Lone Tree, Iowa, is a lovely little Midwestern town--and the birthplace of Charles Black. August 23, 2026 It’s a beautiful, sunny Sunday morning as I pull into Lone Tree, Iowa. The town is so small that it’s not on some maps, but the turnoff from highway 22 is clearly marked with a big green sign that says, “Welcome to Lone Tree.” Bird nests hang out of almost all the openings in the raised white letters, giving the sign a somewhat shaggy and homey appearance. Lone Tree i

Finding the tallgrass prairie turned out to be a little more challenging than I anticipated August 23, 2026 When I was in North Dakota in June, I hiked the shortgrass prairie and the mixed grass prairie. There’s just one major American prairie type I haven’t experienced yet—the tallgrass prairie. So while I’m on my way to Iowa State University to look at some archives, I decide to try to find some undisturbed tallgrass prairie—which once covered over 80 percent of the state

I conclude my June research trip with a field day at James Lake Cranberry Farms in Three Lakes, Wisconsin June 25, 2026 Little Tent on the Prairie is now Little Tent in the Big Woods of Wisconsin. I’m camped on the shore of beautiful White Deer Lake in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest, surrounded by fragrant hemlock and cedar trees and hordes of large, hungry mosquitoes. I spent nearly twelve hours yesterday driving across North Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin in th

My last afternoon in North Dakota is a quest to find out what happened to Indigenous farmland June 23, 2026 It’s just before 1:00 p.m. when I leave Menoken Farm. Instead of returning to my campground, I head north. There are a couple more places I want to visit on my last afternoon in North Dakota, places that add another perspective to the challenges facing North Dakota farmers. My first stop, about an hour’s drive north of Menoken, is the Lewis and Clark interpretive ce

The soil health movement in North Dakota has made great progress. But is herbicide-dependent no-till sustainable in the long run? June 23, 2026 Time for my last farm tour in North Dakota! I leave my campground, head a few miles east on I-94, and arrive at Menoken Farm by 9:00 a.m. This is a little different than the other farms I’ve toured, because it’s not a commercial operation. Menoken Farm is a demonstration farm managed by the Burleigh County Soil Conservation District

Today's hike explores where and how North Dakota's agricultural Indigenous people traditionally farmed It’s a beautiful, sunny morning in Mandan, North Dakota. I sit by the confluence of the Missouri and Heart Rivers and watch the sun rise behind a bank of clouds while dozens of families of Canada geese swim upstream in stately lines—one big one, two to five adolescents that are starting to get their adult feathers, and another big one. Here's the view of the confluence fro

I couldn't go to North Dakota without stopping by Brown's Ranch! June 22, 2026 Gabe Brown is arguably one of the most famous regenerative farmers in America—if not the world. He’s been featured in the films Kiss the Ground and Common Ground, and his book Dirt to Soil is one of the foundation texts of the modern regenerative movement. All the other farmers I talked to in North Dakota hold Gabe in awe, admitting that his soil looks better than theirs but not sure exactly how

Golden Valley County was one of the first areas to adopt no-till on a large scale June 22, 2026 I wake up as soon as it gets light and pack up my wet tent. It’s beautiful and sunny this morning, with no wind. I’m not due at the farm I’ll be touring until 8:00 a.m., so I decide to stretch my legs on the short Wind Canyon nature trail. There’s nobody there at 5:30 a.m.; I have the beautiful scenery all to myself. On the way there, I drive right through a bison cow-calf herd.

I've been wanting to visit Theodore Roosevelt National Park for eighteen years, and I'm finally here! June 20, 2026 This is one of the most amazing scenic drives I’ve ever been on. I’m stopping at every pullout, snapping photos of the ever-changing scenery. The badlands in the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park are huge and colorful, and every twist in the road reveals something new. Look at those tan-and-black stripes! That bluff is slumped sideways! Here’s some

I was excited to discover that Penn's Cave is still open and offers the same boat tour that the Keene family went on many years ago Penns Creek arises out of one end of a large cave hidden under a cornfield. It simply wells up, full blown, almost frighteningly, from somewhere underground. Several times when our girls were young we went to see Penns Cave and take a ride through it by boat. The boat was carried along on the water by that incredible fountain arising from out of