A BLANKET OF BEAUTY IN THE SKY SHOWY MILKWEED The campanula trail or boardwalk

The campanula trail or boardwalk at Starved Rock State Park

I was coming up to an area of the park with some common milkweed along the trail and was in high hopes of seeing a monarch butterfly or two

Purple wildflowers of ironweed stand tall on this prairie in Northern Illinois

Snow covered cattails are viewed from this wetland prairie landscape at Wildflower Park

A beautiful cool February evening sunset appears while walking along Eakin Creek West with box elder trees lining the banks of the creek

A BLANKET OF BEAUTY IN THE SKY SHOWY MILKWEED The campanula trail or boardwalkThe forecast this July summer morning was to be sunny with some cloud cover. As I left the house before sunrise, I glanced skyward to check the clouds which happen to be altostratus clouds. These are the kind of clouds that appear in the troposphere and are similar to stratus clouds in that they form a blanket. They are also perfect for photographing in that with the morning colors can give off a beautiful and sensational feel of inner peace, a