Tales of the Northwoods (part two)

During our recent trip "Up North" (UN), I became aware of, what I call, "Summer Color". We normally travel UN in the fall when color is king, or as Mother Nature would prefer, Queen. This year we made our Northern journey in June instead of September and discovered a whole new season of color. Sure, as you drive through towns and past country homes, you experience endless waves of color in neatly arranged flower beds, hanging baskets, big pots, little pots, window boxes, tree stumps, tipped over wheelbarrows and even old bed frames. But, drive the back roads, country lanes and even the freeways and you'll find that Mom Nature didn't confine her exterior decorating to Autumn. The White of Winter gives way to the Green of Spring and while the Reds, Oranges and Golds of Fall wait in the wings, the countryside explodes with its own glorious costume.
We left our nephew's graduation party in Neenah, and headed UN. It was a usual drive, watching for wildlife, barns and other photogenic sights. We passed through Mercer a hit the county road leading to our "home for the week". We had barely entered the winding little road when we were greeted by a sea of pinks and purples, Wild Lupines. From that point on we were treated to a week of roadside wildflower color. I guess the Lupines kinda made me more aware that the colors of Summer aren't restricted to UN but, also surround us right here in Southwest Wisconsin and I'm sure throughout the rest of the country. Rather than going on with thousands of words, I'll try to sum up the story with several photos. I might add that if you give in to the urge to grab a spoon and dig up some of these beauties to add to your home garden, remember, Wild Flowers are in truth Wild Weeds and your lovely flower bed will soon become a tangled bed of choking weeds. And, those weeds are a lot stronger than your dainty petunias and impatiens. (See photos below as evidence of this)

The Wild Lupines that greeted us on County Highway FF.

A scene from "Lupines Gone Wild".
A yard in Bessemer Michigan.

Orange Hawk Weed

Orange Hawk Weed yard. Park falls Wisconsin.

Wild Day Lilies on the roadside in Southwest Wisconsin.

A Black Eyed Susan "Garden".

People call these by different names.
Beautiful as you drive by.
In your garden they're Blue Weeds!

Thimbleberry Blossom.
The beginnings of a tasty fruit found mainly
on the sandy shorelines of the Great Lakes.

Orange Butterfly Weed

A poor attempt at shooting a lovely field of
Wild Daisies on the outskirts of Butternut, Wisconsin.

PS - The abundance and variety of Wild Flowers along the roadside is endless. I could have used up all the megapixels I have available trying to capture images of them all. Take a ride and find them for yourself. "Try it you'll like it".