Back in the days when I worked on site, it was imperative I had my “ducks in a row” every morning. I took the bus to downtown Detroit for years and even though the bus may not have always arrived on time, I had to be at the bus stop waiting for it like it WOULD show up timely. I’ve long since strayed from that rigid regimen, because for the last decade I’ve been working from home, but I still need to put some pep in my step in order to get out the door daily to garner steps to attain my year-end walking goal.
Today’s post entitled “Having one’s ducks in a row” isn’t all about ME getting out the door to walk and visit my favorite parks – instead, it’s about three posts in a row centering around Mallard ducks, with an identical venue, Heritage Park. So, what’s up with that you ask? Well, the general consensus is you all seem to like ducks, so I’ll indulge you with one more duck post. Lots of squirrel posts will fill my blog in coming months, I assure you.
Ducks are a happy lot and to me they seem to be perpetually smiling … I mean, have you ever seen a duck having a hissy fit the likes of the histrionics exhibited by a Canada Goose? It’s fair to say that next to squirrels, ducks are my favorite critters to photograph.
So, after that siege of rain and flooding of Biblical proportions on June 25th, I knew any excursions to bigger parks would have to wait a while. Not only would my favorite shoreline parks have trails underwater, but the grounds would be soggy as well. Yes, I have rubber boots, but they aren’t conducive for long walks. So, I spent a lot of the soggy, foggy, buggy and muggy Summertime mornings walking at Council Point Park, as torrential rains and storms regularly wrecked havoc with my weekend walking plans. I had a few alternatives like Bishop Park or Dingell Park, along their respective cement Boardwalks, as well as tripping along lovely historical Heritage Park’s paved paths.
So I drove to Heritage Park the following weekend after “The Siege” where an unusual sight greeted me.
Weather for ducks.
I admit I’ve had some fun riddling this post with clichés like “ducks in a row” or “weather for ducks” and yes, you might have “quacked up” or chances are you’re rolling your eyes and groaning. It’s not as if the ducks and geese at Heritage Park don’t have a place to park their feathery butts. They have beautiful Coan Lake, the man-made pond that covers three acres and has a depth of 9 to 18 feet (2.7 to 5.4 meters). Coan Lake is stocked with a variety of fish, for catch-and-release fishing, thus it provides the waterfowl residents like Mallards and Canada Geese, as well as visitors like Cormorants and Ring-billed Seagulls, an opportunity to snag a snack.
But despite the amenities, as you see below, the Mallards meandered over to the saturated lawn near the parking lot where they discovered this pond. You may think it is a gulley, but no, it is not – the lawn was so saturated and nowhere for the water to drain, that this pond formed.
I whipped the camera out then stood there awhile watching them paddling and preening.
Duck, duck, goose.
What we had here was a case of “the haves and the have nots” as a small flock of Canada Geese were flying overhead, so their incessant honking had me tilting my head upward. They passed this pond and parking lot, no doubt heard the “quackcophony” of ducks at the new swimming hole, so they doubled back and landed near the pond.
“Wait, what?” is what their leader seemed to say as he shepherded a small group over to this newfound watering hole, then “what the hey, the more the merrier!” then promptly plopped into the pond to join their feathered, smaller brethren.
The Mallards didn’t seem to mind until this Canada Goose got a little too cozy with one of them.
The scene was picturesque and if I didn’t tell you it was just low-lying ground, saturated from “The Siege” and subsequent rainfall, you’d never have known, would you? There were some pretty reflections of one of our fine-feathered friends, like up top and right below.
This Mallard seemed to test the depth of the water by waddling along with its bright-orange webbed feet on the grassy pond bottom.
The reflections on the water of the 139-year-old West Mound Church, which has been going restoration after a devastating fire nearly gutted the interior on November 2, 2020, were better than looking at the original.
The inside is gutted from fire, plus water damage from dousing the flames.
The waterfowl wading pool party was the highlight of this excursion.
