10 Parks on 10.10.10

It was 10/10/10 and we set out on a very pleasant fall afternoon to visit 10 Ann Arbor parks -- and we ended up visiting 12. It's amazing how many parks not only are so close to each other but also so close to our house. And here they are, in no particular order....

Redbud Nature Area -- A pleasant wooded T-shaped path. We saw two others who seemed to be walking with purpose.

Sylvan -- Nicely set-up, with a bridge to a wooded area, and new tennis courts. Numerous neighborhood kids were having great fun on the swings and play structure.

Terhune -- This is a cemetery -- with a view!

Turnberry -- Just a long leafy buffer for US 23, but it's nicely appointed with new playground structures

Rose -- A very small park, and pretty run-down, we're sorry to say

Mill Creek -- Just enough room was provided for a little play structure in what is otherwise a large parking structure lot for part of this subdivision

Brookside -- A small park on a busy corner

Stone School -- Situated behind the school parking lot, it's basically a soccer field

Molin Nature Area -- We took a meandering and cooling walk on a nice out-and-back path

The Ponds -- A nice newer-looking neighborhood park

BONUS Parks:

Scarlett Mitchell Nature Area -- We wandered onto the backside edge of this park, which is just down the block from Turnberry

Clinton -- Across the street from Brookside and busier and more crowded than any park we've visited since we started this adventure

Scheffler Park

We have occasionally commented on whether the parks we visit are family-friendly. And we've provided reviews here and there of the playground equipment we've encountered. But never before have we had an expert in our midst. Today we were lucky enough to have nearly three-year-old Max and his parents, Eric and Anica, join us for a picnic lunch at Scheffler Park. And the weather was perfect.

Max immediately took off, with barely a hello for us, over the bridge and the creek and straight toward the playground. He ignored the baseball field, the basketball court, and the volleyball net nearest the parking lot and headed for the play structure. The adults set up shop on the adjacent benches.







Max attacked the digger, the teeter-totter, and the climbing structure -- and he made his way around the circuit multiple times. Max said only his dad could join him on the teeter-totter because his mom wasn't big enough. As with most three-year-olds, he did lunch on the run -- and we caught up with his parents. He became comfortable enough on the play structure that at one point he jumped off from the top steps. When he hit the ground and realized he was okay he turned around to tell the little girl behind him, "I am Big" -- and that she shouldn't try it. A little more catch, some time on the swings, and a few more attempts with the digger and he was ready for his nap. Besides, he had a birthday party to attend later in the day. The walk back across the bridge brought discovery of the drinking fountain.

Though Max was reluctant to share with us his impressions of the park, it was obvious from his actions that he found a variety of things to do, and that he enjoyed his time there very much. And we loved hanging out with him and his parents. And we hope to do so much more often in the future.

Catching Up

We've been having a wonderful summer. We've been fortunate enough to have traveled out of town for long weekends a number of times and we took one full-week vacation with another one coming up shortly. And we've busy with work, in a good way -- so busy that we've only visited a handful of parks in the last couple of months and haven't even had a chance to post about them. So here, in brief, are the parks we've visited since our last post on Memorial Day:


It was a cooler evening when we headed out to three parks: Lakewood, Dolph, and Burr Oak. Lakewood had many trails and if our memories serve we ended our hike a bit prematurely due to unrelenting mesquito attacks.

Dolph is huge, with a network of trails hugging and skirting a large serene lake. There were a few cars in the parking lot but we only saw two others on our hike. For some reason we got a bad feeling about these two -- though it was just a feeling. So we exchanged a few quick words with them before taking our leave.

Nearby Burr Oak is a much smaller neighborhood park. We took a look around and sat on a bench and relaxed as the evening darkened into night

About a week later we walked from home after dinner one evening to nearby South University Park, on the southeast edge of the U-M campus. It's tucked away and set back and mostly out of sight on a busy corner near Washtenaw Avenue. It's a little run-down (especially the barely usable basketball court in a far corner), but there's a comfortable bench and an informative kiosk on the street side.

