The Marsh and The Dunes

Today we went hiking in Indiana Dunes State Park, which offered up some soggy marshes, alien plants, and tall, sandy dunes.

I thought these round, leafy plants were really cool -- have no idea what they are. 

And then there was this alien mutant fungus...

I like this picture because I caught Michael right before he started jumping on the boardwalk. Because that's what you should do when on a potentially unstable structure over a bunch of muddy water, right? 

Pretty trees, quiet marshes. I won't lie -- I thought of LOTR a couple times. 

Trail 9 was supposedly "moderate" -- it felt a bit rugged when we started hiking up the sand dunes. But then again, Trail 8 the next day made Trail 9 look pretty pathetic, so I won't argue with their nomenclature. 

At the top of a dune, looking out over Lake Michigan. This sandy depression was called "Beachhouse Blowout," which apparently is a thing that sand does, and not a party in a 1960s Elvis movie. 

Me at the bottom of the hill, others at the top. Going down a sand dune is fun because you feel like you're moonwalking. The sand catches your big steps and you can fly a little. 

Overall, a really fun hike. Great weather, cool landscape. I don't have a particularly clever or thoughtful way to close this post. So...the end.