NE Day 43 Wednesday July 20, 2022, Last day at Gretna, KOA (Omaha NE)

All good things eventually come to an end and this trip is no exception. Today is the last day when go out to look for birds so the last two days we can spend in the campgrounds pursuing the same. It's all on road from here on.

Today's vist.

The directions on the Detour sign to get to the Refuge

One portion of the "Chute"  that flows but not a river anymore.

 

Today was another beautiful day and not as hot as some. It started out at 70 F and creapt up to the mid 80's by afternoon. This evening it is comfortable (low humidity) at 90 F,  and a light breeze from the north. Ruth put on some chicken on the grill this evening, so we had our last grilled supper. Added to that a bit more of the potato salad and some Tillamook "Mudslide" ice cream, made for a perfect repast. I had taken a swim after we returned from the Boyer Chute NWR and that felt great. No one was in the pool, but as I was finishing three young boys (12,10 and 8) sat with me while I dried off.  They were very polite and inquisitive, of course at that age. It seems their Dad was a submariner stationed on the west coast and mom was staying here with them until they got a place in Omaha.  Then he would reassign and hopefully they would be together again. They had just come from Guam ( during two years of the covid time) and were happy to be back in the states. We talked about birding, travel, the latest in i- phones, and of course  our homes and where we were born. The three boys were born in Washington state, Delaware, and South Carolina. It was fun time talking with them.

 In the centuries before European settlement in this area, the Missouri River maintained multiple, braided channels. During times of flooding, the river would change course suddenly and unpredictably across its wide floodplain. Between 1820 and 1937, natural meandering of the river moved it 3 miles eastward from the Fort Calhoun bluffs (site of historic Fort Atkinson) to its present location. The area that is now Boyer Chute National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) was originally an island of sand and sediment deposited in the Missouri River by the Boyer River. Gradually, the Missouri River eroded channels (chutes) through the sediment. One of the major channels was Boyer Chute, named after the Boyer River, which in turn got its name from a settler who hunted and trapped in the watershed before the time of Lewis and Clark. The Refuge is a joint Federal and local conservation partnership designed to restore habitat along the 3-mile long chute. Riparian woodland, tallgrass prairie, and wetlands are the major habitats that are being restored and protected. These habitats benefit Missouri River fishes, migratory birds, endangered species, and resident wildlife.

 Our trip to the NWR was short and also tested our navigation  skills without a GPS or map. It seems the road into the NWR was closed but not until we were about 1/4 of a mile from the Refuge. We phoned the Refuge to find out an alternative route in. It seems the directions were printed on the "DETOUR sign.  We followed that and after a rather circuitous drive, we did get there.

There is no visitor's center and all directions and info are on the Kiosk, but I picked up a brochure with map yesterday at DeSoto so all was well.

How the river has changed (Missouri)

A look at the Refuge by diagram.

Yet to be named. It  is not a sunflower

 

 

 

 

It was not a good birding day as the birds are scattered quite a lot by now, with a few like the Red Headed Woodpecker still feeding their young. It seemed the Baltimore and Orchard  Orioles were doing the same. This did not seem to be a place where Lewis and Clark stayed, but is a river, originally that flowed into the Missouri.   The Boyer River.)It had later been blocked, and hence the beginning of "the chute'. The auto tour is just 2 miles one way and 1 1/2 miles the other . We ate lunch in the shade and then headed for home. There were a few flowers growing, but little else in animals or birds. It is July!

After returning  to the Trl,, I put on my swimsuit and headed for the pool where I had the pool to myself. It was refreshing to say the least.

Then it was time for photo downloading, email, and checking next accommodations.

Supper was that chicken and the ice cream, and then new neighbors to meet, One family is meeting their grandma in Omaha and then a wedding on the weekend.

Another Red Headed Woodpecker.

 

Tomorrow we head for Iowa (one stop) and then on Friday to Peru, IL,  before we head for home.

Tomorrow will be a  short  blog, but we will check in.