Sunday, September 29, 2013

Early Fall at Mission Creek Woodland Park

I try not to talk about anything but nature or science on this blog, but sometimes politics intrudes.

If you have spent any time looking at this blog, you have probably noticed that I posted a number of times about things that I have found at Mission Creek Woodland Park.  (Type "Mission Creek" in the search box to the right to find the other posts.)  Mission Creek Park is a 60 acre park locates at 1458 N. Harris Street on the northwest side of Mount Pleasant.  Mission Creek is my favorite local park and is the least used of Mt. Pleasant's larger parks -except in winter when the sledding hill sees a excessive amount of use.

For  better or worse this might soon change.  The Mt. Pleasant City Commission will be meeting tonight -  on their agenda is a proposal to add a fenced in dog park at Mission Creek Park.  There is a small vocal minority demanding a dog park be established in Mt Pleasant and they are quite adamant that it be established at Mission Creek Park.

The reason why Mission Creek Woodland Park is special is that it is rather secluded and unused compared to the other parks in town.  It has the feel of a rural park instead of the suburban park that it is.  It is a quiet natural area that is removed from the bustle of the city.  The addition of a dog park (and all that comes with it) will change the nature of Mission Creek Woodland Park.

But, enough ranting.

I took a trip out to Mission Creek last week to see what could be found on an early Fall Day.


Fallen apples

Bee on New England Aster

Heart-leaved Aster

Lower Mission Creek Trail

Fallen Poplar leaves

White Snakeroot

Zigzag Goldenrod in the Cedar Swamp at Mission Creek

Fall color on Meadow Rue leaves

Wild Ginger

Sun through the Beech/Sugar Maple Forest canopy

Eastern Hemlock needles trapped in a web

Scat full of partially digested wild grape

Cranefly on a Skunk Cabbage leaf

New England Aster

Skunk Cabbage Fruit

Dew on sheet web

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