September 17

Last Tuesday, I drove 23 miles northwest of Alma to hike in the 8-acre, McNeel Preserve, another property of the Chippewa Watershed Conservancy. The early morning weather was sunny with a temperature of 52 degrees and no wind. Leaving the car parked off Saratoga Springs Road, I headed east across Winn Rd onto the preserve where I spotted a few patches of the invasive Crown Vetch. With no trails to follow, I plodded through a dense stand of Aspen trees along the north edge of Urie Drain while noticing the unripen fruit of Silky Dogwood and the ripen fruit of Virginia creeper. Continuing east, both the needle-covered ground and the canopy indicated I was passing under a stand of mature Red and White Pines. As the drain curved sharply to the north, I leapt over it and continued east on a game trail through a dense woods of Beech, Maple & Oak where I noticed patches of Bracken Ferns whose fronds were beginning to turn brown, an early sign of fall. Arriving at the edge of the Chippewa River, I paused to look and listen as the water flowed rapidly, still carrying runoff from heavy rain over the past few weeks. From here this ever-meandering river flows north to Deerfield Nature Park where it makes a sharp turn east toward Mt. Pleasant. Following the river north along a gradually ascending bank, I spotted some raccoon scat on a bed of pine needles, some Maidenhair Ferns as well as a fresh patch of Turkey Tail fungi on a decaying stump. Turning west, I made my way back to the edge of the Urie Drain where I spotted several blooms including: Blue Beards tongue, White Turtlehead, as well as a mix of Sky blue Aster and Goldenrod. Once again, hopping over the drain, I continued wandering west where I spotted some large, aged (12” diameter) Artist Conk fungi on an old stump as well as a few 5-inch diameter Fly Amanita Mushrooms. Also, I was pleased to stumble upon some rarely seen blossoms of Bottle Gentain. Finally, I exited the property, crossed Winn Rd and found my car before heading for home.

Waning days of summer

Nature’s hues revealed

Purple Aster blossoms

Dot the golden field

Maples on the edges

Those in between

Still hold their leaves

Still show their green

Rose hips of red

Berries blue and white

Finches flash yellow

New season in sight

D. DeGraaf