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South Oak Preserve wildflower panorama

Photo essay: A summer for the senses!

September 6, 2023  |  Topics: Spotlight, Stories

By Eddee Daniel

If summer has a taste it is ripe black raspberries carefully plucked straight from the bushes next to an oak-shaded trail; if summer has a smell it is the wild aroma wafted on the breeze in a field of August flowers; the sound of summer is the incessant, insistent rasp of cicadas on a sultry afternoon; to touch summer is to feel the heat of it on your skin in a blaze of sunshine; the sights of summer are like the photo album of a never-ending vacation. At least that’s how it feels right up until…, depending upon your circumstances and time of life, either A) the first day of school, B) the leaves on your neighbor’s maple tree turn orange and red, or C) when you change your thermostat from “cool” to “heat.”

Ripe black raspberries at Ryan Park in Pewaukee.
Ripe black raspberries at Ryan Park in Pewaukee.

In fact, summer provides nearly endless potential to fill all the senses over and over again with an ever-changing cornucopia of delights. The many flavors of summer may begin in June with fresh strawberries, continue into July with plump blueberries and sweet watermelon. August brings luscious cantaloupes and, of course, butter-soaked corn on the cob, preferably picked the same day.

Hammocking along the Menomonee River Parkway in Hoyt Park, Wauwatosa.
Hammocking along the Menomonee River Parkway in Hoyt Park, Wauwatosa.

In addition to the week-to-week variations of wildflowers in woodlands, meadows and prairies, the scents of summer run from meats being seared on backyard grills and at picnics in the parks, to the evocative and restful subtlety of decaying needles in a pine forest, along with the ineffable odor of the earth itself on a woodland trail. This year we had the all-too-common scent of browning grass, desiccated by weeks of inadequate rainfall, which seems to have replaced that of freshly mown lawns. I can’t recall using my lawn mower more than twice all summer. And, sadly, there were the periods this summer when, if we ventured out at all against public health advisories, the acrid smell of smoke from wildfires in the distant Canadian wilderness filled our lungs.

The sun setting among thistles and smoke on an otherwise cloudless evening. Milwaukee County Grounds in Wauwatosa.

The best sounds of summer, for me, are not loud or brash. Quite the contrary, I seek out the quietude of nature. The best sounds of summer are heard in the absence of human invention or intervention, when it is a soft breeze in foliage, the scurrying of some small creature in the underbrush, or unseen birds singing in the canopy of the forest that prevail. Among my favorites summer getaways is kayaking on a river out of sight or sound of civilization, and away from motorboats or Jet Skis. Drifting with the current, hearing only the wind in my ears and soft dipping and dripping of the paddle…, what a lovely summer sound!

An idyllic afternoon on Tichigan Lake at the Tichigan Wildlife Area in Racine County.

What does it mean to touch summer? Sunshine aside, I find its opposite equally compelling: few feelings are as transporting as stepping out of bright sunshine on a hot summer day into the cool shade of a forest canopy—especially one along a river. Then there’s the water itself. Step in the river, jump in a lake, submerse yourself. What other time of year are you going to attempt any of that in Wisconsin?

A young six-point buck wades across the Bark River near Dousman.
A young six-point buck wades across the Bark River near Dousman. (It looked much bigger from my kayak!)

As for sights, I offer you a selection of them, preserved with my camera, from all over Southeastern Wisconsin. In an ode to the season, I’ve brought together into this one photo essay twenty different places that I’ve visited this summer, which haven’t made it into any other blog posts. One photo is usually an insufficient representation of a place, so if you find yourself curious to know more about any of them feel free to follow the links to learn more and see more.

As I write this, on Labor Day, it still feels very much like summer. Today may be the unofficial end of the season, but I will savor every bit of summer still to come. And then comes my favorite season … after summer. Watch for it.

A dramatic sky and a sea of goldenrod grace this large wetland at Fox Brook Park, Brookfield.
A dramatic sky and a sea of goldenrod grace this large wetland at Fox Brook Park, Brookfield.
Aerial view of Nicholson Wildlife Refuge in Caledonia.
Aerial view of Nicholson Wildlife Refuge in Caledonia.
While this may not look very natural, it is where baby sturgeons are imprinted with Milwaukee River water and grow up to be fingerlings before being introduced into Lake Michigan. The fish hatchery at Riveredge Nature Center, Ozaukee County.
While this may not look very natural, it is where baby sturgeons are imprinted with Milwaukee River water and grow up to be fingerlings before being introduced into Lake Michigan. The fish hatchery at Riveredge Nature Center, Ozaukee County.
The dam at Kletzsch Park has been among the few remaining impediments to sturgeon migration on the Milwaukee River, but that will soon end when the new fish passage, under construction in this aerial view, is completed later this year. Glendale.
The dam at Kletzsch Park has been among the few remaining impediments to sturgeon migration on the Milwaukee River, but that will soon end when the new fish passage, under construction in this aerial view, is completed later this year. Glendale.
A pollinator bee on Lupine at Davis Preserve in Waukesha County.
The glacial terrain is evident on this trail in the Pike Lake Unit of the Kettle Moraine State Forest, Hartford.
The glacial terrain is evident on this trail in the Pike Lake Unit of the Kettle Moraine State Forest, Hartford.
Over the summer a debate heated up over the fate of the ravine road in Lake Park, which was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. The road was closed when the now rebuilt bridge was condemned years ago. Should it be reconstructed for cars? Or should it be transformed into a bike and pedestrian path? Milwaukee.
Over the summer a debate heated up over the fate of the ravine road in Lake Park, which was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. The road was closed when the now rebuilt bridge was condemned years ago. Should it be reconstructed for cars? Or should it be transformed into a bike and pedestrian path? Milwaukee.
This lovely lady got very turned around between the Oak Leaf Trail (right) and the Menomonee River Parkway road (left).
This lovely lady got very turned around between the Oak Leaf Trail (right) and the Menomonee River Parkway road (left).
Traffic jam! A guided tour of kayaks and canoes navigates a short way up the Oconomowoc River from North Lake in the village of North Lake.
This dragonfly landed on my dominant right hand while kayaking, which meant I had to juggle my cell phone in my left hand in order to grab a shot. Milwaukee River between West Bend and Newburg.
This dragonfly landed on my dominant right hand while kayaking, which meant I had to juggle my cell phone in my left hand in order to grab a shot. Milwaukee River between West Bend and Newburg.
I caught a momentary glimpse of this coyote before it vanished into the recesses of Sanctuary Woods in the Milwaukee County Grounds, Wauwatosa.
Aerial view of Beulah Bog State Natural Area in East Troy.
The tree is winning this round! Okay, a quirky choice. I found this overwhelmed trail marker in the Shady Lane State Natural Area, which is part of Hawthorne Hills County Park in Ozaukee County.
On Aug 22 the Urban Ecology Center (and many partners as indicated by all the dignitaries shoveling) broke ground on its planned expansion in Washington Park. Milwaukee.
Doesn’t this scene just shout “summer vacation?” Hoyt Park, Wauwatosa.

The featured photo at the top is from South Oak Preserve in West Bend.

Related stories:

Summer scenes from our wealth of nature! (2022)

Badertscher Preserve in midsummer (2020)

Summer Bouquet: A panoramic view (2018)

The Lakefront: Welcome to Summer! (2018)

Lapham Peak: A summer bouquet (2018)

Eddee Daniel is a board member of Preserve Our Parks.

One thought on "Photo essay: A summer for the senses!"

  1. Mark Steinberg says:
    September 11, 2023 at 12:24 pm

    Eddee – another enjoyable visual tour of nature all around us!

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