge and into open water..




When the temperatures do start to drop, a visit to rainforest plants (and birds) in the botanical garden can be refreshing.




We've heard about some problems in the state government, but it looks like the people here are taking care of it!