Yard flowers, and a little excursion up north

Spring continues to proceed along the north shore. With a few warm days, and the ice retreating further and further on the big Lake, the land is starting to respond. Hillsides are washed with a haze of green and if you look close, plants are emerging and flowers are beginning to bloom. 

Last weekend I spent Friday - Sunday in the Lutsen/Grand Marias area. While my day didn't go as planned I had a relaxing trip and quality time with my running family. 

Scenes from Palisade Head:

Appears the local Peregrine falcons had lunch atop the cliffs.

Look closely, do you see the pollen trapped on the spider web?

In my yard the rhubarb is rapidly getting larger, with one clump almost at harvest stage. And our magnolia is blooming!

I love the subtle hint of pink.

 I noticed while scoping out my overgrown flower beds that the Mertensia (Virginia Bluebells) are also blooming:

And one of my favorite spring ephemerals - Wild Ginger (which is technically in my neighbors yard):

These little violets make it hard to contemplate mowing. Maybe if I take on the task I can work around them? Though they are located on one, of many, difficult slopes in the yard.

The hops are up! And almost two feet tall already. I don't think they had even emerged last week.

Birds continue to arrive in the yard, some just passing through on their way further north. We had a pair of Red-breasted Grosbeaks for a few days and the Goldfinches continue to stick around. Various sparrows are about including White-throated sparrows and Song sparrows. A Blackburnian warbler was spied on the trail above my house (spur to the Superior Hiking Trail). There is a Northern Mockingbird in the neighborhood and I also noticed our Catbird flitting about.

With a bit more time on my hands I have made some good progress on the sweater I am designing and knitting. I have about four inches of the body completed with currently 288 stitches on the needle. I am working my way up from the bottom edge and will be increasing to 318 sts by the time I reach the armholes. As I work I am writing out (and developing) the pattern, with hopes of having something publishable by the end.