On our next adventure, a few weeks later, our 16-year-old nephew, Steven, joined us. We're not so sure he really wanted to come, but he was staying with us for the week so he might have thought he didn't have a choice. Or he may have been curious what his aunt and uncle were up to on these Park Walks. Whatever the reason, he humored us.

Off we went to White Oak and Barton Nature Area. We did a brief drive-by along Huron River Drive to determine where to start and after a brief trek through White Oak we continued on to Barton Nature Area. A narrow trail that began at the parking lot opened up on the other side of a bridge to a vast view of the Huron River. As we crossed over the bridge, Steve shared with us some of his adventures on the river -- which we won't go into here as his parents may read this. We kept following the trail, mostly northward, which took us out onto prairie-like terrain until the river meandered back around to meet us and we crossed another bridge, and the dam that creates Barton Pond --though until we arrived there we had no idea where we were. (In fact, a couple of canoers informed us.)

We headed up and around toward the dam on our right and at the top of the stairs we were looking out on Barton Pond.

As we left the pond we happened upon a fisherman fighting with a 10-pound carp. We watched as he struggled to reel him in -- yet as soon as he caught the fish he let it go. We stopped to congratulate him on his effort and he gave us quick lesson on bait and hooks and other techniques. We had no idea what he was talking about.

We didn't want to merely retrace our steps back to our car so we took a different path back -- which only resulted in us coming back out onto Huron River Drive what seemed like a good mile or so west of where we were parked. As we trudged eastward under a hot sun along the side of the road, we wondered what Steven thought of his goofy aunt and uncle and their ridiculous adventure. We should have him post a version of his own sometime. But we know we enjoyed having him come along.

Westside Ride

Memorial Day Weekend -- one of the bookends to the summer season. Randy suggested we do our park visits by bike as the weather was FANTASTIC! So Randy, being the cartographer, planned a ride in the near northwest section of the city. He gathered the helmets and filled the water bottles, and made sure we had enough air in our bike tires, and I made sure we would have money for a treat at end -- though more about that later as I am getting ahead of myself.

On our way through downtown we stopped at the Liquor Store on Main and Miller -- not for booze but because Randy had a sudden urge for a piece of fruit. No fruit in there other than lemons, but a very well-stocked and busy place. No wonder it boasts of being the number 1 rated liquor store (In town? Anywhere? Not sure). Still on a fruit quest, and getting more desperate, we stopped at the bakery a few blocks west on Miller -- and the young man behind the counter patiently directed us to Knights across the street, where we purchased two large and juicy peaches. No parks yet but three establishments we'll be certain to visit again --though next time we'll know what each of their specialties are.

We crossed the street to West Park and found a double fence with two large signs -- one about our tax dollars at work and the other detailing the who, what, when of the work being done at the park. We knew it was under construction but we didn't realize the entire park would be closed until the work is fiinished. We traveled around the perimeter of the park by bike to view all the heavy equipment and large drainage pipes. Closed until October; looking forward to seeing the completed and updated park then.

Next we pedaled slowly through lovely neighborhoods with very well-tended gardens and ended up at our next "park" -- Mack Pool. Unfortuntely the grounds were not very well maintained. Perhaps we just happened by on the last day of the city's 30-day mowing cycle....

Headed north on Miner and then Fountain -- which I'd definitely recommend due to its many outstanding flower gardens and lovely homes -- and arrived at the cute and lovely Belize Park. A little corner park, it's cut out in a way that places it below street level. It has a bright blue water fountain that accommodate everyone -- adults and children as well as our four-legged friends.

If felt terrific on this warm but breezy afternoon to be up so high, elevated above much of the city and gazing at its downtown and U-M Hospitals skylines from the wide-open Hunt Park. It's also got a small playground area and a fairly large Community Garden. A stroll through the garden found well-tilled and composted soil planted with lettuce, onion, basil, tomatoes, brussels sprouts, and a few other plants I couldn't readily identify.

Randy also noted that the restrooms at West Park are very clean and well-kept (and he's a public restroom expert).

