Blue Goose ~ Day 139

October 15, 2014 ~ Holland, MI to West Branch, MI

After several days of sleeping in comfortable beds, I (somewhat reluctantly) resumed my Blue Goose Adventure. I had coffee with Dave and then looked at a house near Kollen Park that I saw on Craig's List, but it was 100 years old (for one thing) and now was not the day to impulsively buy a home.

I finally got going early afternoon and drove across the state to Shiawassee NWR just south of Saginaw. It was a stunningly beautiful refuge...perhaps in part because of the time of year and time of day, but the variety of habitat certainly attracted birds. I saw American Widgeons and Gadwalls and Trumpeter Swans; a juvenile Common Gallinule; a dozen Pied-billed Grebes; an immature Bald Eagle and Red-tailed Hawk...more ducks, geese, egrets, gulls...a Great Blue Heron, blackbirds, sparrows. The weather was unsettled with heavy dark grey clouds and I moved through the refuge in intermittent light rain, but then the sky began to clear in the west. The sun lit the marsh in the east and a rainbow appeared.

Wood Duck pair at Shiawassee NWR - MI

The auto route was six miles, mostly on the levees and over a couple of spillways, with many opportunities for seeing and photographing birds. Four rivers (Tittabawassee, Shiawassee, Cass and Flint) meet in this area, historically known as The Flats, so there is a lot of water, and thus, an abundance of waterfowl habitat. I love these refuges which are relatively close to big cities and which are havens for wildlife and those humans who need a respite from urban life. No telephone poles and no overhead wires; no billboards; no houses or barns; no pavement, and the occasional vehicle is either a USFWS truck or another birdwatcher / photographer.

Just watching the Common Gallinule poking along the edge of the cattails for several minutes, the swans flying low with their long white outstretched necks and the many grebes and widgeons made this a great stop as I get back into it all....especially since I haven't been on too many refuges thus far with many birds. The trees in the wet and flooded woods had brilliant fall foliage. Even the grasses and reeds were often golden.

Shiawassee NWR - MI

Maria always wanted to get to Shiawassee We actually had plans the spring she died, but she just was too sick and none of us went....so this was a tribute trip also...dear Maria, who would have reveled in this beautiful place.

I figured I could get to West Branch by dark which I did (barely) and ate for $11 at a Ponderosa, which had a buffet with just about every kind of comfort food I've ever eaten. I had chicken noodle soup, meatloaf, cheesy potatoes, green beans, baked beans, carrot cake and a brownie. Too much food but fairly tasty. I wish I could have ignored the incredibly obese woman at the next table. I heard on the radio today that 66% of Michiganders are overweight and 33% are obese and that Michigan ranks #6 in obesity in the nation.

The adjacent Walmart parking lot had no trees. I changed places about five times before finally settling in. I woke up at 3:30 and read for a awhile but soon went back to sleep. When I woke the next morning, a large RV had pulled in close to me sometime in the middle of the night.