Underwings, Hawkmoths, Hops, And Almost Healed Runner.

 Cheryl is very excited that she is once again, the  cover-girl of my blog.  As if I would have anyone else...  Mostly because she is almost able to run again.   We have been going out for short one to  two mile runs.   The injury is still tender, but at least she is capable of running a little.   Which makes her almost happy.

What also makes her happy is going to the Muscatine Farmers' Market.   Today we set up the display so she will have a full picture of the set up.   Minus the annoying ragtime tunes...

The key feature will be "Rabbits with Attitude!"  We shall see how they sell.

Not a lump of mud after all. 

Five-Spotted Hawk moth.  Tomato Horn Worm adult.

While heading out to the bike the other day,  I noted a large "muddy lump" on the bike tire.   Turns out it was a 5 Spotted Hawkmoth!    For those who may not know,  this is what tomato Hornworms and Tobacco Hornworms become when they mature.   This one was very fresh with most of his color still intact!  A very cool find.

Isn't he/she cute!  

Released on my tomato plants.   

My grandfather used to kill  them as soon as he found them.   Me, on the other hand.... I like all God's creatures.   Mostly I would keep them as pets...  It's easy enough to feed them. And look as this awesome adult!   Who would not want to see  these guys reach their full potential?   Not to mention my tomatoes have been rather slow on the uptake this year.   Why not let them have a chance at them.   I don't eat the leaves, after all.  And this late in the season will probably not hurt the plant much.  (Note:  Adults do not eat tomatoes... only the caterpillars do.  But adults DO lay eggs.  Maybe next year.)

An Underwing visits our flowers

I wonder where the name comes from?

White-lines Sphinx Moth larva

In addition to the Hawkmoth,  We found an Underwing. He did not hold still long enough to get a good picture of the colored hind wings.  Still,  seeing a large moth is always exciting.

White-lines sphinx moth.   

With the soybeans turning color,  time to find those White-Lined Hawkmoths coming out of the bean fields.  They look similar to tomato horn worms...but have dots along the side instead of stripes.
 The adult matures  into a very cute hummingbird-type day flyer.  Watch them sip nectar from the same flowers your hummer enjoys. All we found was this Woolybear.    Larva of the Isabella moth. Still,  Stinging hairs are fun to pet... sometimes.

Hops!   Growing wild on the Trail.

Let's give it a taste.

And finally!  HOPS!   Cheryl and I went for a walk yesterday down the trail... looking to see if the hops were out yet.  They ARE!   We did not go very far into the forest ( where there should be many many more!)   but still found a few to have some fun with.   We both had to taste them...  very Piney!

Cheryl accepts the dare

Do they smell like pinecones?

 A truely lovely bitter flavor of pinesol!   Cheryl found it a little too bitter for her taste.   I find that lightly sucking on the small nuts at the base of each cone leaf releases the most flavor.  No citrus taste in these guys!

Octoberfest in September!

So after playing dress-up,   we brought some home to tack above the door.  Perhaps it will bring good fortune and happiness to the household.  

Posting on building for Luck and happiness.

 I'm sure at least a little happiness will be realized...  after I drink a seasonal Hoppy beer!  A new one from Alaska!   I can't wait to try it out later tonight.

Bring on that Happiness!

From Alaska!  Hoppythermia!

So that is all for now.   Cheryl is busy scoring and I continue to fold and blog about her.... sometimes.   Like an old Movie Actress,  She is only popular if she is active in her field.   In Cheryl's case... running.   Or tasting hops.

What does she think?

I'll take that as a "thumbs down."

14 miles at Kewash.

Coralville Three miles

Early mornings.

With a slight break in the scoring season,  Cheryl has been itching to squeeze in a long run before the heat of Summer overtakes our running schedule.   Normally we have to set aside a weekend or holiday for such things.   And Cheryl only wants to run in the cool of the morning.  This forces us to run in Coralville.   And only about three miles at a time.

Coralville Dam and bridge

Rain creates gentle waterfalls.

To be fair, the Iowa sun does tend to heat things up rapidly.  I started off with my light jacket, only to remove it about three miles in. Thankfully there was a light breeze blowing cool morning air.

Cheryl prepares for 14 miles!

High Blue Prairie Grass.

As mentioned int he title,  we decided to go back to Kewash.   Sure, there is no river out there, but it has been a while since we visited that area and thought it would be a nice day to give it a go.  Plus it is far closer than Muscatine and it has been several days since it has rained... Meaning the trail will probably be nice and dry.

