Hudsonville Nature Center and more Ottawa County places - April 2026

 April 12, 2026 

 Marie took me to Hudsonville Nature Center for a Spring wildflower walk with Craig Elston as our guide.  I’m not usually one for group walks but I did go and it was great.  Craig is a knowledgeable and easy-going guide. I enjoyed his talks about the different plants and I learned things.

Above is a picture of Twinleaf, Jeffersonia.  This is what we came to see. It was only in bud and a bit off the trail.  Since I didn’t want to make a spectacle of myself, I zoomed in with my phone and this is the only picture I got of Twinleaf.  Oh well maybe next year we will see it bloom!  I really enjoyed this day.  

At Stearns Creek Park we saw a Box Turtle. April 13, 2026

Stearns Creek, Ottawa County

Here are a few more things at Stearns Creek on April 16th. 

Earthstar fungus

First day this year I saw Shad, Serviceberry blooming.

April 14th Connor Bayou Park has many beautiful hepatica flowers.  We go to this park often. 

Connor Bayou and the Grand River April 14, 2026

On April 16th, I met my sister, Sugar, at Rycenga Recreation Area in Spring Lake Township.  There has been lots of rain and flooding throughout Michigan, so the water was higher than I’ve ever seen it.

Cup Fungus

                                      Ferns starting to unfurl.

                                        Rycenga Park

April 17th, I looked out the kitchen window and saw this Pileated Woodpecker!

April 18th Mike and I walked at Hemlock Crossing in Ottawa County.  It was a beautiful day!

April seems to be flying past.  So many places to walk, yet so little time.  Thanks for stopping by.

Happy Boots and Hepatica Hill - Michigan Wildflower Adventure

 2026 April 9 Thursday

You won’t find Happy Boots on a map.  Marie and I made up that name for a place in Allegan County,  many years ago.  It is a delightful swampy woodland with wildflowers! 

Here are a few things we saw on this day in April. 

Marsh Marigold

Spring Beauty

Anemone 

Marsh Marigold

Skunk Cabbage

Trout Lily

Sand Creek at Happy Boots

We also visited Hepatica Hill. Mark Cassino told me about this place several years ago.  It is a south facing hill along the Kalamazoo River.  In the spring this hill is brown and muddy except for the burst of purple Hepatica! 

My favorite flower! 

We also saw a dragonfly, and a few butterflies.  

Hepatica Hill

Kalamazoo River

Last week, April 8th, I also got to walk with my other fun sister, Sugar. We started at Nunica Junction Trail Head, part of the North Bank Trail.  We headed east to the trestle bridge over Crockery Creek.  It is a two mile walk, round trip.  It was a wet, 35 degree day. Yet it was nice to be outside for a walk especially with my sister.

We have had a lot of rain, so we went to see how high the water was in Crockery Creek. 

Crockery Creek near Nunica

Today is April 14th, Betsy (my fun daughter) and I went to Riverside Park today to see if we could get to the wildflower trail.  Every route was flooded but you could make it with a boat. We did see a few pretty flowers!

I hope you enjoy these adventures, I certainly did!

Aman Park March 30 2026

 Hepatica!

Marie kindly drove us to Aman Park March 30, 2026.  Aman Park is in Ottawa County Michigan.  We knew it was a bit early to see many flowers, but we saw my favorite wildflower - Hepatica.  Each plant is unique and can be white, pink, or purple.  I especially like the deep purple ones.  Here are a few more Hepatica.

We did see just a few Spring Beauty blooming.

And one blooming Purple Cress.

Sand Creek

Along Sand Creek at Aman Park, we found a sandy shore so we explored for a few minutes.  There were two friendly Mourning Cloak butterflies here. One landed right by my boot! 

My boots in Sand Creek.

We wandered at a slow pace along the creek trail for 2 miles and almost 3 hours.  It was a beautiful day. The temperature hit 70 degrees with a slight cooling breeze.  We did keep an eye out for Harbinger of Spring but we didn’t see it at Aman. So, Marie took us to Hager Park, also in Ottawa County.

At Hager Park near a picnic area, there are hundreds of Harbinger of Spring plants and this year there seemed to be even more than usual!  We spent a little more time at Hager Park walking and looking. 

Harbinger of Spring 

Then it was time to head home. About 25 miles back to my house, then Marie has another 33 miles to her home.  Thanks Marie for the driving!  

I also had a fun walk that evening with Mike and Betsy at Connor Bayou Park.  We didn’t see flowers blooming, but we did see turtles sunning themselves!

Connor Bayou in Ottawa County Michigan

What a great day!