You are not entitled to ignore posted signs and then get offended when property owners or police question you. On his belly, he gently prodded a small purple plant emerging along the trail—an Earth inhabitant he deemed worthy of examination. Current farming practices don’t leave room for native plants like they once did…Monarchs require milkweed.

Sara has a passion for all of God's creatures, not just the monarch butterflies, but here she shares many of the lessons she learned from them on her journey following their migration path. While other farms spray away the milkweed, Native American Seed embraces each plant and their monarch suitors.The idea that I can't trespass on private land but private landowners can trespass into my space, by dirtying my air and contaminating my water, has always left me doubting the validity of such restrictions. At home in backyards, school gardens, parks, roadside ditches and the wildest places, monarchs, like clouds, are democratic in their reach. Upon my arrival the first time at the Native American Seed farm, I thanked Emily a 2nd generation farmer, the network that had connected us, and the monarchs that led me there. Thanks to this book, readers have a better idea of what that incredible journey entails… Dykman’s enthusiasm will motivate others to be more thoughtful about their decisions.

Although she kept a diary as her reference for the trip, it is obvious that she bases her writing on an extensive background as a naturalist, and biologist.Her almost incredible account captures the animal itself, the continent it crosses, and its plight with style and deep connection.

There she finds hundreds of thousands (maybe millions) of Monarchs resting for their long trip north. The presence of milkweed in agricultural fields (between crops and on field edges) declined 97 percent from 1999 to 2009 in Iowa, and 94 percent in Illinois.I had already pedaled thousands of miles, including a 12-country bicycle trip from Bolivia to Texas and a 49-state tour around the United States. In addition, it takes several generations of monarch to fly north from Mexico to Canada, but the butterflies who take off from Canada travel all the way to Mexico. A young woman rides her bike from the monarch refuges in Mexico, up through the United States and into Canada, and back to Mexico again.

She began her 10,201 mile trip in Mexico at one of the overwintering sanctuaries for Monarchs and followed the general migration path of the monarchs into the US, up through the center of the country into Canada and back around, but in a more eastern pathway.I loved her journey and the way she allows strangers to embrace her so together they can expand their common goal. At many of these stops, someone would inevitably invite her for a home-cooked meal, a shower, and an overnight stay in the guest room or the backyard.