the Father, Son & Sugar Creek

Recently I was lectured by my wife regarding spending too much woods time with the fellas. She said to me that I needed to take my son, along with his good bud, canoing or something. His good bud's dad is also a good friend of mine, so canoing? Yeah, as if I need an excuse to head into the wild.

So we did a quick 24 hour trip down to Turkey Run State Park....took in a trail Monday evening and Tuesday morning, then headed to Clement's Canoes on Sugar Creek. Our first father/son adventure. And he did great....even with the paddling....not that kind of paddlin'. We hopped out and looked for fossils and river glass and kept our eyes peeled for Bald Eagles.

And can I just repeat once more that Indiana needs to change its state tree to the Sycamore? I've been on this stretch of the Sugar about a half-dozen times and this grouping of sycamores always intrigues me. It's like they're the old men of the river.....kind of a band of brothers who have stuck things out on this sandbar together for the last century or so.

I swear there is a "spirit" about Sugar Creek. If you've never been in the grotto of Indiana, you must go. From the absolute tranquility of the rippling creek, the cathedral-like cliffs of weathered limestone and the fairy-tale conjuring images produced by gnarled trees, roots and fern covered boulders, this place is beautiful. Add in the inspiring images of Great Blue Herons lofting only a few yards from you and the kingfishers and swallows actively working the creek and you have everything that is good about Indiana at your paddle-tips.

I have no doubt God is in nature. And in my mind I was thinking how much pleasure He was taking in the pleasure we were taking from the things He created for His pleasure.