The first question might be why? Well, this is about the only day this week that doesn't have rain or snow showers in the forecast. And secondly, for the past several weeks I've had my older granddaughter living with me and so my life has to run around a school schedule for her. Monday was a free day for me because she is spending the night with her other grandmother. So early yesterday morning I was off to St. Anthony, a northern suburb of Minneapolis.
It was 29 F (-1.6 C) when we left home this morning and 33 F (0.5 C) when I got home, so O C is just about the right number for the whole day.(And as it turns out yesterday was warmer, for this morning the temperature is only 19 F (-7C)!) I had been thinking about doing this walk for a couple of weeks, but thought it would be best to wait until most of the snow was melted, for I thought cities have been having enough trouble keeping the streets cleared of snow and probably effort was not being expended on clearing trails in parks. I wore my winter coat and gloves, and often had the hood pulled up on the coat to keep a cold north wind away from my ears!
The walk started at a Caribou which had some very interesting animal sculpture outside.
I walked along a strip mall/shopping center area and then a bit of a busy street. Soon I entered Silverwood Park. I was greeted by a pair of geese.
The walk map directed me to walk over a little bridge and then keep Silver Lake on my left.
As you can see there is not green yet in Minnesota. I could easily have taken this picture late last October.
I was to keep my eyes open for a beaver lodge sculpture.
Here's how it looks when one is inside.
It is easy to see how much fun young children would have running in and out of this. This sculpture is the work of Alonso Sierralto and is titled, Casa del Carbenero.
Next I crossed a little bridge and walked out onto an island.
The walk trail took me around the lake and then out into a residential area and then by the water tower for Columbia Heights.
The water tower is on the trail route because a new program is starting on 2014. People such as me have a special book to keep track of walks that go by water towers. One done and 19 to go before my book is done. I do hope that somewhere I find some interesting ones. And this walk worked for my Lakes and Reservoirs book. Two done and 18 to go.
The route soon entered Kodiak Park, the first park ever established in Anoka County. And again the trail took me over a little bridge.
The next thing to find on the route was a howitzer. To prove one really had come this far, the route map said to find the number of the VFW Post had created this monument.
One thing I like about doing these walks is what one can learn. The sign by the howitzer explained this was the munition preferred by paratroopers and those who were fighting on mountain sides. The howitzer could be dropped by parachute and then moved about by a vehicle or pack mules. These guns began to be produced in the 1920s and were used through World War II.
Above is a picture from the explanatory sign. Unfortunately, there is no indication if this photo was taken in the European or Asian front.
The walk continued on trails along Highland Lake. The route map explained this body of water was formerly called Peck's Pond and is known for its abundance of leeches -- oh goody!
Again I walked through a residential area and along beside another water tower.
This one serves the city of New Brighton.
After about 15 minutes of walking I realized I had made a complete circle and was again walking along Silver Lake. This time I decided to explore the shiny tree branches.
Here is a close up of a section of this.
The tree branch is covered with glitter and mirrors. This work was placed in the park last year. It is titled, Diffraction, and is the work of Shannon Estlund.
The next stop on the route was the park's Visitor Center. Oh happy day! It has a small restaurant. I had a coffee and a bagel sandwich. The Visitor Center is hosting an art show, Perspectives, sponsored by the Minnesota Watercolor Society. So often watercolors are landscapes or flowers. The one called Many Trails took my eye. (Alas the photo I took of the explanatory sign didn't capture the artist's name correctly.) The artist explained her daughter's hiking boots seem to always be in the hall by the front door, so one day she decided to paint the boots. I enjoyed a work with a very different subject.
After leaving the Center I was to find a tree sculpture and see what it was called.
The sculpture is operating as a Little Free Library. Click
here for more information about the idea of a Little Free Library. The map on this web site is interesting -- it shows all the places one may find the Little Free Libraries.
So this is what I did on a cold April day!
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