Running into the sun

And down the path

This was the first time we experienced to new parking spot during the "non-winter" months.  I'm not sure what the grasses are, but I would guess either wheat or rye.  (I'm not a farmer, and even though I took various Botany classes, we never had to ID the all of the grasses.) But there was a lot of it around the parking area and trail entrance.

Chasing Rabbits.

Or racing.....and winning.

 Cheryl ran at a fairly fast pace...for a training run.  She was wondering why it seemed so difficult today...and then she looked at her Garmin.  I was just happy we did not have a melt down on the first day back.

The rabbits were back.   Same as every spring.  Even around our apartment, there are several "new" furry faces hopping around the yard.  I think these guys seem a little friendlier than last years.   Several times the rabbits ran right past me.   Cheryl almost stepped on one!

Cheryl smearing sunscreen on the Subie.

Final approach 

We listened to music for the majority of the run.  (Something we have not been able to do since Boston, I think.) And when it was finally over, Cheryl felt as if she had accomplished something good.  Yeah!   I'm glad we were able to come back to Kewash and have a good experience right out of the gate.   Perhaps we will have to integrate this path back into the rotation, along with Davenport and Muscatine.  We shall see.

Hunting Down All Things Wild and Seasonal in Iowa.

Cheryl has been taking running to a new level recently, by running twice a day instead of only in the mornings.    This helps me because I'm more of an evening person anyway, and I enjoy them far more than early, dewy  mornings.   There is always the risk of the heat being higher than normal,  but with the changing season, comes the cooler air and warm evenings with less humidity.  Basically,  it has become more fun to run as the sun sets.

Hickory nuts

The nuts without their husk

Bitternut hickory,  shagbark hickory

That being said,  Cheryl has been keeping her eyes out for "cool nature things" to experiment with in the shop.   Although we have been selling a few stockings,  there is still a bit of free time to play around with her creativity.   So, in addition to the acorns from the apple orchard,  Cheryl has been collecting  Hickory nuts.  They grow along the same path as many of the black walnut trees, and it took a little investigating to discover their true name...because I did not know first hand the name of this nut.   I actually thought they were hazelnuts.  I guess you learn new things every day!

Even among the Hickories, it looks like there may be variations.   I'm just guessing. I don't really know!  Maybe it is a different nut altogether!   It doesn't matter.   What matters is Cheryl is collecting them for some unknown purpose.  Most likely for a diabolical scheme to take over the planet.

The cooler evenings have brought  out the hunting skills of the cat as well.   Yesterday he brought me a live little bunny!   Isn't he adorable?   This is the second time Hiro has captured one alive for me to pet and put back in the neighbors hedge row.  I think he likes the rabbits of this size best.
Possibly because they are not as fast as the larger adults.  They are, however, more fragile.  And he has accidentally killed a couple in the past.  We'll have to work on his strength control in the future.

A cluster of Hops I gathered. 

Ready for harvest to anyone who wanted to pick them. 

And lastly,   HOPS!  Cheryl wanted to run down the section of path that we usually skip out on.  As a result,  I was able to gather a small cluster of Hops.  Looks like they are in peak harvesting ripeness with the brown tips and light green cones.  I put a cone in my mouth and chewed on it for a few moments to see if the taste had changed since the last time ( was it two weeks ago?).  It HAD!   The flavor started out VERY piney and tapered off to a citrus flavor.   After I spit it out,  the aftertaste was sour and HUGE!   Like a grapefruit mixed with lemon mixed with Pinesole.  Or... A very Hoppy beer!  It is too bad I don't home brew beer.  It seems like a pain and a mess.  But the thought of having my very own Hops gathered from the local biking trail does sound romantic.  I imagine wild hops are not very desireable for the local micro brewing houses around here.  They probably depend on a consistent delivery and easier gathering system.  Anyway,  just thought I would add another "Fruit of the Vine" to the list of possible adult beverage ingredient.

So that is all for now.  I'll leave out the really HUGE apples we saw today, because i did not feel like carrying back the larges sample back to be photographed.  ( It was probably over a pound!)   Chicago is coming up and Cheryl need to focus now.  Our last 20 miler is approaching,  and Cheryl will want to nail it.

OH!  And I almost forgot.... Cheryl registered for The Boston Marathon today.   It has been on her mind all morning and she wanted to make sure she has everything set up and ready.  With all this running news around,  it was no wonder she wanted to run again this evening.   Let's hope she can keep that fire lit for the duration.