WALKIN', WRITIN', WIT & WHIMSY

And just like that …

Posted on September 5, 2022 by Linda Schaub

… (snapping fingers), the unofficial end of Summer has arrived. Does it seem like we just heralded the gateway to Summer on Memorial Day weekend, or are you just done with Summer?

MOST people around the world griped about the Summer of 2022, (Yours Truly included), even though, in the depths of Winter ‘21-‘22, while bundling up to head outside, I swore I would not utter a single complaint, even if I sizzled like bacon on the griddle some mornings when I left for my walk. Of course those affirmations were made long before it was non-stop heat and humidity. Here in Southeast Michigan it felt like the Dog Days of Summer, that 40-day period stretching from July 3rd to August 11th, long before those Dog Days arrived.

Summer was one hot mess!

We experienced our first of 15 days of 90+-degree F (32 C) days on June 21st. We were forewarned …

… but then it was like it was the celebration of the year. Ugh.

There were a plethora of storms and a new weather vocabulary word for me: “gustnado” which I learned is not a new weather term or a made-up word which sounds like some some type of heavy-duty toilet bowl cleaner. Instead, a gustnado is a surface vortex created from a downburst that develops from a thunderstorm.

Oh – okay, now something else to worry about along with its cousins the derechos and tornados. The severe weather that parts of Michigan experienced a week ago today lasted only a few minutes, but packed a punch. It was attributed to a gustnado, which knocked out power to 300,000 homes and businesses and 3,300 power lines fell. The lines were the first order of business for our energy provider DTE to tackle, then the power issues. A few coolish days post-storm made it somewhat bearable for those folks, then the temps and humidity ramped up again by week’s end.

Sometimes in Summer ’22 we had all day rain/storms – good for parched lawns anyway.

In lamenting over the weather, I heard a factoid about our nation’s weather that bears sharing: the number of extreme heat days have tripled since the 80s and this extreme weather is expected to continue.

What the heck happened to those pleasant Summer days the entire season when I was growing up? We never had more than a fan in the house, then added a window air conditioner in the den/TV room in the late ’60s, followed by central air conditioning in 1975. My mom used to talk about the Summer Heat Wave of July 1936 when temps across North America soared to 105 F to 110 F daily (40 C to 43 C), only dipping down to the mid-90s at night, for 23 days. Mom said they had one small table fan and the family would gather around it, but on workday evenings, all the neighborhood men took a pillow and blanket to Toronto’s Sunnyside Park to ensure they got a good night’s sleep as they all worked in manufacturing jobs, in large plants, with not so much as a fan to cool the workers off. The refreshing breezes off Lake Ontario ensured a somewhat restful night’s sleep. My mom and my grandmother slept on the front porch to catch a breeze.

In retrospect, though we have enjoyed a few stellar weather weekends, the nicest days often occurred on weekdays. At times it was as if Mother Nature decided to penalize us for those weekday respites from the heat and humidity, by giving us crummy days on the weekends. What’s up with that anyway? Many times the morning meteorologist quipped “folks, this is a good day to play hooky from work or school if you can do so.” He’d follow that statement up with “folks, the weekend weather won’t be terrible, but be prepared for splash-and-dash showers and keep an eye to the sky.”

Suffice it to say Summer wore out its welcome with me!

So what else was bugging you in this topsy-turvy Summer of 2022?

Many of us simply stayed put and did not bug out due to inflation, high gas prices and/or erratic weather which may have tabled those plans until 2023. Meanwhile we just sucked it up, dealt with “air you could wear” and heat so intense that the a meme suggested you could bake lasagna in your mailbox.

Now, as the sun sleeps in longer and Poplar leaves litter the path at Council Point, we begin a slow transition to what we hope will be a fantastic Fall (fingers crossed).

My grocery store is in Autumn mode with mums and pepper plants gracing the entrance to the store. They also had ornamental pepper plants which made me think of my mom as we always had one in the kitchen once Fall arrived. Inside the store, while it is too early for humungous orange gourds, it IS time for pumpkin and spice and everything nice … even PSC. So what is PSC you ask? Would Special K® Pumpkin Spice Crunch call your name when you walked by the cereal aisle?

So did you fulfill any of the Summer Bucket List of Items you dreamed about in those coldest and crummiest days of Winter, not to mention that Spring laced with icy precip?

Or did gas prices and inflation table those dreams until 2023? With the advent of Labor Day comes a wee chill in the area, a different angle of the sun and the sun is sleeping in later. Maybe you’ll get ‘er done now.

While we all might welcome cardigan weather, will you miss the butterflies, bees and blooms? Some of the butterflies have already departed saying “we’re outta here” and off they go, winging their way to warm climes on sadly tattered wings.

