S. M. Garver - Iowa Views

Effigy Mounds National Monument - between Harper's Ferry and McGregor, Iowa

May 2008

Round mound in the park (Some mounds are animal shaped, but hard to photograph.)
Mounds were mostly gravesites of a prehistoric mound building culture.
[Round mound.]

Mississippi River seen from the park.
[View of Mississippi River from park.]

A trail on the grounds winding along the river's edge.
[A wooden split-rail fence marks the edge of the ledge with a trail to its right. There is a large rock hillside on the right.]

Mississippi River seen from the trail.
[The river winds through the lower level land with a green hillside on the right. This view is one looking down at the lower level.]

Turkey vulture
[Turkey vulture.]

Turkey vulture in flight
[Turkey vulture in flight.]

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Pikes Peak State Park - McGregor, Iowa

July 17, 2013

500 feet above the confluence of the Wisconsin and Mississippi Rivers
[Mutiple photos stitched together showing many tree'd green islands in a large water mass. Many puffy clouds are in the sky.]

Bridge across Mississippi River from Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin to Marquette, Iowa
[Island in the middle of the river makes the waterway appear to

Some of the many islands in the river
[Trees 20-30feet high seem to be growing out of the middle of the Mississippi River.]

This upper part of the Mississippi River is a wide wetland area with many islands and only has more defined boundaries because of the system of locks and dams on the river.
[Along with the trees seemingly growing out of the river, there are patches of what seems to be grass lying atop the water in irregular shapes.]

Boardwalk trail along the ridge 500 foot above the river
[A level platform leads down to a series of steps and subsequent platforms which include wooden railings on both sides to keep people on the trail. This entire length is canopied by tree branches and leaves.]

Bridal Veil Falls (There was a sign on the boardwalk so I knew this was an official waterfall.)
[A wide but small volume water stream spills off a ledge about 6 feet above the lower rock. It then runs down a rock face approximately 15 feet long before becoming a stream again.]

Great spangled fritillary butterfly
[Brown butterfly with rows of white splotches feeds on a flower.]

Ruby-throated hummingbird near the visitor center
[Humming bird with yellow-green back feathers, a white throat, and a long black beak sitting on a red feeder with its beak in the feeder.]

A different hummingbird coming for lunch.
[Hummingbird coming to the feeder. Its wings are flapping so fast they are blurred, but the rest of the body, including it's feet and head are clear in the image.]

Chipping sparrow in the grass near the hummingbird feeders
[Sparrow with an orange crown and black stripes across and orange back walks in grass as high as its head.]

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