October 15

Last Thursday, I hiked in Chippewa Watershed Conservancy’s Ball Preserve. Unlike most of the preserves, this 5-acre parcel is only accessible from the Chippewa River. The early morning weather was overcast with a temperature of 50 degrees and a strong westerly wind. From the west end of the property I looked upstream a few hundred yards where I could make out the shoreline of the Audubon Woods Preserve. With no trail to follow, I made my way around the convex-shaped riverbank where I paused to take in the sights and sounds of this riparian landscape. Further along, I paused again as a strong gust of wind blew several colorful leaves off the trees overhead into the rapidly flowing current. On the less turbulent water near shore, I observed a few Water Striders scurrying about. Near the eastern boundary of the preserve, I turned inland to explore more of the property that consisted of a dense broadleaf woodland. Perusing the leaf litter, I spotted mostly samples of Sugar Maple, Silver Maple, American Beech and American Hornbeam with an occasional Red Maple and Big Tooth Aspen. Scanning the entire property, I could clearly see that it formed the inside bend of the meandering river. Looking skyward I noticed the canopy was thinning out while on the ground I spotted a few Lady Ferns retained their summer green color. While continuing to walk around, I discovered more signs of autumn including: the yellowing of Spicebush leaves and the reddening of White Oak leaves. Next, I came upon some fresh Oyster Mushrooms growing on a tree trunk. Besides being edible, these fungi play a growing role in mycorestoration, a process of using mushrooms to clean up pollution. Because they secrete enzymes that break down toxic chemicals, these mushrooms have been used to clean up oil spills as well as remove heavy metal compounds from dumpsites. Near the south end of the property, I came upon a large, weathered metamorphic rock with its distorted surface layers. Finally, I took off and headed for home.

Around the bend

Clear and cold

Surface in motion

Leaves of gold

Floating branches

Budweiser can

Debris of nature

Litter of man

Needles and twigs

Onward they go

Artifacts of autumn

Flow river flow

D. DeGraaf