The hummingbirds are similarly Googling flight plans to take them South and fueling up at every nectar station they can find. The bees are sipping natural nectar, embracing the beautiful blooms as much as we humans do.

Flowers like these at the Tribute Garden at Fair Lane, the home of Clara and Henry Ford, bloomed profusely thanks to those bees …

… but beautiful flowers aside, Autumn, with its crisp air, great smells and colorful foliage beckons me like a magnet.

Plusses and minuses.

I think the ever-present heat and humidity kept the chalk artists inside. I found this gem on the Bishop Park Boardwalk one morning, a message that brought a …

… to my face on a wicked hot day.

Since there was no abundance of chalk art, I was forced to create my own as you see near the end of this post.

I had to really bulk up the miles in August, now there are less minutes to get those miles walked these days. So, by Labor Day, the weekend that commemorates the 11th anniversary of my walking regimen, yes, I know the drill. Walk, walk, walk … then walk some more. Pardon the appearance of my walking shoes. I had to walk on someone’s lawn as there had been a water main break and I sunk down into mud. I do have new shoes waiting in the wings, just too lazy to stop, dig ’em out and lace them. I need to get them broken in before dew-slickened leaves and black ice arrive.

However, the month of August I designated as errands month. A couple of doctor’s appointments, but mostly, like my squirrel pals who are stashing peanuts and black walnuts in hidey holes for Winter, I similarly was out buying pantry items then scratching my head where to put everything. Instant clutter, but no running around in ice and snow either, so that’s a great trade-off. Then the car had a minor blip, a leak, which made me reluctant to go anywhere this holiday weekend. So I took a slew of photos Friday and Saturday to fill some upcoming posts with some squirrel, duck and rabbit frivolity at my favorite nature nook, Council Point Park. Thus, I made no long trips to parks from August 1st and through Labor Day. Focus, focus, focus … now I’m free and can go on long treks through the cooler September and October months and enjoy the Fall foliage. Maybe now I can look at all the photos I’ve taken on big treks in the month of July – they are still on the camera card.

Goals … yep, I’ve made a few in 2022.

As to walking, my mini goal was to reach 999 of my 1,256 miles (2,022 km) by Labor Day and happily it was mission accomplished. My second goal was to reach 9,999 miles on my 2009 Buick LaCrosse by year end. Well, we are still gettin’ there in that regard as I tootle along. This photo was taken a few weeks ago:

That was a personal goal in response to fellow bloggers Ruth and JP kidding me about reaching 9,999 car miles by year end, when a photo of my odometer back in January, (which I intended to show how cold it was in the car by the Detroit River), also showed my low mileage.

So these are my stats as of September 4, 2022 and I’m about par with my 2021 walking stats. I hope to make it … I have 119 days left to fulfill both goals.

Have a safe Labor Day.

Posted in holiday, Labor Day, nature, Seasons, walk, walking, | Tagged holidays, Labor Day, nature, Seasons, Summer, walk, walking | 80 Comments

Catching 40 winks. #Wordless Wednesday #Mallard at the marsh.

Posted on August 31, 2022 by Linda Schaub

Wordless Wednesday – allow your photo(s) to tell the story.

Posted in #WildlifeWednesday, #Wordless Wednesday, nature | Tagged #WildlifeWednesday, #Wordless Wednesday, nature, walk, walking | 61 Comments

Trapper’s Run Nature Trail Trek.

Posted on August 29, 2022 by Linda Schaub

This is part two of my very looooong walk taken at Lake Erie Metropark on June 18th. Part one was last Monday’s post.

I figured I was on a roll that day … you will recall that just about the time I was ready to head to the car and drive to the other side of this very large park, I encountered the Sandhill Cranes, then, still on a high from that meet-up, I saw the trio of does. Well, what else would I see today?

Buoyed by my early morning good fortune, I decided to try a trail I’ve snubbed since I began walking at this park in 2018. I didn’t turn my nose up at the trail because it was only a mere mile long from start to finish. In fact, I’ve started on that trail several times, but turned back, as all too soon the woodland area was thick, raggedy-looking, with grass instead of a mulched or pea-gravel path and it was buggy. Because Michigan has had tick infestation and mosquito-borne illness issues the last three or four years, why tempt fate?

But this time I ventured forth because, like many of you, here in SE Michigan we were in moderate drought, having not had rain for weeks. I was wearing long pants and a long-sleeved shirt, so I was game to give it a try – just this once.

The Metroparks have lots of signage, not only for the length of the trail, but also what conditions you will encounter. The “you are here” sign that greeted me as I began my trek is pictured above.

