All of these scenes were taken in the evening, since the sun rises around 4:00 a.m. when I'm still sleeping. In addition, the overlook faces west.
The hill in the background across the bay is a volcano.
That gray stuff is a plant called "Lichenzid." It's in the fungi family, It does not appear to be edible. It grows in the shade in the woods. It lies flat on the ground. All the ones that I've seen are under pine, or spruce trees.
You can see the bunchberry dogwood and a purple wild geranium. The purple geranium grows in Illinois too!
