Welcome to Winding Pathways
Winding Pathways encourages you to create a wonderous yard, whether that yard is an expansive acreage, a suburban lot or a condominium balcony. Go outside and play!
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Seed Swaps
SEED SWAPS A FUN WINTER GARDENING EXPERIENCE. January 31, 2026, is SEED SWAP DAY. It’s on our planner, and we are headed for a fun weekend in Decorah, Iowa, to take in the swap. According to the Seed Saver’s Exchange seed swaps have been happening for at least 10,000...
Magical Fog
When we looked out our windows on the morning of December 27, we saw……. nothing! Well, we saw magical fog. It was so magical that it obscured the nearby houses and stores we normally see. Fog made us feel like we lived in a remote area and reminded us of Carl...
Walking Safely On Ice
We love being outside even when the weather is awful and the world is icy. It doesn’t keep us inside but, we do a few things to help us walk safely in an icy world. Orthopedics' "Delight" Ice makes walking treacherous. Orthopedic physicians are busy during icy periods...
Labyrinth Walks 2025
A variety of labyirnth walks filled out 2025 with joy, sorrow, laughter and Grace.
Nests Appear Like Magic
When autumn’s spectacularly colored leaves drift by our windows they signal the end of a season. That's also the beginning of a new season - when nests appear like magic. A few years ago we sat on the front deck as leaves tumbled off a nearby maple. “What’s that big...
Cataract Surgery Re-Visited
Sometimes a follow-up surgery is needed to remove growth under the cataract lenses.
Do Solar Arrays Save Money?
We’ll soon celebrate the 10th anniversary of our solar electric system. Did our decade-old solar arraays investment save money? The short answer is YES! Here’s the back story. Our system is small with only nine panels on the barn’s roof. When we had it installed our...
Chestnuts Roasting By An Open Fire
As Christmas approaches, nearly every American radio station will play the familiar "The Christmas Song" commonly called "Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire." The song was written by Robert Wells and Mel Tormé in 1945 and made famous by the Nat King Cole Trio....
Where Do Bucks Hide?
One early November day we watched an enormous whitetail buck saunter across our yard. Seeing big bucks during their short mating season is common, but where do they hide the rest of the year? Does and Young Always Around It’s perplexing. We see does and fawns in all...
Mural Trails
Take a tour of wall murals in and around your neighborhood and town. These fun, funky, and informative works of art brighten our days.
Autumn – Changing of the Guard
Take in the autumnal changes and delight in nature’s variety.
Railroad Lanterns & Kate Shelley
In October Rich held a lighted match to an antique railroad lantern’s wick. In seconds the lantern gave its first light in over 80 years but couldn't hold a candle to a modern-day lantern. “My grandfather, Harry Patterson, was an engineer on the Pennsylvania Railroad....
Why Buy An Induction Stove?
In midsummer we made a major cooking change at Winding Pathways when we bought an induction stove. For 50 years we’d been cooking on a gas kitchen range, so we faced a learning curve. Induction stoves work by creating an electromagnetic field below a smooth glass...
How Do Ponds Attract Wildlife?
Our tiny pond attracts all sorts of wildlife from tiny insects to larger mammals.
Death By High Wires
Consecutive Walks Turned Somber While on different hot September morning walks my day was saddened by the death of a warbler, a nighthawk and pelican. I (Rich) often walk around Cedar Rapids’, (Iowa) Cedar Lake. It’s near downtown, an interstate highway, and train...
Happy Yards
Happy yards lighten up all our moods as we walk and drive. We thank businesses, colleges and schools, hospitals, and homeowners for their work in beautifying our world.