I meandered around the historical village area …
… then over to the Community gardens.
No ducks or geese had discovered this … yet.
I finished up at the Conservatory and Botanical Gardens where I got the only butterfly shots of the entire Summer and those photos will be fodder to share in a separate post.
Linda Schaub
WALKIN', WRITIN', WIT & WHIMSY 
There is a large preserved parkland area near me. There is a stream running through it and it always floods the parkland around it. The ducks seize the opportunity to glide on the water. From the street it looks like a legit pond but it’s only temporary flooding. Within a day it’s gone but for that day the ducks have a blast.
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That’s funny because it is the same as here – the ducks have a place all to themselves, yet this was something different to explore. Variety is the spice of life, whether you’re a human or a critter. Made me smile watching them.
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I seldom get to see a duck in my area, but I do love them. This is such a great post and your pictures are wonderful. It’s always great to get out and commune with nature.
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You are lucky and have goats! I remember you did a post about them once. Glad you enjoyed the photos Peggy … the ducks were just delightful to watch. It was as if they were tired of their big lake and this was a new playground for them.
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Yes, we do have goats next door in the neighbor’s pasture. The baby goats are delightful.
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I thought you did Peggy. I remember we were chatting about how cute they were.
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I don’t think about “ducks in a row” in the literal sense enough, so your post was a good reminder, Linda. Their little line-ups – whether on land or in the water – speak to nature’s beautiful spin on grouping. Last night I learned my niece was just engaged to be married and her mother texted, “… the wedding date depends on how quickly they get their ducks in a row”. Maybe she saw your post coming!
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What a coincidence Dave, because I don’t think it is all that common of a phrase anymore. I did smile at those ducks’ obvious delight in having discovered a new watering hole, not all that far from their huge pond and which was quickly encroached upon by the geese.
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Fun visit! It really is ‘feast or famine’ isn’t it. You’ve had all that rain and we have drought conditions! We still have Canada geese, though. They land in the farmers fields after harvest to scoop up the grain that got left behind.
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Margy, we had all the dire warnings in April and May when we were in moderate drought… the farmers were worried sick. Then once Mother Nature turned the spigot on, it must’ve gotten jammed because we just finished our seventh wettest and ninth warmest Summer on record for metro Detroit. I hope we don’t have a repeat performance in 2022!
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Your duck friends must be very happy with all the rain you’ve gotten! Maybe not so much for you however? You wear your rubber boots much?
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Yes, don’t they look happy Wayne? The funny thing is, you can see Coan Lake from where they were happily splashing away. I did buy my red rubber boots and take them if it’s been raining, but they only come in whole sizes, so you don’t want to wear them for too long as they’re not comfortable for a long walk/hike. My walking shoes are very comfortable, like slippers.
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Dear Ms. “soggy, foggy, buggy, muggy”…………………………..I love the “gaggle of geese giggled with glee”………………………………….alliteration………………….you are clever with words……………..I never heard of a “frogbit” plant before??huh??
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I had some fun writing this post Ann Marie – those ducks and geese were having a great time paddling away … this was right next to the Sweet Shop right near the parking lot in case you were wondering. Frogbit is very tiny lily pads, but they are invasive as they spread so quickly.
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I loved having a ringside seat to watch your playing with words. That was fun. As always, your photos are gorgeous.
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Thanks Anne – I did have fun writing this post and watching those ducks that were enjoying splashing and paddling away. Meanwhile lovely Coan Lake was almost within spitting distance away. Glad you liked the pictures too – I’d say I’d give the ducks a little rest, but I got a really cute duck photo yesterday which I’ll use for next Monday’s post.
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I’ll look forward to the next duck in the row.
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I hope it doesn’t disappoint. 🙂
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Your posts never disappoint!
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That made my day Anne!
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Such great photos Linda, especially the one of the church.
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Thanks Ruth – The reflections were stunning that day. They will be re-opening that church. The City has gotten a grant to repair it in its entirety to reopen it. They used to have weddings in there.