I was in the shade when I took the photo of the trail signage, so I’ll transcribe the conditions of this trail below:

“Trapper’s Run Trail is the main trail leading from the museum. This loop explores a dense hawthorn thicket and man-made features of the lowland landscape. A series of five overlooks provide an opportunity to peek into the surrounding marshlands. Take your time as you walk the old trapper’s route between the lagoons. This trail is mostly flat with eight shallow transitions between boardwalk and gravel trail.”

There was a map showing the location of the five overlooks, the first which is by the boat shed near Luc’s enclosure. I took a photo of the map so I could I.D. the overlooks later if necessary.

I set out with no reservations … after all, the wooded area did not appear to be all that dense and lagoons and outlooks meant open areas. “You worry unnecessarily Linda” I told myself.

BUT, within minutes of starting on Trapper’s Run, I was inside a dense wooded area … my radar went up. I knew I would not lose my way on a one-mile route which had markers, but it seemed pretty desolate to me. Having endured the fiasco of getting lost on a hot August day for many hours in the middle of Crosswinds Marsh Wetland Interpretive Preserve back in 2020, I was not about to get embedded on some secluded trail.

Hmm – it seemed as quickly as I found myself in a dense part of the trail, with little or no view of the sky, I rounded the bend to find another wooden outlook. As mentioned above, there were five outlooks in total and, though I climbed onto each one and took photos, essentially the views were similar of the marsh and lagoon. I scrapped most of those photos once I saw them on the screen as they all looked about the same, but here are a few views.

At times, the trail became open, sunlight streaming overhead, with a grassy pathway and the occasional park bench with overgrown weeds alongside it.

Then, once again, the trail disappeared into a dense forest area. I recognized the call of a Nuthatch and searched for it. It was creeping down the tree headfirst as a White-Breasted Nuthatch usually does.

I also saw a Goldfinch, though the lighting was not stellar here.

In the heart of this trek, near the Hawthorn thicket area, I found some interesting-looking fungi.

It was a little desolate so I picked up the pace. Suddenly I saw a petite blonde woman with an extremely long camera lens pointed toward a bird high up in a tree.

I was glad to see her and told her so. We exchanged names. Danielle had a Southern accent and told me she had moved up here to Michigan recently and, in a soft voice said “no worries – I walk Trapper’s Run nearly every day – it is safe.” I said “good – I am always very wary of my surroundings.” (Postscript – it is not my overactive imagination or that I am a worrywart – a few days later, in another county, a woman walking alone on a trail in a wooded area encountered a man who exposed himself. When she screamed and attempted to run away, he blocked her path. This was not the first time this man has done this in other parks, but I digress.)

I similarly gazed up at the tree, and asked “what are you watching up there?” She responded “a Baltimore Oriole that keeps turning its back to me.” I quipped “I thought that just happened to me.” I got a giggle for that comment and we stood there companionably, cameras trained on this beautiful orange and black bird. In the dim light, I strained my eyes to not only see the bird, but photograph it. It was not on my Birdie Bucket List, but was a welcome first sighting for me. These photos don’t do it justice.

We both decided to move along and I was delighted she was going the same direction as me.

Danielle said her favorite part of the trail was the Riley Creek Overlook and it was ahead. We veered off the trail to the right to check it out. I was impressed the Trapper’s Run trail managed to pack a lot of attractions into a one-mile hike. As we got closer I saw the overlook jutting out over the water, essentially a pier with no railings at all. By now there was a good breeze blowing and it was welcome as I’d been walking for many hours by that time. I never wear a watch on the weekend, as I am a slave to the time for my weekday jaunts, but I knew it had to be near noon.

Danielle and I walked together onto the pier – what a great view and no other humans, just an egret and a heron.

We spooked the heron and she pointed “look at it heading up to the tree!”

A few minutes later, the egret followed suit to join its pal in the tree.

But, best buds or not, the egret was bored and flew back down a short time later …

… then circled around Riley Creek Overlook a few times …

… finally skidding to a stop on the top of the water. Pretty fancy footwork, huh?

The egret seemed skittish and took off again. I wished it was closer as most of these shots were far away.

The egret and heron had their own agenda and it didn’t include us, so we decided to finish up the walk. Danielle had an appointment and I had a long walk back to my car on the other side of the park and it was now very warm.

I (finally) made it back to the car and driving out of Lake Erie Metropark, a huge shadow crossed over my car – it was one of the nesting pair of Ospreys who live at the nearby fire station. That’s fodder for another post as this one is already long and picture laden.

Posted in nature, walk, walking | Tagged nature, walk, walking | 105 Comments

Sandhill Cranes at Lake Erie Metropark #Wordless Wednesday #The Three Musketeers

Posted on August 24, 2022 by Linda Schaub

Wordless Wednesday – allow your photo(s) to tell the story.

