After lingering with the seagulls at Bishop Park, it was time to move on to the next leg of my journey, so I continued, on foot, along Biddle Avenue, enroute to BASF Waterfront Park, one mile away.

Along this main street in the heart of the City of Wyandotte, there were still lots of beautiful flowers, just eleven days before calendar Fall would begin.  Every Summer, most of the shops add curb appeal to their respective businesses with barrels, planters or hanging baskets brimming with blooms.

But these proprietors cannot compete with the gorgeous hanging baskets and cement planters maintained by the City of Wyandotte, like the above “pretty in pink” baskets and planters dripping in blossoms, still looking good, even after our wicked-hot Summer.  I’ve often seen water tank trucks, with City workers keeping the plants hydrated, but I wonder who is in charge of deadheading those plants? 

Here’s a couple of close-ups, a riot of color from these perky Petunias.

I smiled at this sign at Joe’s Hamburgers, an eatery featuring sliders – certainly a Summertime vibe. 🙂

BASF Waterfront Park.

There was really not much to see here in this picturesque park along the Detroit River, once a heavy industrial site. Just like at Bishop Park, I was the only person meandering about.

It’s a great place to catch a glimpse of the new Gordie Howe International Bridge (along with a nice puff of pollution nearby). The bridge cables are silver and it was still a bit misty in the distance.

If Canada geese are your “thing” this is a fun spot to visit in Spring to watch the geese and their goslings. There are always geese grazing or strutting around this park.

In the Summer you can watch the Wyandotte Boat Club rowers practicing for, or participating in, the annual Summertime regattas.  There was no practice today as the rowers were either back in school or working.

I noticed this new sign (since my last visit). It was near the Boat Club and Memorial Garden, honoring a Wyandotte Police Department (“WPD”) officer, family man and dog lover. I looked up his obituary notice and he was a police officer for 25 years, a member of the Wyandotte Boat Club and active in raising funds for Special Olympics.

I walked over to the shoreline. To the right, a Ring-billed Gull perched on the boulders …

… and to the left, this gull was gazing out to sea … er, the Detroit River.

This was a sight I’d never seen before, seagulls on the Boat Club’s rowing launch area.  They were taking advantage of the off-season’s lack of activity and gathered there, along with a Double-crested Cormorant.

But what was everyone looking at? I couldn’t figure out what held their interest.

Then, the Cormorant, undaunted by the fact that it was the only one of its species at that launch area, proceeded to flap/dry its wings. The gulls were unfazed.

From my vantage point, the Cormorant might have been the band leader for band participants who were not paying attention.

Photo op pickin’s were slim at this venue, so I pondered whether I should go to Elizabeth Park, just five miles down the road, when, on a whim I decided to cross busy Biddle Avenue to visit the City’s collection of “carved critters”.  I’d often driven past them, but never taken a closer look, so now seemed like the perfect time.

Pelicans and eagles and bears – oh my!

The way I see it, if you don’t cross paths with the “real deal” White Pelicans, Bald Eagles and Brown Bears, you should improvise, right?

These carved wooden animal and bird statues are situated in the heart of Downtown. Some were purchased by the Downtown Development Authority and some were created by a chainsaw artist named Lonnie Glines (Timber Art) who is featured at Wyandotte’s Fire and Flannel Fest every September. He comes to work his magic on tree trunks, transforming them into identifiable creatures.  He also performs at various festivals throughout the Summer.  Below are a Canada Goose, a Red Fox, a Bald Eagle, a Great Blue Heron, a Turtle and some Fish (which Google tells me are Northern Pike).

And nearby, I found the Three Bears (but no Goldilocks).

One of the bears unfortunately had a crack or two, which I wondered about – was this weather related? I had to do some artful photography as I found a few gnaw marks, likely some squirrels up to their usual mischief.

It was here at City Hall square where the planter filled with purple Verbena had a bee buzzing about where I got my first photo of a bee in flight, the photos which were on a recent Wordless Wednesday post.

There were more carved creatures near the City’s iconic totem pole, like this Pelican … yes, I hope one day to find White Pelicans which do migrate through Southeast Michigan.  It’s just a matter of pinning down those Pelicans. 

But I needed to look no further for now, as here was a White Pelican.

Chances of seeing a Bull Moose up close and personal may never happen, so here was the next best thing.

The Gray Wolf let out a silent howl.

And there was even an Osprey, looking mean and apparently sans a fish dinner. 

After perusing and photographing all the carved critters, along with the totem pole (those photos to be shared in a future post), I decided to call it a day.

Terri’s Monthly Color Challenge is Jade Green, Peridot.  I may just have 50 shades of green in this post, but, if not, I will link this post to The Flower Hour on Tuesday. Since Terri is on vacation, blogger Susanne at Cats and Trails and Garden Tales is hosting this week.