Landscape of Iowa

Near Lone Tree, Iowa the farm land is slightly hilly in a few parts. This field has grain bins in place to hold the next harvest. Now if only the rains would stop for more than a few days.

Foxtail in Late Summer

Beauty is all around. Example, here are a few stands of foxtail grass reaching for the late summer sun along the nearby rising Indian Creek. The grasses are quite common around this portion of eastern Iowa. Generally at this time of year the grasses are yellow and brown from lack of moisture. Not this year.

T-6 Awaits for AirVenture 2018 Landing Slot

At the Dubuque, Iowa airport (DBQ) a vintage T-6 waits for the landing slot at AirVenture Oshkosh 2018 on July 22nd. Annually, the North American Trainer Association (NATA), made up of T-6 pilots and owners, gather in Dubuque for association business and to practice takeoffs/landings and formation flying for EAA's Airventure in nearby Wisconsin. WWII-era T-6 planes from around the world come to Dubuque for the meeting and are occasionally accompanied by a few P-51 Mustangs and F-4U Corsairs. Watching and listening to the planes as they roar to life, circle overhead and trail smoke in various formations is well worth the trip to Dubuque. The event inside the hangers and on the tarmac is not open to the public except for viewing behind fences. Be sure to stick around after the T-6s takeoff for Airventure - a few minutes later the planes will be in formation, trail smoke and give Dubuque an aerial salute before traveling east over the Mississippi River.

Cherry Hot Dashboard for a '56 Chevy Bel Air

At last weekend's Marion (Iowa) fly-in a selection of classic cars displayed their best chrome and hot paint finishes. This 1956 Chevy Bel Air interior is a show stopper with all its original and modified shine. The guy that owns the car says he has invested a bunch of dollars into some of the latter restoration projects. He hopes that investment will at least keep the car's value up but really doesn't know. He is more proud of the show quality of the half century old Chevy than selling at the moment.

Late Summer Bee Rendezvous with Goldenrod

This bee has no problem with a snootful of goldenrod pollen. During these last few weeks of summer the goldenrod is in full bloom around the Midwest. At Hannen Lake park near Blairstown, Iowa there are large patches of goldenrod stretching around the park and surrounding pastures. Multiple bees were out in numbers doing their thing, spreading the pollen around.

Iowa Elk at a Summer's Rest

Photo assignment - snap anything outdoors. So I headed north and found a male elk watching over his herd at the Alexander Wildlife Area at Pinicon Ridge Park (a Linn country park) near Central City, Iowa.

A Wisp of Fall is Evident

See that? Look harder. Its the changing of the summer greens to other shades on Labor Day weekend. In Marquette, Iowa along the Mississippi River in northeast Iowa just across from Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, the bluffs are covered in trees. This summer has seen above normal precipitation in much of the region, which has kept greener greens around from crops to lawns to cliff clinging trees. But as the sun angle changes and the amount of sunlight diminished daily, the leaves know what to do next.

The Return of Air Conditioned Air

Ah, its finally back - the cool breezes of conditioned air. Thanks to the AC technician who came to examine why the older-than-it-should-be central cooling unit shut down on Friday evening. Turns out it was not a faulty compressor or blown fuse. The air conditioner stopped working because a mouse or chipmunk chewed some wires inside the unit. After replacing the wires and securing the housing, the AC unit roared back to life, hopefully doing its thing for the rest of the summer.

Looking Towards East Amana, Iowa

From Amana, Iowa (sometimes called Main Amana) the views are pretty spectacular. This one is looking north over society owned farmland.

A swing of the camera to the right brings East Amana into view. This is really a village with a few homes and several farm out buildings. Even in the middle of summer it is a pretty site.

Cat on a Cool Limestone Rock

The Niabi Zoo in Coal Valley, Illinois (near the Quad Cities) is home to many animals large and small. On the large side is this leopard who was cooling off on a huge rock in the midday sun when I came around. Zoo keepers made sure the animals get lots of water and shade from this oppressive summer heat. In the case of the leopard he was content by letting his body heat be absorbed by the limestone slab while checking for intruders as a potential quick snack.

FiFi - It Was a Dark and Stormy Night at KCID Cedar Rapids

Once again Fifi, the WWII B-29 is on Cedar Rapids concrete for a few days. She will be joined by other WWII era combat planes and trainers for static display and rides. This shot came at a time of diminishing light and increasing rain. Besides having to photograph through chain link fencing the potential for me to be a lightning rod was very high. Go visit the plane if you are in the area.

Spectacular Sunset in Cedar Rapids Tonight

A spectacular sunset tonight in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. In the foreground is Penford Products, a bio starch producer. Aside from correcting a tilt, there was no post production filtering used. A thunderstorm was passing to the south of the city at sunset. There was a rainbow too - but my photo of that was poor at best.

Iowa's Most Abundant Grain Crop Looks Great During the Summer of 2015

This is Iowa. We are situated in the western corn belt of the United States. The state's soil type and near perfect growing conditions help produce record or near record amounts of corn annually. Most of the corn you see throughout the state is used as feed or turned into ethanol. However Iowa's sweet corn is some of the best around.

According to the USDA in 2014, Iowa corn farmers grew almost 2.4 billion bushels of corn on 13.2 million acres of land. This year (2015) Iowa is projected to grow over 2.3 billion bushels of corn on 12.6 million acres of land.

Who You Lookin' At?

A close up of a bug-eyed bug resting on a chunk of calcite today. This morning the local area received 1/2 inch to 2 inches of rain followed by soaring humidity. This winged creature was apparently trying to soak up more sun before taking off. I am positive that he was aware that I was invading his airspace.

Cherries or Miniature Red Apples?

I don't know what kind of cherries these are. They are about pea size and are growing on small trees in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Maybe these are an apple variety - who knows? Nice to see them before we receive serious frost.

Purple Buzz on a Noxious Weed

A bee gathers pollen from a flowering Canada thistle today in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The thistle is regarded as a pesky noxious weed in these parts but can be quite beautiful if not on your property. Fortunately this purple flowered weed is located on an empty lot in the 2008 flood zone close to the Newbo area of Cedar Rapids. Someday some commercial venture will once again occupy this space but until then...a bee is happy.

Marquette, Iowa Flea Market Stare

A stare from a native American bust/statue/figure head at the Marquette, Iowa flea market looks over the Mississippi River from underneath the Iowa-Wisconsin bridge today. The colorful plaster was listed at $25. The flea market continues into day 3 of the Labor Day weekend event in Marquette, located just across the river from Prairie Du Chien, Wisconsin.

Ready for a Painting

Those 19th century impressionists were always seeking the perfect light and clouds for their works of art. Well look no farther than your friendly Midwestern sky. This summer's sky has offered spectacular views of billowing clouds made just for capturing on canvas or in pixels.

Sunset on CID

Another beautiful sunset over the control tower and hangers at the Eastern Iowa Airport (CID,KCID) near Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Not a Good Day for Sailors on Lake Macbride

Two days ago the weather was perfect with low temperatures and steady breezes along Lake Macbride in eastern Iowa. What wasn't perfect were the sailing skills of at least two sailors. Within a span of an hour two rented sailboats tipped over while making hard turns into the stiff wind.

Fortunately in both cases the crew was able to right the sailboat and climb back without too many injuries. Several close-by boats maneuvered to help but in both cases the downed crews said they were okay. I suppose if someone watched the rented boats leave the harbor and tac on the lake they would see this same sight repeated every weekend during the summer. Inexperienced sailors learned the hard way how to ride the waves. Crews from both boats wore life vests which probably saved them but not their electronics.