Today and a few days back.
Today was to be a trip to Seney NWR at least in the afternoon. The rain was quite steady so we did laundry first, some gracery shopping, and then headed to the trailer to get ready to get to Seney for a few hours. It is only 4 miles from the campground.
When we headed for Seney it was still raining so we though we might do some of the auto tour route before supper. But alas, they were not open until Friday this week. The staff was friendly and explained the situation, but we could not walk or drive into the Refuge. BUMMER!
That meant a switch in the progrm, and we will move tomorrow from where we are at Germfask (4 miles from Seney) , to a RV Park 1/2 way to Whtefish Point from there. We will have free acces to the birds, trails and lakeshore where birds are counted each day, especially the raptors. So stick with us a few more days as we wrap up this trip, even though the unexpected happens. On this 8 week trip we have been very blessed to have good days all the way, a litte setback will not deter us for a few more days, Here are a few background facts about Seney and the area.
A little history.
Seney, MI started out as a little settlement located by the tracks of the Duluth, South Shore, and Atlantic railroad, that ran from St. Ignace, MI to Marquette, MI in about 1881. The train stopped at Seney to load and unload passengers who wanted to travel the footpath north to the harbor town of Grand Marais, MI, located on Lake Superior. (24 miles) Some say the town was named for one of the contractors on the railroad as were some of the nearby villages.
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| Marsh Marigolds were common along M 28 yesterday. |
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| Our campground that we will cut short tomrrow (See below) |
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| The Laundry was finished today,Last time on the road. |
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| Grocery shopping at Rahilly's in Newberry. |
Today was to be a trip to Seney NWR at least in the afternoon. The rain was quite steady so we did laundry first, some gracery shopping, and then headed to the trailer to get ready to get to Seney for a few hours. It is only 4 miles from the campground.
When we headed for Seney it was still raining so we though we might do some of the auto tour route before supper. But alas, they were not open until Friday this week. The staff was friendly and explained the situation, but we could not walk or drive into the Refuge. BUMMER!
That meant a switch in the progrm, and we will move tomorrow from where we are at Germfask (4 miles from Seney) , to a RV Park 1/2 way to Whtefish Point from there. We will have free acces to the birds, trails and lakeshore where birds are counted each day, especially the raptors. So stick with us a few more days as we wrap up this trip, even though the unexpected happens. On this 8 week trip we have been very blessed to have good days all the way, a litte setback will not deter us for a few more days, Here are a few background facts about Seney and the area.
A little history.
Seney, MI started out as a little settlement located by the tracks of the Duluth, South Shore, and Atlantic railroad, that ran from St. Ignace, MI to Marquette, MI in about 1881. The train stopped at Seney to load and unload passengers who wanted to travel the footpath north to the harbor town of Grand Marais, MI, located on Lake Superior. (24 miles) Some say the town was named for one of the contractors on the railroad as were some of the nearby villages.
The Upper Peninsula was a vast forest of white pine, so in 1882 the Alger, Smith Company began logging and other companies soon followed. Seney was suddenly the center of the logging industry and this little hamlet abruptly grew to become a thriving town of around 3000 people, and many more when the lumberjacks came in from the 15 or more nearby camps.
Much of the town was built up on 6 foot cedar posts because of the swampy land and the depth of the snow. There were about 21 saloons, 10 hotels, a church, drug stores, meat markets, general merchandise stores, a jewelry store, other businesses, and several hundred houses. One church I see!
Seney NWR on the other hand is a vast tract of bog and fen and at 45,000 acres one of the largest in the country. Sorting out what is there would take days to explain, but this paragraph might help. In the early days an attempt to make an agricultural area of ts place was attempted and draining the water by canals was one of the techniques attempted (It was not successful)
Nearly one hundred years of modifications to the hydrology of Seney National Wildlife Refuge have changed the way water flows through C-3 watershed. (THE PROBLEM) The area known as the spreads on Walsh Ditch below C-3 Dike has experienced erosion and peat subsidence. The water table near C-3 Pool has been altered, and creeks have been diverted from their natural courses. Beaver populations have become dependent upon the flow of water in man-made channels, but have also remained active in abandoned natural channels that carry ground-water discharge. Wildlife populations have come to depend on artificial pools. (THE SOLUTION) Proposed changes to the hydrology in C-3 watershed include restoring creeks to their natural channels, restoring the flow of water in channels where blocked by artificial methods, and reducing or eliminating the flow of water in man-made channels. So we can see it is a complicated process, dependent upon humans to restore it to its original condition if at all.
Seney is mostly all fen.
A fen is one of the four main types of wetland, the others being grassy marshes, forested swamps, and peaty bogs. Along with bogs, fens are a kind of mire. Fens are usually fed by mineral-rich surface water or groundwater. They are characterised by their water chemistry, which is alkaline, with relatively high dissolved mineral levels but few other plant nutrients. The principal challenges are to restore natural water flow regimes, to maintain the quality of water, and to prevent invasion by woody plants.
There are websites that show some of the pictures of Seney NWR and I hope you would be able to bring them up to look at. I am disappointed that we didn't capture it in photos for you.
Hopefully when we get to Whitefish Point we can make up for it somewhat.
P.S. I should have mentioned it yesterday, that we saw, about 6 feet from the side of the road, a Bald Eagle standing on the carcass of a deer eating its meal. What a glorious sight that was.
Seney NWR on the other hand is a vast tract of bog and fen and at 45,000 acres one of the largest in the country. Sorting out what is there would take days to explain, but this paragraph might help. In the early days an attempt to make an agricultural area of ts place was attempted and draining the water by canals was one of the techniques attempted (It was not successful)
Nearly one hundred years of modifications to the hydrology of Seney National Wildlife Refuge have changed the way water flows through C-3 watershed. (THE PROBLEM) The area known as the spreads on Walsh Ditch below C-3 Dike has experienced erosion and peat subsidence. The water table near C-3 Pool has been altered, and creeks have been diverted from their natural courses. Beaver populations have become dependent upon the flow of water in man-made channels, but have also remained active in abandoned natural channels that carry ground-water discharge. Wildlife populations have come to depend on artificial pools. (THE SOLUTION) Proposed changes to the hydrology in C-3 watershed include restoring creeks to their natural channels, restoring the flow of water in channels where blocked by artificial methods, and reducing or eliminating the flow of water in man-made channels. So we can see it is a complicated process, dependent upon humans to restore it to its original condition if at all.
Seney is mostly all fen.
A fen is one of the four main types of wetland, the others being grassy marshes, forested swamps, and peaty bogs. Along with bogs, fens are a kind of mire. Fens are usually fed by mineral-rich surface water or groundwater. They are characterised by their water chemistry, which is alkaline, with relatively high dissolved mineral levels but few other plant nutrients. The principal challenges are to restore natural water flow regimes, to maintain the quality of water, and to prevent invasion by woody plants.
There are websites that show some of the pictures of Seney NWR and I hope you would be able to bring them up to look at. I am disappointed that we didn't capture it in photos for you.
Hopefully when we get to Whitefish Point we can make up for it somewhat.
P.S. I should have mentioned it yesterday, that we saw, about 6 feet from the side of the road, a Bald Eagle standing on the carcass of a deer eating its meal. What a glorious sight that was.
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