How I Spent My Summer Solstice (or Fire Flies Rock!)

Ah the beginning of summer. A day to be savored, appreciated and enjoyed. Unfortunately I spent most of it inside but I did get to enjoy the evening. It was lovely.

Steve & I decided that we would go for a hike and take along a picnic. We decided to hike on the Superior Hiking Trail – a section that starts at the foot of the Spirit Mountain ski hill and goes upward through old(er) growth forests comprised of birch, aspen, oak, maple, thimbleberry, large-leaf Astor and probably a million other things I’m missing.

This is a relatively new section of the trail (couple years old?) and it is fairly un-traveled and gorgeous. There are creeks & streams, wild flowers, deer, birds, butterflies, porcupines (okay, I saw one last summer and it was HUGE) – I’m sure the unmentionables are there too (aka: snakes) and many others.

We packed a picnic supper and found a spot on the way up to come back to on our descent. The trail is rugged, which is why I like it, and cut expertly into the hillside. Never boring – always twisting & winding & climbing and offering beautiful views of the St. Louis River.

At one point we came by a long deserted home foundation! It was incredibly cool as I love to see old things like that and imagine who lived there (in the MIDDLE of the forest!) and when they lived there and if they had a family and if they were happy and why they left…you get the idea. The forest has taken it over and the only thing that remains is a foundation made of large rocks. There are indications of a pathway that led to a front door (?) and a spot that looks like the cellar entrance. There is also an old refrigerator or some other large “appliance” (furnace?) in the hold where the basement was and that’s about it. Next to the house there is a creek that is contained by a very old canal type structure. The same construction as the house’s foundation this is odd because again well, it’s in the middle of the forest.

Shortly after the house we discovered a very large pine had fallen and blocked the trail. We had to go back and find the ‘around’ which we did and continued on. The tree is a relatively new downed tree as there wasn’t much around traffic and the broken wood still smells fresh.

We hiked for a while longer and decided it was getting late so we should head back so we could have our picnic before it was totally dark.

The picnic consisted of my very favorite type of meals: triscuits, cheese, summer sausage, veggies & dip (bacon bacon from Tastefully Simple as I am COMPLETELY addicted), pretzels, bread, ham, turkey and some pasta salad for Steve. All this was complimented by a lovely bottle of wine, fantastic views and the best company. Why is it that food tastes better outside?


At about 9:45pm the sky was mostly dark and very dark under the canopy of thick summer foliage. Our eyes hadn’t seen any artificial light though so it wasn’t too bad. As we made our way down the trail, fire flies started to appear. First one over there, then another just under foot and then suddenly they were everywhere! I felt as if I was in a fairy tale and was being shown something most incredible. It’s almost as though they were there to light the path for us as initially they were on either side as we hiked down. When we reached a large grassy area at the bottom of the ski hill (the trail goes through the forest adjacent to said hill) the fireflies lit up like strings of blinking Christmas lights. It was amazing and so beautiful. Steve tried to capture them on the camera but it didn’t really work.



It was such a perfect way to end a long day. Actually – we ended it by going home and sitting in the backyard to watch the last of the light fade and finish the bottle of wine. We even saw a few fireflies back there which was a new experience. It was truly a magical evening.