spring – St. Croix 360

Afton State Park phenology, May 16 to 22

Monarch butterflies may return any day after a perilous winter in Mexico.

Warblers, fawns, and butterflies arrive as the last spring flowers bloom.

Birds pass through on their way north while new frogs join the choir.

Cold water is dangerous and unexpected falls quickly can turn tragic.

Meadowlarks sing of spring on the prairies as skunk cabbage emerges in the woods.

The equinox approaches and winter’s grip begins to break.

Birds at Afton right now spent their winters all over the Western Hemisphere.

High water offers more to explore.

Featherless hatchlings, migratory monarch cousins, and dawn and dusk activity.

Two trips to the river reveal the rapid arrival of the new season.