A short drive from the city, southwest Michigan is home to several forests that have remained undisturbed throughout recorded time. There, trees grow enormous and fall, pushed by strong winds or swelling streams, by the shift of a bank that has been shifting for decades. Lightning strikes.
The dead lie among the living, a constant reminder of the earth’s reliance on its past. What is dead becomes the stuff of life, as mushrooms, fungus, and insects move in. Mosses, ferns, and flowers take hold around the moldering remains.
These are lands where water stands, where mud and dust both have their season, along with the snakes and the mosquitoes. Without the flooding and washing of the rains and streams, these tracts would not produce the amazing flowers and foliage that are synonymous with spring delight.
Click on any image to see larger and scroll through.
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- Morning moon.
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- Chaste springtime gully.
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- They live with their dead.
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- A low-lying trail.
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- Energy.
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- Trout lily.
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- Wild riot around a tree.
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- Undisturbed.
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- May apples coming in.
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- Eastern box turtle.
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- Marsh marigolds.
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- Rain-drenched trillium.
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- Bloodroot.
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- Trout lilies sprouting.
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- Carpet of rue anemone.
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- Wild ginger.
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- Moonshine and spring trees.
KWHannaford says
Gorgeous and inspiring photos, Celia!
Celia says
Why, thank you, KW.
Good to hear from you.
Harley says
Gosh–what beautiful pictures. Well done, and thank you for the captions. . . . I understand trillium is a pretty rare flower and ‘marsh merrygold’ is not so easy to spot, either. By the by, nice picture of the turtle.
Celia says
I love having a chance to photograph a wild creature, however slow-moving! This one was very cooperative. Much easier to photograph than a snake. . .
Janet says
Thanks for sharing all of the photos. I loved them.
Celia says
You’re welcome, Janet–have a good week.