Heading west from Hunt we found ourselves in an old leafy neighborhood with lots of tidy ranches, and kids running through sprinklers and jumping in yard pools. The laughter and giggles lightened the air. Mixtwood Pomona Park is tucked away in a lovely neighborhood. While there we found another set of miniature size heavy duty trucks and bulldozers. We have seen this type of equipment at many other neighborhood parks. Are they supplied by the city or by the neighbors?

It was a great journey through neighborhoods we've known -- though not all that well. A few turns here and there, heading mostly south and east toward home, and before we knew it we were at the doorstep of Washtenaw Dairy. Kids of all ages lined up on the benches balancing and licking their cones, the ice cream dripping over faster than they could attack them. I've never really been all that big on ice cream but lately I've been craving it. I ordered a child-sized cone but the portions here are so large that 20 minutes later I was still at it. It was thick and creamy and delicious. A cool ending to a wonderful adventure.

Iroquois Park

Flush from having recently visited our landmark 100th park, we couldn't wait, when we both got home late from work last night, to rush out to visit another city park. But in our haste we forgot to bring our camera, so no pictures this time around (a first for us). And just a quick report: Iroquois is closer to our house than any in Ann Arbor (other than Burns Park) but we had yet to walk over there. Over the years we've known quite a few people who've lived on this leafy semi-circle of a block (which wraps around the southwest corner of Packard and Stadium), and on this night we met some new folks -- a very friendly couple, sitting comfortably on the patio in front of their house, enjoying a drink in the cool night air. A simple hello led to a 10-minute talk about our city park quest, and they seemed genuinely thrilled to hear of it. We had to move on before it got too dark to see their little neighborhood park -- nestled between two other lots just a few house to the east of them -- and we strolled blissfully home thinking as much about the nice people we've met along the way as the beautiful scenery and foliage we've seen.

100!

Nine more parks makes an even 100! The day we've all been waiting for....

And what a nice day it was. A beautiful Saturday and the first weekend in 2010 when it was obvious to all that, yes -- summer is here (or just around the corner). We took advantage by being outside all day long. First at the Farmers' Market, then in our yard --cutting and weeding and edging and planting -- and then, as the shadows were growing and it was getting just a little cooler, we cruised in our convertible and picked up where we left off last summer. We took a late evening walk to some bloggable park sites.

We've covered nearly all of the east side, but we've hardly made a dent in the west side. So it was easy to target a bunch of close-together parks that enabled us to visit as many as nine in just a couple of hours (with a nice break for a drink and a bite to eat at Knight's -- a westside institution where Randy had never been, if you can believe that!).

Here's a quick rundown of the parks we visited, in the order we found them:

1. Waterworks -- just east of Slauson, a very friendly park that is well-maintained by neighborhood residents, many of whom were also taking a leisurely stroll.

2. Hannah -- a small, undeveloped wooded area adjacent to the Salvation Army parking lot, just off Miller and Arbana. Access is restricted by the obvious fencing which did not deter Patti as she made her way through the brush, located a gate, opened it, and stepped onto what she thought would be solid ground only to sink knee deep -- which sent her quickly back to saftey behind the gate.

3. Maryfield Wildwood -- a sprawling park in the midst of a gorgeous westside neighborhood. Swings and a climbing structure and basketball courts on the east end and a heavily wooded nature trail on the west end.

4. Wellington -- near Haisley school in a cute neighborhood loaded with loads of short but winding streets. The park is well-hidden in a cul-de-sac you'd never find yourself in unless you're looking for this park, you live here, or you know people who do. Lots of young kids crawling all over this place.

5. Miller Nature -- Turn-off access with limited parking off Miller. Narrow and steep paths in a large, well-wooded area. Mud and mosquitoes cut our walk short.

6. Veterans Memorial -- Anyone who's played any softball or baseball (or lives in this town, for that matter) knows this place well. It may just have been the millions of dandelions that probably just shot up following last week's heavy rains, but this old spot looked a little lonely and worse for wear on this night.

(This, of course, was where we made our detour to Knight's. Old as we are, we were still among this crowd's whippersnappers -- though the food was good and plentiful, and you can't beat the prices.)

