April 13

Saturday was a good day at Forest Hill for a hike with my dog, Remi. The early morning weather was cloudy with a temperature of 34 degrees and a steady wind out of the southwest. Starting out, I was greeted by Redwing Max who flew west from a tree behind the Classroom Building to his usual perch on the east end of Mallard Marsh. I stood at the crest of the hill and noticed a subtle hint of green over the waterlogged landscape after a solid week of heavy rain. Descending the hill to the marsh, I observed a female Redwing perched near Max and another perched near Mark in his territory on the west side. In the mean time, Mike was perched in his usual spot in a Cottonwood tree north of the trail. Entering Bobolink Meadow, I noticed Redwing Bob who recently established his territory here and has become another of my closely watched, named birds. I walked into North Woods where I spotted some lush green moss on the muddy trail. I exited the woods into Succession Field where three grazing deer took off and ran into South Woods. Circling around, I entered South Woods where I saw some fresh fungi growing on a fallen log. Looking out into Swanson Swamp, I was barely able to make out a female goose sitting on her nest in the same spot where one nested last year. Further along, I noticed the skull and fur of an opossum lying on the wet leaves. I exited the woods, turned east, then turned north to Willow Wallow where I spotted Will perched in his usual spot on the west side of the pond. Heading east, I climbed to the top of Reflection Hill and looked down on Grebe Pond where I spotted a solitary Grebe swimming and diving. Also, I recalled earlier in the week seeing a pair of Mute Swans floating peacefully near the south shore. I descended the hill to the south and paused at Frog Fen where at first Fred was nowhere to be found. However, heading toward Brady Cemetery, I stopped, turned around and saw him perched in his usual spot. Passing the cemetery, I entered Native Grassland and walked north toward Grebe Pond where I looked through my binoculars to see Gabe perched in his usual tree and a Belted Kingfisher perched close by. Following the edge of the pond, I looked back to see Gus in his tree and looked ahead to see Gill with a female Redwing perched nearby. Moving ahead toward the barn, I saw Gordy in his spot without the female that has been hanging around him. I wondered if that female was the same one that moved to Gill’s territory. I arrived at the barn and thought about the history of this building. For several years after the barn became part of the Nature Area in 1993, it continued to deteriorate and was unusable. In 2007, thanks to funding from the RESD, the lean-to was removed and major restoration of the interior and exterior took place. Finally, we made it to the car and headed home.

Chilly morning in April
Mother Nature’s domain
Trail is muddy and wet
Skyward, a threat of rain
Clouds are thick and dark
Wind is blowing strong
Pause by a cattail marsh
Ears find a blackbird song
I walk by a grove of trees
No leaves yet to be seen
I walk by a favorite field
Displays a hint of green
Ground has finally thawed
Pleased to hear robins sing
I can’t wait to discover
What the season will bring?

D. DeGraaf