Sixty-four freaking degrees

This November is turning out to be one for the record books. My car thermometer registered 64 several times this afternoon, all the while the radio was broadcasting 62. I don't know which is right, but it doesn't really matter. About noon I decided that it was nice enough for a long walk in a state park. Afton State Park is not far away by auto, and it lies on the border of Wisconsin on the St Croix River. It also has the virtue of having a prairie restoration project. I though I could get the Prairie Princess to go along, but she had some work to do and begged off. Did I say it was a beautiful day?

This map has a "you are here" sticker, so it seemed like a good subject for a blog photo. I took the photo after more than half of my trek was completed. I spent an hour an a half strolling through the prairie and the forest at the edge of the river. November photos are relatively colorless, but it's November and it's what we have.

This gives a pretty good view of the Afton visitor center with a stretch of restored prairie in the foreground. It was a good day to be in the state park and there were some other walkers and a couple of runners that I encountered on the way.  They were all friendly and seemed to be enjoying an outstanding November day.

For part of the way the trail went through a red pine forest. I think red pines are what I knew as a child as Norway pines. At least that's what Grandpa Anderson told me they were.  This part of the park was part of a farm for about sixty years and was donated to the state in about 1985.  I guess it wasn't very good farm land.  Too hilly.

When I got home from trekking, I was so hungry that I made my newest coleslaw recipe, which I promise I'll post on the family cooking blog soon, and was convinced by the aforementioned princess to make a stir fry from our stash of leftover rice and various other veggie ingredients that we keep around for such hunger events. I guess I don't have a recipe for this one. It always depends on the type and amount of the various ingredients, but always includes some mild curry paste I discovered a while back, ginger, and some favorite stir fry sauce. And eggs.  She chopped.  I fried.

Tomorrow is expected to be another day of sixty-four freaking degrees.