It was only 43 degrees when I left for my walk this morning. WWJ’s meteorologist told listeners that Mackinac Island, at 48 degrees, was warmer than us despite the fact that they have already had a light frost up there. At this rate, I might need to dig out my woolen hat and gloves next week if these chilly mornings are the norm – after all, Fall arrives this coming Tuesday. “Southeast Michigan Weather” is a site I follow on Facebook and yesterday someone asked when they thought the first snow might arrive. They responded that it would be mid to late October. It is Day #1 of training camp for the Red Wings so I guess it is appropriate to have chilly air to get caught up in hockey fever, by snow in mid-October. Yikes!

I had a few errands to accomplish along Fort Street, so I managed to get another four miles under my belt. I was just pounding the pavement as I strolled along, so no nature walk today … or so I thought, but when I crossed from Lincoln Park to Wyandotte I had to walk over part of the Ecorse Creek which runs under Fort Street. As I usually do, I glanced over to the water where dead tree branches or garbage like boxes or the occasional wooden crate are always sticking out of the dark and murky Creek. But today, there was something large right in the middle of the Creek on top of the half-submerged tree. I stopped in my tracks and watched a large heron, roosting on a big tree branch. He had tucked his pencil-thin neck down close to his body and was standing on one leg. He really was huge, which made me wonder what he has been eating because certainly no fish are swimming around in that part of the Ecorse Creek, and surely the reeds and bushes on the Creek banks would not provide enough sustenance for him. He stirred, probably because he saw me and viewed this human as a threat. He then stood to his full height and stretched languorously, a regal-looking creature in rather unpleasant surroundings. He was better suited for Council Point Park where I’ve seen several herons already. Soon he took flight, those huge wings carrying him down the narrow corridor of the Creek ‘til I could see him no longer. Perhaps he will join his counterparts at Council Point Park and I will see him again soon.