Posted in #WildlifeWednesday, #Wordless Wednesday, nature, walk, walking | Tagged #Wildlife Wednesday, #Wordless Wednesday, nature, Sandhill Cranes, walk, walking | 61 Comments

The Trifecta – sometimes good things come in threes!

Posted on August 22, 2022 by Linda Schaub

Well you probably guessed, since I was wowed by the beautiful pregnant doe on my last trip here, I would hustle back to Lake Erie Metropark to search for her and her fawn(s) and cross my fingers for a second photo op.

June 18th was a picture-perfect day, 64 F/17 C, blue skies, sunny and warm, not oppressively hot or humid, which was a welcome change. I set out early to make the most of this Saturday. Before the day was done, I would have logged seven miles on my pedometer, stopping at two large parks, after visiting a new venue for me, the Emily Frank Gardens in Trenton. I took a lot of photos at the Gardens, but was encouraged by Deb and Lynn and about eight other “Garden Angels” (a moniker given to the many volunteers who toil in the flower and vegetable gardens) to return later in the Summer when the blooms were at peak. They were 100% correct because, per their suggestion, I returned Sunday, July 31st and what a transformation of “flower power” thanks to six weeks of blazing hot sun and humid weather.

I began my morning marsh meander at Cove Point.

I bought my first Metropark pass, good for entry in Michigan’s 13 local Metroparks, in July 2018. In the past, I usually walk and take photos along the picturesque shoreline of Cove Point to the marina, then return to my starting point, with a quick stop at the overlook where I view where I have just walked.

Then, if it’s not too late or too hot, I drive to the other side, where I do a more varied walk, stopping to visit Luc at his enclosure near the Marshlands Museum, the boathouse overlook, then trekking along the Cherry Island Trail. During the course of this trek, there are several marshy areas where I see Egrets or Herons. Of course, there are the usual ducks and geese and, if I’m lucky there is a deer sighting. The difference between the two sides of this massive park is like night and day.

There was nothing to see in my stroll along Cove Point on this morning, not a single Tree Swallow was standing guard over their mate and young-uns and unfortunately Mama and her fawn(s) were not out and about. Here you see a couple of photos of the largest American Water Lotus bed in its early stages.

Hoping to get some more up-close shots of those dive-bombing Barn Swallows, I headed to the wooden overlook where I saw and photographed the tree with its stripped bark and I would learn from many of you after publishing this post that the designs on the tree were beetle graffiti.

There were a few Barn Swallows, but none alighted on the dead tree branch. I figured this was going to be a dud photo excursion which sometimes happens, but oh well, I would get a long walk in anyway.

A few pond lilies had opened and floated lazily on pads in the marsh water.

The overlook was bustling with anglers and someone landed a big fish while I was standing there, so Your Roving Reporter similarly got caught up in the action, shouting out her congratulations and snapping photos. The angler had his fishing rod propped up and it had a bell on it. All of a sudden, the bell started dinging like crazy, so everyone rushed over. While the hook was being removed from the mouth of the struggling fish, I asked if this was a “catch and release” and his look told me all I needed to know. “Got it” I said and added “oh, it is dinner then – yay you, the fish not so much!”

Not to be outdone by his fellow fisherman, another angler raised a wire cage to show me his prize catches of the day; in fact, a live fish was still flopping around on a dead one, so I took a photo here as well.

I stepped away from all this fishing hoopla and went across the overlook walkway where, on this exceptionally clear day, I had a wonderful view of the horizon, with a few freighters and sailboats and another glimpse of the Cove Point shoreline and the largest bed of in-progress Water Lotuses. (That photo is the header image.)

Taking the path less traveled ….

At this point, I usually head to the car to drive to the other side, but today would be different. On the other side of the wooden overlook is the entertainment portion of this venue. I checked it out once, the first year I had my pass. In my opinion, there is nothing to see but a huge playscape, the Great Wave/swimming pool and concession stand. So why stray this way?

This year was different. I knew from my Metroparks newsletter that the Great Wave/swimming pool was closed the entire 2022 season for repairs; the concession stand was similarly closed. Hmm – perhaps the inactivity at this portion of the park might yield new wildlife sightings?

I would later pat myself on the back for that revelation.

Well, I’m always up for a little adventure, like Dora the Explorer.

Lake Erie Metropark is just 2 ½ miles square, including three miles of shoreline. By late Spring I am able to easily walk five to six miles without taking a break, so I decided since the winds had kicked up a notch and it was not hot, I would try walking to the other side of this 1,607-acre (6.50 km) park. After all, I could always turn back or simply rest at one of the many picnic areas if I got tired.

I cut through the huge, empty parking lot for the entertainment venue, then saw volleyball sand pits and a basketball backboard – well, that was pretty boring so far. There were some rolling hills that I learned were for skiing – ho hum, an equally blah landscape. As I walked down that long vehicle road, I began to regret my decision as my long-sleeved shirt I had worn to thwart the sun’s rays, (since I’d been sunburned on my last trip here), was starting to stick to my skin.

