June 15

It rained this morning and the sky was still overcast when I left for the marsh. I had barely gone a block when I saw these flowers. They were so bright that it was a shock to my eyes. They were growing in a piece of land that is usually distinguished by the huge array of litter that gets tossed into it. Someone cleaned it up not long ago and then there is this bit of beauty. It reminded me that yesterday I worked on my science project. That’s what I call it. I’ve decided to take responsibility for a small piece of my daily path. So I went out with the lawn mower and grass whip. I cut down the worst of the invasive wild roses, mowed the path and picked up trash. I’m going to spend some time each week on this in order to pay forward the enjoyment that I get out of my little part of the marsh.

The Osprey were busy by the platform while the thickets were mostly quiet except for the Redwings and the Grackles. At one point, a Snowy Egret sailed over my head  like an alien otherworldly spaceship. At the end of the trail, the Overlook panne had two duck families feeding. It is noticeable how much larger the duckling have become in just a few weeks. A Kildeer landed nearby and I realized it’s been a while since I’ve seen one. Across the flats, the Boardwalk panne had become an impromptu set for a classic film.

A red balloon was entangled on its string. I just saw the film again several weeks ago with my granddaughter and the film was a delight. So it was great to see this balloon. It reminded me so much of the movie.  Past the park, a Great Egret was near the Bennington St. bridge in the creek. I got closer than usual. Great Egrets are normally very skittish and will not tolerate a human so close.

So in spite of the rain and gray skies, it was another good day at Belle Isle.

Ciao!

-Jorge

This entry was posted on June 15, 2008 at 1:52 pm and is filed under Daily - the next year. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.