Outdoors

Columbia teacher will kayak the Missouri River. The whole river. By herself.

One of the first things Janet Moreland did when she moved back to Missouri almost twenty years ago was buy a canoe. A native to California, Moreland had enjoyed playing in water bodies since her childhood in Sacramento. “The American River was my playground,” says Moreland. From floating the American River to windsurfing in the … Continue reading »

First Great Outdoors trip of the season

It’s spring! Rain is falling. Robins are warbling. Woodcocks are sniffing around in the mud. No better place to be at a season-switch than beautiful Mid-Missouri, and no better time to go out than THIS WEEKEND! Sustain Mizzou treasurer Andrew has a hike planned to Rock Bridge State Park (details below), so lace up your … Continue reading »

Top 3 reasons to play in the snow today

1. You might bump into this guy. 2. You may never get thundersnow again. 3. You’ll get a good workout. Especially since the gyms are closed.

My Friend, Socrates the Squirrel

When I moved into my third floor apartment downtown, I didn’t expect to see much wildlife. But my desk window faces a big tree, and I’ve been getting more little visitors than I’d expected! Pigeons sleep on the tree at night, and sometimes on my windowsill, all fluffed up to keep warm. Other birds occasionally … Continue reading »

Winter Blahs? Let's Feed the Birds!

Reblogged from Show Me Oz: By Daniel Novak Feeding and watching birds in the summer, spring and fall can be an enjoyable family pursuit and winter should be no different. While many of the birds we often see at other times of year travel to warmer climates for the winter a few hardy souls remain. … Continue reading »

Fall Break Biking

This might be the perfect time to go biking. Cool air, open spaces and no impending homework. Visit the City of Columbia web site for a full directory of trails as well as a map of all the city parks. One of the coolest, little-talked-about places along the MKT is the Urban Ecological Restoration Project, … Continue reading »

Fall Colors of Columbia

Hi Footprint friends! Despite last week’s stormy weather, we DID have pretty fall foliage moments in downtown Columbia. I took some photos last week, near Peace park and J-school area. Enjoy!

October color, from Columbia to the Ozarks

Spiders at Capen Park

Spiders occupy diverse niches even within the same ecosystem. Web placement, angle, size and hunting strategies can vary even among spiders of the same designation such as orb weavers. During the evolution of species, it must have been advantageous to have multiple similar species exploit the same environment in different ways. In early October 2012, … Continue reading »

Where Nature Rules

Iceland Iceland is nature painted in large brush strokes. Purple-grey mountains, black sand beaches, moonlike lava fields, wide silver streams, green pastures and rolling red hills, glaciers and lagoons of pale, milky blue. It’s easy to lose yourself in those expanses, when the hours pass by on the Ring Road with the alien-shapes of lava … Continue reading »