7. Zion -- behind the church. Seemed like part of it belonged to the church while the southernmost portion is maintained by the city -- though we didn't see a city park sign anywhere. (We believe this is a first for us.)

8. Virginia -- large neighborhood park that accomodates pretty much any contemplated park activity.

9.Winewood Thaler -- this small, well-maintained, and friendly park served as a comforting ending to our evening.

Now that we've reached 100, we'll be counting down to the parks we have left to visit rather than continuing to count up the number we've seen. We haven't really given ourselves any deadlines, but now that we've come this far there's no reason to think we can't get to the rest before the snow flies again. Hope you'll join us....

Mothers' Day 2010

My son started my Mothers’ Day off right. He somehow always manages to get flowers delivered to me on Sunday from wherever he is! He’s always made being a mom so easy.

It was a cool, crisp, and sunny day. The sky was crystal blue. Since it was “my” day I told Randy I wanted to go to some parks where we could do some real hiking. If you don’t know us or haven’t figured this out yet, Randy is the map man. I travel based on instinct – which is probably why I don’t know the quickest way to get anywhere but I still enjoy the journey.

So we set out toward Leslie Park, where Randy was sure we would be able to enjoy a number of parks – and complete that northeast section of the city on the Parks Map. Randy loves to cross items off his lists!

Though the Leslie Science Center looked closed we headed across the parking lot to the newest-looking building. We met Brendan, a recent U-M graduate who was out running some nearby trails and unwittingly found himself in a parking lot. After orienting him we found out how small the world is. He’s an aerospace engineer who’s moving to Los Angeles to work for an aerospace company and he knows our son’s good friend, Kiko – who was his GSI! He seemed happy and amazed not only that we knew Kiko but that we also lived in Santa Monica a number of years ago so we filled his head with as much unsolicited advice as we could as he continued to cool down from his run.

Inside we found a friendly guy with a wallaby in his man-made cloth pouch! He had just finished hosting a birthday party. Fun fact of the day: there are three farms that breed and raise kangaroos and wallabies somewhere between Ann Arbor and Detroit Metro airport. But we never found out why they breed and raise them or what people do with them..... He directed us to the trails in adjacent Black Pond Park and suggested that we return when it’s dark in the next couple of weeks to hear the deafening sound of the frogs and peepers.

Off we headed to Black Pond, through the apple orchard and along the sensory trail. The trail wound around with some elevation changes along with a variety of outlets to different neighborhoods and a view of the 12^th hole of the golf course recently chosen by Golf Digest as the “Number One Muny Course in the Nation” – Leslie Park Golf Course.

Back at the Leslie Science Center buildings we found the birds of prey. WOW! A bald eagle, a vulture, and a variety of owls. They looked at us as if we were interrupting them.

It was a beautiful blue sky as we headed to the other parks on our list.

We made a quick stop at Leslie Park Golf Course and took in the scenery from the recently renovated patio area. Pretty awesome to have one of the best municipal golf courses in the country right in our home town.

Down the dirt road just a bit we came to Traver Creek Park. There was no official park entrance, so to speak – just a large city sign and a path. Off we went, I with a wee bit more enthusiasm than Randy. We assumed, given the name, that a creek was likely in our future – especially so as we started hiking through mud. Randy tried to redirect me several times as we headed into greater amounts of muck and mire. Finally we approached the babbling creek and then a railroad track – at which point Randy finally convinced me to turn around. I was convinced we were on a loop trail and Randy felt certain we were not. (When we got home I looked at the map on the city parks web site. Turns out he was right. Please don’t tell him.)

Back to the car, with mud-covered shoes, we drove a short distance to Tuebinger Park. Tuebinger is a lovely neighborhood park. Stapp Park offered many more trails and Leslie Woods has even more. Take Upland north until it dead-ends and do not be deterred by the fact that it looks as if there is nothing there. Get out of the car and look for the trailhead. It’s there. And you’ll be glad you found it.

A wonderful journey I encourage you to take.

Here are the seven parks Randy crossed off his list:

Leslie Science Center

Black Pond

Leslie Park Golf Course

Traver Creek

Tuebinger

Stapp

Leslie Woods