Cottonwood stands of Michigan and points west

All the way across the Great Plains and into the high country of Wyoming and Colorado, stands of cottonwood trees stretch along thousands of miles of river bottomlands. Seeing them, often camping out in their shade, and hearing their always-rustling leaves became one of the more consistent details of our trip last summer, and it began in Michigan, on the sand dunes in the wind coming off the big lake. There are occasional cottonwoods in the east, including the large lightning-scarred one in Margaret's yard outside the kitchen window. But there is something sturdy and comforting about being among the large western patches of them and as we headed back east, it was one thing I knew I'd miss.