July 22

Wednesday, Remi & I traveled 16 miles south of Alma to hike the Maple River State Game Area, east of US 127. The early morning weather was mostly sunny with a temperature of 63 degrees and no wind. Leaving the car and highway noise, we were greeted by dense swarms of mosquitoes as we followed a grass-covered berm east along wetlands lined with tall cattails as well as patches of Buttonbush shrubs. Colorful wildflowers were also in the mix including: Water Parsnip, Moth Mullein, Swamp Milkweed and Purple Loosestrife. Next, I turned south onto a boardwalk that led to an observation deck where I could see fresh trails cutting through the pondweed near shore made by swimming muskrats. Back on the berm and continuing east, I spotted Hedge Bindweed, Swamp Thistle and Sow Thistle. Through the dense cattail growth next to the trail, I could hear some Redwings and Green frogs. Further ahead at an opening in the cattails, I could see where some cattails had been recently harvested by muskrats. I turned south, approached a distant deer before it took off and then climbed a 30 ft. observation tower to look over some of the vast wetlands that are part of the 9000 acres that make up this state game area. Also, I was pleased to look at and listen to a summer resident Swamp Sparrow. Retracing my steps, I noticed Teasel and Birdsfoot Trefoil. Also, I watched a Monarch flying and perching nearby. Finally, we got back to the car, quickly got in to escape the mosquitoes and head for home.

Is it early morning

When birds greet the sun

Or around midday

When chipmunks run

Is it afternoon

When flowers grow high

Or evening

When moths will fly

Is it near midnight

When nature will hide

Which time is best

It’s hard to decide

D. DeGraaf

July 19

Last Sunday, July 12, I hiked near our rental cottage on Beaver Island, a 35,000-acre nature paradise in northern Lake Michigan that we’ve visited for the past 14 years. The mid morning weather was partly cloudy with a temperature of 70 degrees and no wind. Just outside the house along the edge of the yard, I noticed pink clusters of Sweet William and white blossoms of Star Chickweed. Descending the steps to the beach, I paused to watch a Chipmunk, sitting on the boardwalk. Turning east unto the foredunes, I could see that almost all the wildflowers were yellow including: Huron Tansy, Hoary Puccoon, Silverweed and Evening Primrose. The lovely exceptions were Beach Pea and Harebell. I observed a few insects fluttering about including: Common Blue damselflies and Red Admiral butterflies. Circling back to the west, I paused at the shore of Lake Michigan to enjoy some of my favorite sights and sounds. Continuing west, I spotted a few mollusk shells on the sand including Paper shell and Zebra mussels. The sand also revealed tracks of prior visitors including: deer, gulls, geese and me. Nearing the end, I gazed back at the lake in time to see a Ring-billed Gull, walking along the beach. Finally, I ascended the steps back to cottage for a morning coffee break.

Beach hike in mid July

Neath a bright sunny sky

Lake water’s cold and clear

Breaking waves are all I hear

Horizon meets a rising sun

Up ahead sandpipers run

Backdune, sedges & ferns

Overhead, gulls & terns

Just another quarter mile

Barefoot on Beaver Isle

D. DeGraaf

July 8

Wednesday, my wife, Caroline and I drove to Mt. Pleasant to hike at Mission Creek Park that now includes a new dog park. The mid afternoon weather was partly cloudy with a temperature of 70 degrees and no wind. After leaving the parking lot we came to the trail entrance where I noticed a healthy patch of the attractive but invasive, Crown Vetch. The trail took us north through a dense forest of maple, oak and beech. After descending a steep slope, we arrived at the creek and paused to take in the sights and sounds of this hidden jewel of nature. We crossed the bridge, turned west and followed a narrow path on the bank where I spotted Fringed Loosestrife and Tiger Lilly. Looking south across the creek at the steep bank, I noticed an area where the dark topsoil had slid down to reveal the sandy soil underneath. Continuing west, I stopped to admire a colorful Ebony Jewelwing damselfly. Further along, I noticed a few blossoms of Agrimonia and the extremely poisonous, Water Hemlock. We turned around and headed east into a wooded flood plain shaded by oak and hemlock where I spotted a Wolf Spider web at the base of a birch snag. Next, we climbed back up the steep ravine and followed the trail west where I saw a Wood Satyr butterfly with a frayed wing resting on fern leaves. As the trail curved south toward the parking lot, my eyes caught the colorful fruit of two kinds of Bush Honeysuckle growing next to each other. Finally, we found the car and headed south toward home.

Nature in rhythm

July moves ahead

Summer sky of blue

Raspberries of red

Creatures are born

Consume and grow

Vultures fly high

Snakes lie low

Wetlands are full

Up to the brim

Beneath the surface

Mud minnows swim

D. DeGraaf

July 1

Last Saturday, my wife, Caroline and I drove 18 miles west of Mt. Pleasant to Hall’s Lake Natural Area to participate along with 20 others in a nature scavenger hunt sponsored by the Chippewa Watershed Conservancy. The mid morning weather was cloudy with a temperature of 64 degrees and a steady breeze from the north. We left the parking area and followed a narrow trail north into a mature hardwood forest where we heard repeated calls of the American Redstart. On the ground among the leaf litter, I noticed the small white blossoms of a Wild Strawberry look-a-like called Swamp Dewberry as well as tiny orange Waxy Cap mushrooms. Further ahead, I spotted other kinds of fungi including Elder Whitewash and two types of slime mold. Continuing north, I could barely make out Hall’s Lake through the dense woods. Circling around, I came upon a birch tree snag marked with Yellow-bellied Sapsucker holes. This bird makes two kinds of holes in trees to harvest sap. Round holes, small and deep, are where the bird inserts its bill to probe for sap. Rectangular holes are shallower and must be maintained continually for the sap to flow. The sapsucker licks the sap from these holes and eats the cambium of the tree too. New holes usually are made in a line with old holes or in a new line above the old. On the ground nearby was a single crow feather. Native Americans believed certain birds and their feathers possessed supernatural powers that could give someone the traits and attributes of that bird. A crow’s feather symbolized balance, skill, cunning and release from past beliefs. As the wind increased, we hiked back to the beginning, found the car and headed for home.

Wild creatures are hard to see

Their presence fools you & me

What’s that in a meadow near

Hard to tell, could be a deer

Leopard Frog’s spots of green

It hides well, can’t be seen

Redwing nests on reeds within

She sits still, blends right in

Sphinx moth’s black and gray

Is that one there? Hard to say

Survival in the forest and field

Nature’s handiwork revealed

D. DeGraaf