I’ve written about Pointe Mouillee many times and it’s always on my radar. It’s not the easiest hike, but not because the trails are difficult. It’s mostly flat gravel along raised dikes where the Huron River empties into Lake Erie. The difficulty comes from no shade, no benches (big limestone boulders can substitute, but that means walking through knee-high grasses with the always present danger of ticks), and no bathroom or even a porta-john. And it has lots of biting insects. The plus side of that is they support many bird species.
I visited twice in the last week, mostly hoping to see shorebirds that are just now starting to migrate south. The area closes for hunting September 1st through the end of the year, so I’m making the most of the summer months.
THE DAILY BUCKET IS A NATURE REFUGE. WE AMICABLY DISCUSS ANIMALS, WEATHER, CLIMATE, SOIL, PLANTS, WATERS AND NOTE LIFE’S PATTERNS.
Pointe Moo is a barrier island of sorts, created by the Army Corps of Engineers to address shoreline erosion after the natural beaches eroded away. It’s mostly shallow open water crisscrossed by dikes, with some areas filled but still marshy. Phragmites have pretty much taken over most of the marshes. This despite clearcutting by the DNR last year. But there are still lots of wildflowers, some native and others not.
I’ll have more shorebirds, plus butterflies and dragonflies in an upcoming Part 2.
What’s going on in nature in your area?