With the sun high overhead, my walk turned into a trudge, so I decided to head back to the car and do my usual routine.

But first, I heard a Killdeer’s distinctive call and got an okay shot of it …

… but I quickly stopped pursuing that bird, (not just because it was walking faster than me), but all of a sudden, I heard a loud and strange noise overhead and I knew it wasn’t Canada geese or swans. What in the world?

I shielded my eyes from the sun and took a better look as I saw three very large birds making an awkward and ungainly landing in the distance.

Even before their big feet hit the ground, I recognized them as Sandhill Cranes – a first sighting for me and not even on my perpetual “Birdie Bucket List” – I hurried as fast as I could, lest they take off again.

Here are the trio of Sandhill Cranes I nicknamed “The Three Musketeers” as they paraded single file across the empty field.

I believe it was parents and one offspring, as one looked slightly smaller. They walked on the uneven grounds on stilt-like legs, pausing every so often to graze. I will have more pictures for this week’s Wordless Wednesday, but this was one of my favorites, showing that distinctive red heart on the face and the “bustle” of feathers.

I was awestruck and it appears this Crow did a flyby to check out the Cranes and was equally impressed!

I follow a few birders on Twitter and they often feature Sandhill Cranes seen in Kensington Metropark, in a northern ‘burb not near me; I’ve never seen any pictures or sightings here in my area. When I got online and searched for some facts about them later that day, I learned that Sandhill Cranes are one of the oldest bird species and have been around for at least 2 million years. They stand 3-4 feet (00 – 1.2 m) tall and have a wingspan of up to 7 feet (2.0 m). I also learned that these creatures have at least 18 different vocalizations, including a piercing rattle that can be heard up to 2 ½ mils (4 km) away. I listened to a video of their calls – yep, that was indeed what I heard and I always though the squawking Heron’s call was annoying!

I spent at least 45 minutes observing and photographing the Sandhill Cranes. They approached me, at a respectable distance, so I stayed in place while they grazed contentedly. When two abruptly turned their backs and bustles toward me, I finally moved on.

Um – never turn the camera off and become distracted.

I ambled along, elated over my Crane find and found my bearings again as I discovered a “grassy cut” – woo hoo, who knew? This will be my route until the Summer of 2023 when the Great Wave/swimming pool opens again.

I shut the camera off to conserve the battery as I knew I still would be trekking to Luc’s enclosure, the boathouse overlook and the Cherry Island Trail. I am diligent about doing a tick check repeatedly along my trek and hadn’t after trailing after The Three Musketeers. Head bent down and camera off, I found none of the little buggers and when I raised my head, what did I see at the Turtle Crossing sign?

Well obviously deer can’t read signs. There was no deer crossing sign here! The first doe emerged from a wooded area, ambling along the vehicle road, not far from me, as I fumbled to turn on the camera and focus … whoops, I almost missed her.

Oh well. But wait! Here comes another one – girlfriends having a morning out! I was not so swift here either, as I assumed the first doe was traveling alone.

By the time the third doe loped across the road to the other side, I was decidedly smarter and got some better action photos. The last two does were smarter too, as they stopped and looked both ways before crossing the road!

I did my usual routine of visiting Luc, the resident eagle, checking out the marsh for waterfowl and heading to the boat launch and Cherry Island Trail. The smaller beds of Water Lotuses were already flourishing on this side and I knew by the next time I visited, they would have doubled in size.

I hit the Trifecta with my two trios of critters and before I would drive out of the Park later that day, an Osprey would fly overhead and I’d see my first Baltimore Oriole. What a trip and I had initially been complaining it was a dud picture day!

Feeling very adventurous after my encounters with the Sandhill Cranes and the deer, I decided to try the only trail I had never embarked on before. It is called “Trapper’s Run” and that trek will be the subject of next week’s post.

Posted in nature, walk, walking | Tagged nature, Sandhill Cranes!, walk, walking | 78 Comments

Swallowtail Butterflies at Memorial Park. #Wordless Wednesday

Posted on August 17, 2022 by Linda Schaub

Wordless Wednesday – allow your photo(s) to tell the story.

Posted in #WildlifeWednesday, #Wordless Wednesday, nature | Tagged #WildlifeWednesday, #Wordless Wednesday, nature, walk, walking | 71 Comments

The Compromise.

Posted on August 14, 2022 by Linda Schaub

**“Morning Has Broken” – by Marge Aubin, taken at Bishop Park on 09/29/13**

Today is the fifth anniversary of my friend Marge Aubin’s passing. I want to honor her memory, not only as a good friend and former neighbor, but also, as many of you longtime followers know, she is the person who encouraged me to start this blog in 2013.