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You can never have too many ducks in a row! Great pictures and reflections!
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I got a few more cute duck shots Sunday at Council Point Park so one more post with a duck cameo. Glad you liked the photos Joni – the reflections were great that morning.
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The first picture is so pretty, a duck portrait in the middle of the ripple circle, so lovely! Our bird friends seem to know how to make the best of any situation or opportunity. I could learn more about being flexible from them. Love the duck checking out the water’s depth. What a wet, wet summer you had! It will be nice when they finish repairing the village church. It’s fun tagging long on your walksthrough the village at different times of year.
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Thank you Barbara – the reflections on the water were stunning that day as the water was so still. I was laughing as I watched them splashing away not that far from their huge Coan Lake, a paradise for them. I could stand to be more adaptable too Barbara. It seems like years and years ago that I was flexible, game for anything … in fairness to both of us, life sure was easier back then. We’ve had a very nice week, Sunday through today, but getting a storm tonight and early morning, which may ruin my walk. Then the cooldown begins. I would like to get up to Heritage Park to take photos of the trees because they have lots of them and it is pretty to photograph. But as of now, our trees are still green, save for a few that always have their leaves turn early. We’re a week behind for colorsdue to the heat is what they told us, but I think we’re more than a week behind.
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That picture of the church is amazing! The bits of dirt/grass in the water almost look like stars, and until I turned my tablet upside down I could almost convince myself I was looking at two mirror realities spliced together.
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I was amazed about the reflections that day too Rachel and when I got the post all put together to preview it before scheduling it, I was not sure (and still am not sure) if I put the picture in the post upside down. Though I don’t see why I would have turned it around? I just left it as I thought the same thing, that it looked like stars … the reflections were really amazing on that still water.
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Perhaps you thought it looked more interesting that way? And, well, it does!
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Great minds think alike Rachel!
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Ha! Indeed. 😄
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How devastating that beautiful church caught fire. Even so, it is a beautiful picture you took.
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Thanks Diane – it went up in flames pretty quickly last November. They were doing some remodeling and had just had a wedding in there a day or two before. They don’t have regular church services, but do have small weddings there. Apparently some construction equipment sparked and caused the fire with massive damage inside from flames and water.
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What a beautiful calm day you had to capture those gorgeous photos with reflections! The ducks are cool, too :-)! They sure know how to adapt to the change in seasons.
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Yes, those ducks, despite their beautiful pond, preferred paddling and splashing around in this flooded area. It was kind of funny Shelley, especially when the geese showed up to horn in on the action.
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They might find better bugs in the flooded area?
They are fun to watch how they navigate and negotiate their turf.
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Yes, like saying “we’re sick of the pond you made us – this is more our size” so they overtook it. And of course the geese couldn’t be excluded, so they made themselves at home. It seemed to be a win-win situation all the way around.
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Yay!! 😁
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Enjoyed the ducks and extra water feature – but most of all enjoyed your word play and use of phrases to make each section have its own word flavor – well done Linda
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Thanks Yvette – you know I had a lot of fun putting together this post. I was standing there watching them and all kinds of things were popping up in my head how I was going to turn it into an amusing post. I almost called it “Any Port in a Storm.”
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Oh that would have been a fun name / ☀️☀️☀️
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Gorgeous pictures! I thought the church picture was watercolor; wonderful capture. Your captions “quack” me up. I got it from your post. lol
I’m learning a lot of names for nature in your posts.
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That water was so still that it made amazing reflections Esther. I liked the duck checking itself out in the water – it liked what it saw. I’m glad you are enjoying the nature tidbits in my posts.
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Animals make amazing photo subjects! Water is mesmerizing in photos and how do artists draw water and its ripples?! You’re a good animal paparazzi. 😛
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Thanks Esther – I guess I appear to have a kind face and bearing treats always makes them interested. 🙂
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