🍂 Hello everyone! 🍁

Welcome to the October Station WIL Trail Roundup Newsletter. This month we’ve been hot on the trail of some new books, as well as a brand-new webpage where you can find everything you’ve been looking for in one cozy, story-filled place! We’re always busy writing empowering stories for young readers—and this season, we’ve added a little extra sparkle. As the weather grows cooler 🍂 and our thoughts turn to cuddling by the fireside with a good book, we’ve had you in mind every step of the way. Here at the Ranger Station, we’re working hard to bring you fresh tales full of wonder, warmth, and wild-hearted adventure. Get ready for whimsical and true-to-life stories for kids this Winter and Late Winter, plus a fantastic new book just for our grown-up readers (yes, you!). Let’s take a peek at this month’s featured books—they’re splashy ones!

And coming soon: The Ranger Station's newest book Station WIL~ What It’s Like to Find Your Way, invites readers to explore outdoor skills like orienteering, compass reading, and navigation — all wrapped in story-based adventure. It’s a little STEM thrown into the mix, showing how map skills can translate to making well-thought-out decisions in any circumstance. Join Ranger Jack and the team as we journey through stories, skills, and seasonal wonder
— and yes, we’re finishing the book together!

Our Featured Books this Month are more epic
Abby Adventure Stories
by Cara Dancer

High Seas Bunny Another epic in the Abby's Adventure Series by Cara Dancer Click to get onboard with the ​High Seas Bunny!

Ahoy, reader! In the family swimming pool, nine-year-old Sofia and her chatty best friend, a rabbit named Abby, transform an ordinary afternoon into a swashbuckling pirate adventure aboard their trusty ship, The Wild Strawberry. Their mission? To recover a lost treasure: a necklace that once belonged to Sofia’s mother. With imagination as their compass, they sail into deep waters and encounter a delightful crew of critters—a gentle manatee, a large chatty bird, a rat swim team with synchronized flair, and even a hungry alligator who’s got treasure fever of his own.

High Seas Bunny is a rollicking tale of courage, creativity, and the magic of play. It’s the fourth book in the Parents Read Abby’s Adventures Series, and it’s sure to make a splash with readers of all ages.

“The treasure isn’t always what you think it is.” —Abby Bunny

Beach Rangers Bunny to the Rescue in this Abby's Adventure Series book by Cara Dancer Grab your copy and join the Beach Rangers rescue!

When Sofia and her talking rabbit, Abby, arrive for a family beach day, they’re not planning to build sandcastles—they’re on a mission. As Beach Rangers, Captain and Skipper, they patrol the shore in a borrowed toy convertible, ready to protect beachgoers from danger (and maybe snack along the way). Their first rescue? A daring dash to save Ratena the rat from the clutches of a greedy seagull named Fayleen. But just as the sand settles, a giant sea turtle begs for help: her baby hatchling has vanished in the dunes. What follows is a whirlwind adventure involving a runaway umbrella, a crab with a serious snack attack, and marshmallows flying through the air like confetti. Can two brave rangers—and one speedy dune buggy—save both rat and hatchlings before the tide turns? To find out, read Beach Rangers, another in the Abby’s Adventures series.

🍓 Welcome to the Strawberry Patch with Abby🍓 Hello there and hop right in! I’m Abby, and this cozy little corner is where I share curious tidbits, bunny-sized stories, and questions from my friends. It’s not a big advice column — more like a soft patch of clover where we can nibble on ideas together. Ready to dig in? 🍓

Why Do I Snore?

Sabio the spider (he lives in my crate and spins bedtime lullabies) asked me why I snore. Well, rabbits like me can make all sorts of sounds — oinks, squeaks, purrs, and yes, snores! Sometimes it’s the fluff in my bedding, the way I curl up, or just my bunny blueprint. If a rabbit suddenly starts snoring like a tiny trombone, it might be time for a check-up — just to be safe.

🍓 Why Do I Love 🍓Strawberries 🍓So Much? 🍓

Ginny, my berry-brained bunny buddy, wonders why I go gaga for strawberries. It’s like asking why Sofia loves math — she counts stars, I count strawberries. I do enjoy other fruits too, but only in moderation. Too many treats and I start to resemble a round little melon. So I balance my snacks with leafy greens and crunchy hay — the secret to a happy hop.

Why Do I Gnaw on Sofia’s Furniture?

Sofia’s furniture has seen better days, thanks to my nibbling ways. She gets frustrated (understandably), and I get a gentle scolding. But here’s the scoop: my teeth never stop growing, so chewing keeps them in check. Plus, when I’m lonely or bored, gnawing helps me feel calm — like a bunny version of knitting. When Sofia’s home and we’re off on our playtime adventures, I forget all about furniture legs. It’s amazing what a little togetherness can do.

🌼 What’s on Your Mind?

Now it’s your turn! Got a question, a story, or a silly thought? Send it my way. The Strawberry Patch is always open — and there’s room for everyone under the leaves.
📬 Write to Abby: abby@abbyadventurebooks.com
​(Abby reads every message with a little help from Sofia.)

