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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What Do You Do When a Chicken Dies?
Our chickens aren’t really pets. We don’t give them names and every once in a while, we sell or give away a few. Even so, we get attached to our hens as we recognize their individual personalities and enjoy their antics. Maybe it’s silly but we feel sad when one dies....
Crinoids. Forsaken by the Iowa Legislature?
Sometimes blessings spring from catastrophes. That happened years ago when a massive flood inundated Iowa’s Coralville Reservoir. Water overtopped the dam built to control downstream flooding. As the raging river gushed over the emergency overflow spillway it ripped...
How Do You Create Pollinator Patches?
Do you want to plant a successful pollinator patch in your yard? Winding Pathways can help with our step-by-step process and partnerships with county, private and non-profit organizations.
How Do You Tell Animals Apart?
What are some unusually marked animals you have seen?
Where do You find Antler Sheds?
One February morning I took a short work break and walked through the woods near a parking lot and a busy road. I wasn’t paying attention to where I was walking until I stepped on a hard-pointy object. It was a huge deer antler that a buck had recently dropped....
How a Dedicated Walker Reduced Knee Pain
Read how a dedicated walker reduced knee pain.
Who Remembers Smokey the Bear?
Wildfires and Smokey the Bear.
Winter Reading with Winding Pathways Gazette Features
Winding Pathways invites readers to enjoy past features in the Cedar Rapids Gazette. Wandering Nebraska and South Dakota's Rich Fossil Freeway. Follow US Highway 20 across northern Nebraska while exploring its fossil-rich history. Along the way wet your line in trout...
2019 Labyrinth Walks
Labyrinths have been integral to this year's activities. Locations have spanned from the East Coast to the deep South, and from Alaska to Hawai'i. Catch up with Winding Pathways' 2019 walks at 1080 Laughing Labyrinth website. May you enjoy labyrinth walks in 2020....
Fire In the Yard!
Prescribed burns in a yard can be safe.
Can We Find Solice Walking Labyrinths in 2020?
2020 The Great Pause Unlike other years when we have traveled and walked labyrinths along the way, in 2020 we have pretty much stayed at home. Like the rest of the world. That's OK. We found calm, solace, and yes, even joy. Remembering day-to-day, when so much seems...
Gratitudes 2019
For many people, 2019 was a roller coaster year in some respects. A habit I have developed is writing down each day a gratitude on a sticky note and placing each in a jar on the counter. Then, at the end of the year (three years now) I read them and select a few to...
How do We Make It Through Mid-Winter Doldrums?
Savoring Seed Catalogs There’s a surefire way to tell we are in the depths of winter. It’s the arrival of garden seed catalogs in the mail. We get many at Winding Pathways. Some come from massive companies that sell a wide range of flower and vegetable seeds plus...
How Do You Track Animals in Winter?
When the next soft snow falls, go tracking outside! A mid-December 2019 skiff of snow delighted us. There was not enough of the white stuff to shovel but the thin white blanket that covered our yard revealed who visited the night before. The dimples of deer tracks...
What is Aldo Leopold’s Legacy?
As dusk enveloped us, Sandhill Cranes winged over in groups of three or four, heading for their overnight roosting sites. We were at the Aldo Leopold Foundation near Baraboo, Wisconsin. Conservation philosophers often cite three authors who framed the modern...
How About These Animal Encounters!
We asked readers to send along some curious animal encounters. Enjoy these guest blog entries as we wind down 2019. From the East Coast to the Upper Midwest and ranging to Alaska and Hawaii people interact with or encounter wildlife in rural and urban areas. Birds SF:...