To be honest, I really was not enthused about starting a blog, but did so because she persisted, nudging me on a near-daily basis by flooding my e-mail inbox with links to blogs she followed. I finally relented to keep the peace and make her happy. Marge’s reasoning for me to start a blog about walking was my responses to her daily e-mail queries of “what did you see or do on your walk today Linda?” I would dutifully “report” on something I saw in the ‘hood that day, or, after uploading photos taken on my morning walks, I’d forward them to Marge. In those days I had not yet discovered my favorite nature nook, Council Point Park – that would happen a few months later, in the Spring of 2013.

So, here’s a belated “thank you” and a nod to Marge for being a pain in the butt about beginning this blog.

Unlike the sad tribute I wrote with eyes blurred by tears on the date of her passing, this post will be a light-hearted reflection of some shared memories we had before her chronic COPD and heart issues kept her tethered to her oxygen tank the final few years of her life.

But I had a conundrum – what photo should I use for today’s post?

Just like my fellow bloggers, this blog is a labor of love. I’m often thinking of places I want to go, pictures I want to take, or jotting down headlines or notes about where I’ve been after returning from a walk. Yes, a blogger’s brain gears are always spinning.

So, for several months I’ve dwelled on what photo would grace today’s tribute, i.e. should I use the same photo as that August 14, 2017 post? It was Marge’s own photo and I properly attributed it to her. This is the photo in question and my tribute to her, “Last Sunrise” can be found here.

At first, I thought the perfect way to memorialize Marge was to simply take my own trip to Bishop Park to watch the sun rise and photograph it, like my good friend did every day for many years, but I admit that leaving at dark o’clock to steal down to the Detroit River is out of my comfort zone these days. My worries are not unfounded as crime is running rampant in the Downriver area, even in beautiful Downtown Wyandotte, the site of Bishop Park.

Between the years 1976 through 2009, I finished my last two years of college in Midtown Detroit, then worked in the City of Detroit. Neighbors saw me walking to and from the bus stop during those years and would say “aren’t you afraid to go Downtown?” I was not afraid as I was always mindful of my surroundings and, in over three decades, there was only one incident that unnerved me a bit, when I was pushed off a City of Detroit bus in broad daylight when I asked the driver to stop. In the Wintertime, just like most of you, I left for work in the dark and came home in the dark. I didn’t even carry pepper gel, nor a big whistle in those days. But leaving the house in pitch dark does NOT appeal to me now and I finally decided I was NOT going to leave before dawn to go to the Detroit River. Perhaps working from home all these years has made me more wary than usual.

If my good friend Ann Marie reads this post, she will say “I’m hurt you didn’t ask me to pick you up and take you to the River because I know how important Marge was to you.” Ann Marie brought me flowers after Marge died – she is a person with a heart of gold, an exceptional soul who goes out of her way to help people. Yes, she will be angry with me. But, nevertheless I didn’t ask her.

In further pondering the photo to use for today’s post, my next idea was “how wonderful to use the watercolor paints and to try and paint Marge’s sunrise for the header image!” But no, my lackluster or lame effort would fall short of my expectations – perhaps for the 10th anniversary?

Instead, I made a compromise. I used a photo Marge had sent me from a trip to Bishop Park taken shortly after sunrise. While I was loading that photo to this post, I wondered “hmm, did Marge fall asleep at Bishop Park and missed the early sunrise photo that day, or did she hit the snooze bar one too many times and was late leaving the house?”

Some fun pics Marge shared with me through the years.

Marge enjoyed taking pictures and she loved nature – perhaps that is why we got along so well. I often used her photos in my blog.

She surrounded her home with many hummingbird feeders. She was always taking pictures of her Ruby-throated Hummingbirds which she usually sent to me. This was one of them.

**Ruby-throated hummingbird on 05/10/16**

It may surprise you that even though Marge has been gone five years, those hummingbirds still hover at the living room window where she placed several of her shepherd’s hooks with feeders. Her son Jeff tells me they watch him intensely. People use the moniker “bird brain” to label our feathered friends – that is simply not true. Those hovering hummingbirds and one female who blitzed by me one morning were the reasons I put up feeders a few years ago, but I have never had as many hummers visiting my feeders.

Marge didn’t just cater to the hummingbirds in the yard. Like me, she fed the birds and squirrels for years. “Sammy” was our resident squirrel, spoiled silly, just like my favorite Park peanut pal, Parker. “Sammy” not only noshed on nuts, but Marge shared whatever treats she was eating or baking. I can remember once seeing a batch of slightly burnt sugar cookies lined up on the deck’s top railing and “Sammy” sitting contently feasting on them.