Loonsong Lake Dispatch 🌿 A nature note from Michael McBride We’re thrilled to announce a new feature that brings the wild wonder of Loonsong Lake straight to your inbox. Whether it’s a story about the estuary’s tiniest octopus, a kid-friendly guide to building mobiles that dance in the wind, or a poetic reflection from the lodge porch, this dispatch will offer gentle adventure and naturalist charm for readers of all ages. Loonsong Lake Lodge

One of the greatest pleasures in my life has been helping young people to see further down the trail, to help them realize that whatever circumstances they might find themselves in at the moment, no matter how difficult or challenging, if you can see further down the trail, you can see optimism shining in the distance and you can see success. To do that, one stands on the shoulders of one's mentors, one's teachers, and one's friends, who have the privilege of letting you stand on their shoulders so that you can see further down the trail.

It's interesting how opposites often have a great deal in common. So, besides the idea of looking down, how about for a moment, let's look up. And I'd like to counsel anyone, young or old, once a day, simply go out into your yard and lay down on the ground with your shoulder blades firmly planted in the soil. Just gaze at the sky and listen to your own breath, because there is always room to grow in knowledge and wisdom, and at your age, the wise mentors, teachers, and friends around you are the ones who help lift you up and guide you on your journey.

I'll translate that into something a little more specific. I went out this morning to harvest some apples from my tree for my friend. Basket in hand, I brought the ladder just under the apples that I could see. I picked one out that was the highest one. I wasn't sure that even with the ladder, I could reach it. But I thought, I'll give it a try. And so I had this warm feeling that ran up my arm as my hand reached past my heart, past my head, and continued up through those apple-laden branches until, yes, I was able to grasp that highest one, which I thought was a treasure. I thought it was precious. And as I brought that apple back down past my face and past my heart, I felt a comparable flow of goodness, of energy, if you will. And that kind of union is what I'm talking about—what we hope to achieve by laying on the ground and simply considering how privileged we are, how fortunate we are, how lucky we are to have had the mentors who helped us see further down the trail. End of short story.

Start at the bottom and work your way up. Use natural or recycled materials—twigs, feathers, shells, or paper shapes 👉 Balance each piece so it sways gently. Hang it from a branch, porch beam, or ceiling hook. Watch it move and write a haiku about what you see!

🧵 Make Your Own Mobile! ​Here's How to Build a Nature Mobile

“I build my home from drift and dream. What will you build today?” ​
—Estuary Octopus

Thank you, Michael McBride, for your inspiration, photos, and instructions for building our own mobiles.

📸 Send us a photo of your mobile and we’ll add it to our
Kid-Made Gallery in the next TRU Newsletter!​
​

Ranger Station WIL
Seasonal Note

🍂​ ​Falling leaves are in the air... While Michael's picking Golden Delicious apples in Utah, we're watching and listening for wild geese to fly overhead.

And just beyond the orchard and the sky...​
​As the days grow shorter and the air turns crisp, the forest around Loonsong Lake begins its quiet transformation. Leaves whisper their goodbyes in shades of amber and gold, and the creatures prepare for the coming rest. Take a moment each day to listen for the soft rustle of the wind through the trees and watch how the light dances differently on the water. It’s a gentle reminder that change is part of the trail we all walk—sometimes slow, sometimes swift,
but always leading us forward.

Trail Markers Gosh, they seem to be everywhere!

🧭📚 Coming Soon! Michael’s grand new book, The Grand Antipodes, features expansive stories of his lifelong experiences in both Alaska and Africa (AWI Adult Adventures). Kathy’s two latest books, High Seas Bunny and Beach Rangers provide whimsical stories for young readers as well as their parents to read and reread as memorable childhood keepsakes! AND—wait for it—Station WIL~ What It’s Like to Find Your Way is still—wait for it—Coming Soon! Yay!!

🐾 Soft Paw Moments: Winston the turkey has promised to not peck Dottie the kitten on the top of her head, as long as Dottie promises not to eat any of Winston’s turkey food. So far, all is going well as Dottie said she really does prefer her kitty food to Winston’s sunflower seeds…

🕯️📚🕯️ Legacy Threads: Editing progress or emotional wins. All is going fairly well, except your editor needs a nap.

🌲Back at the Trailhead with Teo & Patty You're always welcome back here! Visit the WIL Bookshelf

Remember, explorers — whether you’re just arriving at the Station WIL trailhead or returning from a grand adventure, this is a welcoming point on your map. It’s a place to pause, reflect, return home…
or set off again.

Some journeys loop like forest trails, bringing us back with new stories to tell, just like the story in What It's Like to Find Your Way. Others sail out from the dock, aiming to return with treasure-laden decks and tales that shimmer in the retelling. You’ll learn more in
​What It’s Like to Sail the Wind.

Even opening your journal can be a trailhead moment — the first page, the last page, or the space between where ideas bloom. In What It’s Like to Journal Your Journey, we explore how
writing becomes a path of its own.

When you begin your journey here at Station WIL — your Trailhead for Adventure — stories like What It’s Like to Find Your Star will help you zoom out to locate your guiding light (Polaris, perhaps) and zoom back in to notice a single wild strawberry, glistening in the grass.

Every adventure begins and ends with wonder — and the Trailhead is where we gather to share it all.

🪶

WIND SONG HAIKU

Sing a song like wind
and waves and gulls flying low.
Their song is for you.

(By Ranger Jill, October 22, 2025, written with a song in my heart just for you!
Send your own haiku and you might see it here in the next Trail Roundup Newsletter! Yay!!)

🍃

🕯️Your thoughts are sealed in the fortress of you—share a few words to let everyone know you’re still holding down the fort!

🐾Don't forget to walk your dog! Your furry friend is counting on you!
...and, yes, furry-friend photos are always welcome here!!