Sidewalk Chalk

I like to make Drawerings

Day 4 (6/26/15)

Occasionally all the stars line up and perfect days are born. This was one of those days. We have had some really great weather in Wisconsin so far this summer, by my standards. I am sure that some people would disagree and would like warmer temperatures. I however just love when it is in the seventies and sunny. Wade had been sick so we missed a couple days on the trail. We were ready to make up for lost time. Once again Eileen was able to go with us which always makes for a nice ride. Wade has really been into sidewalk chalk lately so we decided to bring it along and Wade and Eileen drew while I built. As we had figured, this year Wade is not just satisfied sitting in his trailer and watching or sleeping. He wants to be an active participant. Our first stop was at a building site that I call “A question of Balance”. All the materials were still there so it was a rather quick setup. This was good because it is also a site that is always plagued with biting ants. While I was building Eileen and Wade kept watch and drew on the trail. Wade found it really neat to be able to get out and draw on the bike trail so when it came time to leave he wasn’t exactly thrilled. Our next stop was again at the site of “Tripod”. This has become one of my favorite building sites because of the availability of a variety of materials for building. Once more Wade and Eileen kept watch and made drawings while I did my thing. There were surprisingly few people on the trail for how nice it was so we were able to spend some quality time. After we were done there we continued on to Oostburg before turning around to return home. We made a couple more stops to draw on the way home. It is the summer of potty training for Wade so stopping often pays great dividends and making drawings is its own reward.

At the Building Sit

"A Question of Balance"

"Tripod" building site

At Work

Wade

This chalks for you

Cairn at Tripod site

Turn around at Oostburg

One last stop

Tripod

Tripod Rebuild

Day 3 (6/23/15)

Grandma didn’t have to go in to work today until one o’clock so she had the morning free to go out biking with Wade and me. It was another beautiful morning. Shortly after getting on the trail we saw some Sandhill cranes. Even though they have become quite abundant in our area we still love seeing these majestic birds. One of the builds that I had built yesterday was already down but my goal for the day was to get tripod back up so we rode on. Tripod is my oldest existing build. It has gone through more incarnation than Dr. Who. It may need a little more work in the future but for now it is standing. We continued on to the prairie build which was still up but Wade helped me put some rocks on it. Wade had a great time with Grandma along. It meant he could spend more time out of his cart and exploring. On the way home he was singing some song that only he knew but he had a great time.

Crane

My Partners in Crime

Where Grandpa Go

Feels great to be building again

Hmm, Lets see

Finished 

And So it Begins

Wade snacking

Day 2 (6/22/15)

Today was the first day of Grandpa Daycare Summer Two. That means it is time to get back on the bike trail, dust off the computer and do some blogging. It is hard to believe that it has been eight years since I first decided to ride the bike trail, build cairns/sculptures and write about the whole experience. A lot has happened in those eight years and some things have stayed the same. Probably the biggest change has been the introduction of my little partner Wade. Wade will be turning two at the end of the month so my approach to the bike trail will probably change somewhat. Last year, within ten minutes of hitting the trail, Wade would be fast to sleep and I would be free to build when and where I wanted. There is going to be no sleeping this year. Naps are for babies and Wade is now a full grown toddler. I figure this year will be more about exploring nature through the eyes of a two year old. There was a storm headed our way this morning so we took off as soon as Wade got to the house. The sun was still out but you could see the sky darkening in the west. Soon after getting on the trail I started my first build. Wade seemed perfectly content to sit and watch me with a certain amount of curiosity. His big questions right now are; “What’s that?” and where did Grandma go?” He doesn’t particularly care what the answer is because he is going to ask again in a few minutes anyway but it is how we pass the time between bunnies, birds and builds. After a quick first build we were back on the trail. There were quite a few people out so building was going to be a bit of a problem. When we got to the old prairie build site there was a chance to do some more building. Again Wade watched from his cart and seemed to enjoy Grandpa’s antics. I didn’t spend a lot of time building because as I said there was a storm on the way so we didn’t want to get caught too far from home. Last year I don’t think we missed a day on the trail so the bar is set fairly high for this year. Well, we have one under our belt.

First Build

Bunny

Wild Iris

Wild Rose

Prairie Build