“Sammy” knew he had a good thing going and made sure he was always hanging around, stretched out on the wrought-iron railing of the gazebo, so he didn’t miss a handout, like in this picture.

**“Sammy” hanging around waiting for treats on 05/08/12**

Even in the dead of Winter, “Sammy” knew he could find peanuts (or cookies) at our respective houses to tide him through the snowiest days of the season.

**“Sammy” in the snowy backyard 12/18/13**

Marge’s deck and gazebo had birdhouses, bird feeders, a solar birdbath, thistle socks, suet holders and the aforementioned hummingbird feeders. Here are a few of the winged critters and “Sammy” who came to dine on Marge’s treats. I made this collage for one of my blog posts.

**A collection of “deck pets” in all seasons**

There were other “deck pets” like this baby dove. A dove laid an egg in an ornamental wire basket and Marge documented Mom AND Pop incubating the egg, the birth of the baby a/k/a a squab, up to when it fledged. This is one of the pictures, a view from the top of the baby. I did a blog post about the baby and its parents.

Before COPD sapped her energy and spirit, Marge would often drive to various nearby parks, which names you will recognize from my posts, like Elizabeth Park, Bishop Park and Dingell Park. She would forward her favorite images from those morning jaunts to me, some which I also used in my blog posts.

Here were seven swans a-swimming that I used in a blog post at Christmastime.

Sometimes on weekends, Marge would be driving and see me walking in the neighborhood. Like early one Sunday when she honked and pulled over and rolled down the window. “C’mon – get in Linda, we’re going to Elizabeth Park.” So, there were a few less steps walked that morning as we took a mini road trip to enjoy a little nature together.

Once we arrived at our destination, Marge parked on the perimeter road that encircles Elizabeth Park. This gave us a good view of the little valley where a lot of the geese hang out near the canal and we also had this view of the Boardwalk, Detroit River and Canada.

Like a couple of gunfighters at the O.K. Corral, we each pulled out our digital cameras simultaneously, ready for a photo op. Marge handed over her camera and asked me to take a photo. I did so, then took a similar photo with my camera – you can see my hand and camera reflected in the passenger mirror.

**Elizabeth Park Boardwalk on 06/22/14** **(taken by me)**

Then we cruised around Elizabeth Park a few times, then onto West Jefferson Avenue. Marge turned to me and said “I don’t feel like going home, do you?” I told her “no” and added that an extended drive was a welcome change of plans from the yard work and housework that awaited me when I got home.

So, we would go on to visit two more parks that day ….

We stayed on West Jefferson that turns into Biddle Avenue until we arrived at Marge’s favorite haunt, Bishop Park. She pulled into what she called her usual parking spot. We watched the row of anglers along the fishing pier, as well as seagulls wrangling for treats tossed to them. We talked for a while and took a few more pictures.

Then it was on to Dingell Park, just 2 ½ miles down the road.

When Marge pulled up in my driveway she promised to send me her photos and I said I would do likewise. I blew off the yard work and housework as I was eager to see my photos. Marge’s cache of images arrived in my e-mail inbox a short time later … they looked nothing like mine where the grazing geese were teensy blobs and Marge’s geese were … well they looked like geese. “Why??” I wondered. So I asked and learned about the wonders of zoom. Where had I been all this time?

I had bought my digital camera in 2010 for the sole purpose of taking pictures of the front and back yards where I labored many hours daily. My butterfly garden especially was my pride and joy, so I wanted to take photos of the beautiful butterflies that visited. It never-ever dawned on me that my 4X zoom camera was no match for Marge’s 12X zoom camera. I admit I was not savvy about such things.

So, that outing was quite enlightening for me and led to a post entitled “I must admit I had zoom envy.” That revelation also motivated me to head to Best Buy and get a 12X zoom camera, (which was frivolous as the other camera had nothing wrong with it). But, thanks to Marge, it awakened my interest in photography that I had abandoned for many years and I stopped buying stock photos for my posts.

The next excursion to Elizabeth Park was on a cold and windy day in November. Once again Marge picked me up while I was walking in the ‘hood, head bent down, swaddled in a scarf, hat and gloves, wind wiggling up my coat sleeves, with thoughts of Winter looming large. Then, like now, my camera was always with me, tucked in its pouch on my fanny pack.

At Elizabeth Park, the gorgeous oak leaves had already fallen and were scattered on the ground; the landscape looked a little forlorn.

Marge parked and took pictures from her side of the car and posted them on Facebook the following week. Evidently I had been enamored with the critters on my side of the car as you see in my Facebook comment.

That would be our last nature outing together. Marge made me promise to never leave the house without my camera and to always take lots of pictures. Well I have certainly taken my fair share of pictures, though I have left the camera behind on occasion if it looked like rain or snow, only to hightail it home to collect the camera and hope the row of ducklings trailing after Mama on the soccer field were still there, or that jam-packed Creek full of dead shad hadn’t budged.

