February 2023 bicycling through the park

It’s been awhile since we have posted, and I have identified a pattern: we are similar to the spring ephemeral wildflowers, when they are out we are posting! The blog is around 13 years going which is pretty cool for a blog. Busy with the houses and all of the intrigues of life, the blogging days have been in the rear view mirror lately. However we still have so much to observe and share.
Sean, as of this writing, me, have been very occupied in Fairmount Park as a user more than a contributor, for now. I have taken on bicycling in the park the past year and have carefully and thoughtfully curated a 12 mile route that involves hardly any interaction with automobiles, that goes from door to door from our Parkside neighborhood house. The bike ride has become somewhat of an institution in my life, providing much needed exercise as I roll into my fifties, as well as outside time and *being in the world time* as the pandemic has dragged on.
Every turn, trail and pathway has been carefully explored and crafted over a years exploration of the most pleasant route for a novice bicyclist. I curated the route to be very friendly for Isabelle as well, without huge tree branches, rocks and other obstructions that may make the riding less pleasant.
I hope to write about this new adventure and my and our many observations, botanical discoveries and critiques of the park and the city along the way. Stay tuned and if you are a subscriber please open up that occasional e-mail, it will never be boring!

Tulip Poplar blooming at a rare close up view in West Fairmount Park

We visit this tree every year because it has one large branch that drops down from the tall tree close to the paved trail just north of Centennial Lake in West Park. The significance of this tree is that the branch contains the blooming tulip shaped flowers of the Tulip Poplar which are rarely seen because the tree grows very tall. We hope that this branch will not be cut down because it is so close to the trail. This would be a great educational tree to show people what a tulip poplar flower looks like!

Liriodendron tulipifera