Hikes and Boats
Todd Swank's Diary Entry for June 28, 2020
2020 has been a crazy year, but there's been many positives to our situation as well. We've been doing more hikes and boat rides this summer than I can remember we've done in many years. The dog has been ecstatic to have so many opportunities to exercise.
We've also been blessed with some really nice weather which makes getting outside so much more pleasant than when the weather sucks. I guess that's probably stating the obvious though.
One of my favorite things about Minnesota is the sheer number of parks available to explore. I think we could go hiking every weekend for decades and never hit the same park twice.
Having so many beautiful lakes nearby is a significant plus as well.
We stopped by the Prior Lake fishing pier on a recent hike and saw this sign about common fish in Prior Lake. I found that to be pretty neat.
On Friday night, we thought it was time to visit Charlie's on Prior again. Since it's now by reservation only we found ourselves having to eat pretty early to be able to get in for the night.
Luke was out of town, but Avery, Miss Sheri, and I had a nice time having dinner by the water.
On Saturday, we invited our good friends, Jen & Dan Walters, out for a kid-free boat ride. We thought it would be fun to just have some parent time for awhile.
Of course we had to drag them out to Mud Bay to check out some hot Heron on Heron nesting action. I don't think they were nearly as excited to see it as I was.
We also saw a mama and baby soft-shell turtle, but I don't think that was very thrilling for anyone either.
Everyone did perk up a bit when we stumbled across the Prior Lake Association and their ice cream sandwich giveaway. All it takes is some free ice cream to get everyone all worked up again.
When we got to Candy Cove, Jen decided to get into it with some cranky Canadian Geese. They were being pretty aggressive and I heard quite a bit of hissing taking place. I think some of it was even coming from the birds!