Spring Creek Offerings

Thursday, due to the heat, I took an easy drive south of Rapid City down Sheridan Lake Rd. I have three spots along Spring Creek, which runs both east and west out of Sheridan Lake, that I like to visit. Two spots are small parking areas with a narrow trail to the creek nearby, mainly used by fishermen...the third stop is a picnic wayside area, usually deserted. I didn't feel that I was going to see anything of interest that day (which rarely happens), but I wanted to get out into the forest....my first stop spot was full of neat surprises, however...

A katydid and its beetle buddy were hanging out on a stiff goldenrod next to the trail at my first stop, that leads to the creek...

The path along the creek at this stop is short before it dead-ends, and this is what it looks like looking back the short distance....

The dragonflies were cooperating that day and I got photos of this one with a pale gold body...

And there were several pretty red-bodied dragonflies, I believe a red-veined darter...

And this blue colored one, a lance-tipped darner...

I was delighted to find a sunbathing painted turtle, unconcerned about my presence...

What a relaxed sun worshiper...it is actually called basking, something they do because they cannot regulate their body temperature...this is a female I believe, because...

There was a second, more shy turtle nearby...and it was smaller, which the males are in this species... 20% smaller than the females...this guy hit the water as soon as I neared, but when I came back up the path he was back on the log, standing his ground...less than 2 feet from the female...

At another turn-out stop, I only snapped this fritillary on a thistle...the seedy, larger thistle flower behind it looks kinda cool...another aged thistle a few feet behind this cluster was losing seeds in the breeze. Time marches on.