October 27

Sunrise at Belle Isle from my back porch.  A study in pink.

Later I walked into Rosie’s Thicket and this one leaf was a color preview for all the fall foliage.

Beyond, I finally found something to admire in Japanese Knotweed. This ethereal foliage doesn’t make up for all its bad habits but it is a sight.

A little further on into the thicket, I found clumps of chive. The chive is one of the first plants to sprout in the spring. They last a month and then die back. Now in the fall, they pop up again. This particular clump is very peppery to taste.

The flats were quiet with a few Great Egrets way out next to the creek. I walked along the path through the thicket and nearly walked on these potatoes. Not really, a closer look revealed that they were mushrooms.

Out on the edge of the Palermo street park, a weed clump proudly displayed a very purple contrast to all the gold and red foliage.

Up in a crabapple tree, this Cardinal was not a fall leaf. I caught sight of Sharp-shinned Hawk looking for a meal. It cruised around for a while and then flew over towards Winthrop and out of view.

In the next tree over, the female Cardinal was nearly invisible  except for her beak.

The Overlook Path was quiet and wet (we had a patch of fog overnight). This Sumac branch reminded me of “pretty maids in a row” (Gilbert & Sullivan).

The path was strangely lit beneath the gray skies. There was soft golden glow to everything. Almost to the Overlook, this crab apple was exploding with fruit.

The Overlook was quiet. I expected to find some ducks but no luck there. I crossed the flats to the Boardwalk and flushed a snipe. The Boardwalk yielded some Great Egrets fishing by the creek and these two Great Blue Herons just resting.

Up in the park meadow, I found this litter, not human. A nearby clump of milkweed had spontaneously  burst and strewn the grass with their seeds.

From the Bennington St. bridge, I found this very busy corner of the creek.  In the foreground there are two Buffleheads. Closer to shore are two Cormorants. Then comes the two Great Egrets and finally almost invisible on the shore’s edge are two Yellowlegs. There must have been a school of small fish for them all to feast on.

Today was terrific. It’s easy to be impressed on a bright sunny day in August. The marsh vibrates with life and green grasses. On a cloudy October day, there’s a darker golden color. Things are letting go. It’s getting to the end of another year but it is still full of things to see and enjoy.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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