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Outdoors 118 results
The Marsh Madness Festival in Linton, Indiana, is February 14–15 at Goose Pond Fish & Wildlife Area. The annual event celebrates the sandhill crane migration that stops in Greene County and fuels an economic boost to the community. Above, sandhill cranes in Elkhart, Indiana. | Photo by Tina Nord

Sandhill Cranes Are the Stars of Marsh Madness at Goose Pond The annual wildlife spectacle boosts tourism in Greene County
Carol Johnson
Marsh Madness, February 14–15 at Goose Pond FWA, celebrates the sandhill crane migration that stops in Greene County and fuels an economic boost to the community. The annual event was established by the nonprofit Friends of Goose Pond, which supports the wetlands that attract numerous species of migratory birds. Read the article by Carol Johnson of the Southern Indiana Business Report.
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Students in the American Studies class at Bloomington’s Academy of Science and Entrepreneurship were asked to identify their sense of place. Each student made a video to learn about their special place’s “larger connection to our shared home of southern Indiana.” Above, a screenshot from the video by Andjoli C. Badger.

What Is ‘A Sense of Place’? Bloomington Students Explain — and Share Theirs The 2024 “Sense of Place” project by students at the Academy of Science and Entrepreneurship is here!
Academy of Science and Entrepreneurship Students
Students in the American Studies class at Bloomington’s Academy of Science and Entrepreneurship were asked to identify their sense of place. Each student made a video to learn about their special place’s “larger connection to our shared home of southern Indiana.” And as ASE students have done since 2016, they’ve shared their videos with us. Watch their “sense of place” videos here.
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Beginning in the mid-1990s, a group of Orange County citizens wearing orange T-shirts encouraged Indiana lawmakers to grant a gaming license to French Lick. Above, some of the “Orange Shirts” pose for a photo at the Statehouse (l-r): (front row) Betty Oakley, Mary Gilliatt, Geneva Street, Rep. Tom Saunders, Willa Sanders, and Leon Sanders; (back row) Debby Gilliatt, Vicky Perambo, Adina Cloud of the French Lick Springs Resort, Steve Ferguson of Cook Group, Tina Conner of Historic Landmarks, and Jack Carnes. | Photo from the Carnes Family Collection

How Orange T-shirts Helped Revive Gaming in French Lick
Laurie D. Borman and Carol Johnson
Beginning in the 1990s, a group of Orange County citizens traveled multiple times to the Indiana Statehouse to encourage lawmakers to grant a gaming license to the town of French Lick. Limestone Post and the Southern Indiana Business Report look back at those early days and how gaming today has affected the town and its citizens. Read the article by Laurie D. Borman and Carol Johnson.
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Monroe Lake is “the source of our drinking water, a destination for many outdoor activities, and home to a wide variety of critters and flora,” writes Michael G. Glab. This year marks the 60th anniversary of its dedication, and many events are planned to commemorate it. Above, swimmers enjoy the beach at Fairfax State Recreation Area. | Limestone Post

Celebrating Monroe Lake’s 60th Anniversary Series of events and programs planned for lead-up to October reception
Michael G. Glab
We couldn’t imagine living without Monroe Lake, writes Michael G. Glab. The reservoir is “the source of our drinking water, a destination for many outdoor activities, and home to a wide variety of critters and flora.” This year marks the 60th anniversary of its dedication, with many events planned to commemorate it. Read Glab’s article, featuring Interpretive Naturalist Jill Vance.
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Three generations of tractor enthusiasts ride in the parade at the Monroe County Antique Machinery Association Show in May. Eleanor, 3, sits with her father, Zach Clark, on the Allis-Chalmers while her grandfather Joel Clark follows on the John Deere. | Photos by Limestone Post

Antique Machinery Club Keeps Tractors — and History — Alive
Dason Anderson
In May, the Monroe County Antique Machinery Association held its spring antique machinery and tractor show. The turnout was “impressive,” writes Dason Anderson, as more than 100 tractors and other machines were on display. Association President Tim Deckard says the two-year-old club helps give the public a deeper understanding of our local history and culture. Read the story and see the machines.
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Journalist Steven Higgs “trained” at Beanblossom Bottoms Nature Preserve for a photographic expedition to the Colombian Amazon. Shown here on an Uplands Group Sierra Club hike he led are Amy Henn (front), Mary Carol Reardon (white hat), Will Cowan, and others. | Photography by Steven Higgs

A Half-century Trail from Beanblossom Bottoms to the Colombian Amazon
Steven Higgs
Bloomington environmental photographer and writer Steven Higgs has spent his career covering nature. Soon, though, he will connect two dots in a “half-century trail” when he photographs the Colombian Amazon. This spring, he made several trips to our own protected wilderness, Beanblossom Bottoms, to hone his photographic skills for the Amazonian expedition. Connect the dots here.
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Otis, a 25-foot-tall sasquatch at Patoka Lake, has become a tourist sensation in Orange County, drawing tourists from across the state and beyond. He was completed in April 2023 by the Bear Hollow carving team (pictured above, with the big guy). | Photo provided

‘Otis,’ the Orange County Sasquatch Sensation The giant carved beast has even landed on the cover of Indiana’s official tourism magazine
Carol Johnson
A 25-foot-tall sasquatch at Patoka Lake has become a sensation, drawing tourists from across the state and beyond. The shaggy beast — named Otis and made from poplar, white pine, and other materials by the Bear Hollow carving team — adds another attraction to Orange County’s tourism, which is “a major driver” in its economy. By Carol Johnson of the Southern Indiana Business Report.
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The wide-ranging issues about protecting Indiana’s wetlands present a conflict between people who advocate for the critical functions wetlands provide and those who say wetland regulations drive up construction prices and hamper growth. Above, a swamp in Beanblossom Bottoms in Monroe County. | Photo by Anne Kibbler

What’s at Stake in the Debate Over Indiana’s Wetlands? Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate Wetland Preservation
Anne Kibbler
Laws protecting Indiana wetlands have been rolled back in recent years. Some people argue that wetlands must be preserved because of the critical functions they provide. Others say wetland regulations drive up construction prices and hamper growth. This Deep Dive by Anne Kibbler looks at the myriad questions and wide-ranging issues in the debate over Indiana’s wetlands. Read it here.
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Mark Stosberg (left) and Taufique Hussain on Maple Grove Road during a recent 21-mile run (which Stosberg says became a 26.7-mile run). | Limestone Post

Why I Found Myself Running 50 Miles Alone in the Wintertime
Mark Stosberg
One recent winter, Mark Stosberg set out on a 50-mile run. He wasn’t racing in or training for an event, so at some point he had to answer the question, Why keep going? To test his physical and mental limits? To satisfy a primal instinct? Or was it therapeutic in some way? Sit back and relax as Mark runs through these questions.
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