This was a very long read about my Marge memories and I’ll conclude by stating that thanks to her prodding, I am publishing my 1,747th blog post today.

Posted in Memories, nature | Tagged Memories, nature | 73 Comments

Perfect reflections. #Wordless Wednesday #Cuter than rubber duckies!

Posted on August 10, 2022 by Linda Schaub

Wordless Wednesday – allow your photo(s) to tell the story.

Posted in #WildlifeWednesday, #Wordless Wednesday, nature | Tagged #WildlifeWednesday, #Wordless Wednesday, Ducklings, nature | 65 Comments

Hooray for Heritage Park!

Posted on August 8, 2022 by Linda Schaub

On Saturday, August 6th, Heritage Park in Taylor, Michigan was the site of that City’s 175th birthday party. I’m sure there was lots of cake, ice cream and high fives to go around. Historical Heritage Park has often been the subject of my blog posts. It is picturesque, no matter the season. Though I didn’t attend the birthday festivities, this post, which walk and photos were taken on Father’s Day, June 19th, will showcase Taylor’s crown jewel, a/k/a Heritage Park.

I arrived early on that Sunday morning, having made a pit stop at Council Point Park to walk a lap and visit with and feed my furry and feathered friends.

It was a gorgeous, not-quite-Summer day and, as I passed each historical building around beautiful Coan Lake, I saw walkers, some alone and others with their pooches, all enjoying the perfect weather morn.

It was a hubbub of activity around Coan Lake.

Coan Lake is in the center of the historical area of Heritage Park and here, around the covered bridge, is where I go to find photo ops with the ducks and geese that live there. My primary reason for this visit was to get some duckling pictures and, as you see below and will see later in this post, I found one Mallard Mama with her munchkins – that made my day! Here is a peek at a couple of those cutie pies.

Multiple families had gathered together to go fishing on the wooden overlook and along the Coan Lake seawall. I’ve never seen so many people fishing there, but I figured these family outings were all about spending quality time with Dad on his special day.

A few of the anglers positioned themselves at the wooden overlook.

Of note is that Coan Lake is catch-and-release fishing only; only the waterfowl get to keep the fish they snag.

The biggest “gathering of the clan” on Father’s Day was not humans, but a gaggle of Canada Geese who congregated outside the Little Red Schoolhouse – perhaps it was recess?

I smiled to myself when I saw the turtles sunbathing on the ramp because the last time I visited Heritage Park, I took a slew of pictures of those turtles which I spun into a fun Father’s Day post and here it was that actual holiday and I was seeing those same turtles. I got a couple of shots before they recognized me as that “photo-taking pest” and promptly plopped into the water.

Similarly basking in the sun and taking a breather from the rigors of nest-building and catching bugs in mid-air was this Barn Swallow. How funny that the day after seeing and photographing the beautiful Barn Swallows at Lake Erie Metropark, I would be lucky enough to find another Barn Swallow sitting still and pondering life while perched on this wooden fence post near the covered bridge.

The area around the covered bridge is always swarming with Barn Swallows who build nests in the rafters of the covered bridge. I saw no nestlings peering down at me on this visit. (In retrospect, I wonder why I confused the two types of Swallows recently as their nests do not look alike at all.)

I walked around the historical village, stopping to take a few shots. Regular readers of this blog will recognize these buildings, the Water-Powered Mill and the Old Log Cabin respectively.

My third trip around Coan Lake was the charm!

Last year it seemed every time I visited this venue, there were Mallard ducklings in different stages of growth. Can there ever be too many sweet ducklings gracing this forum – nope! (Besides, it was high time I got past the geese photos before those Mallards stomped their webbed feet and asked for equal billing in this blog!)

When I arrived at Heritage Park I quickly scanned the water and shoreline – no ducklings. But on the third trip around, there was a Mama Mallard and her multiple munchkins. I say “multiple” because they were squashed together or nestled against Mama and I wasn’t sure exactly how many duckling darlings there were. When I reviewed my photos later, I was disappointed to find a muddle of munchkins and it was difficult to see them as individuals. Here are three of them, set apart from the crowd – suffice it to say, this was one proud Mama with her brood.

I was happy to have those shots – mission accomplished! Then I saw another family of older ducklings in Coan Lake, so I’ll save those photos for this week’s Wordless Wednesday.

But wait ….

While it may have been a “ducky day” for me, this poor Mallard Drake was molting, which accounts for his somewhat frowsy appearance. There were lots of downy feathers and big flight feathers strewn on the grassy slope around Coan Lake, with Mallards picking at their feathers and looking similar in appearance to this guy.