Orchids (and more) in October in Ottawa County, Michigan

 2023 October 6 

Bass River Recreation Area in Ottawa County Michigan.

                       Ladies' Tresses orchid

   I found a total of seven Nodding Ladies' Tresses still blooming on October 6, 2023.  

Closed Gentian

Aster with a bee.

This past week we have had some amazing clouds.

Autumn Wildflowers Ottawa County Michigan

Bass River Recreation Area is the place I go to see Closed Bottle Gentian and Nodding Ladies Tresses, and many more summer / fall wildflowers.  We didn’t have much rain this summer so most of the small ponds were dried up.  I didn’t see as many gentian as some years.  Throughout August and September I visited Bass several times. I really like this place, you can wander anywhere you want.  It is not a "stay on trails" sort of place.

 

We also find the white variety of the Closed Gentian here.

And Nodding Ladies Tresses Orchid are tucked in all over the place at Bass!

 

There are tons of Cardinal flower here too.

         Monkey Flower

     Gerardia

Fields of Joe Pye Weed

                    Chicory 

                          

                 Frogfruit

 

  

   Ironweed

 

Sunshine, Sunny for short

My new Grandpuppy is with me two days a week.  She likes the water but doesn't stop to look at the flowers!  

Early September 2018

 

 Mike and I had many more walks at Connor Bayou Park, an Ottawa County Park along the Grand River.  The woodland trail is high and dry, and is about a 1.25 mile loop, with overlooks of the Grand River and Connor Bayou. 

 The new bike path at the park.

 We saw red... in the Running Strawberry Bush and the Partridgeberry.

And more red!  I'm pretty sure this is a milk snake.  First one I have ever seen, it was on the steps at Connor as we went to the car.

More Red!  Virginia Creeper covers the trees at Connor Bayou Park.

The sun is setting noticeably earlier every day.  We either need to carry flashlights or go for our walks earlier.



Grand River from the kayak launch at Connor Bayou Park.



 Kayak Launch

 

September 5, Betsy went with me to Bass River Recreation Area to see the Closed Gentian, that I so much wanted to see.  There was sun and blue sky, what you don't see from the photos is how humid it was!  Such a wonderful daughter to cater to my whims!

                                                     Closed Gentian

Nodding Ladies' Tresses Orchid



My sister Sugar and I took at couple of very pleasant bike rides.  We started from the new bike path at Connor Bayou Park, then pedaled east to the M-231 trailhead, up the hill to M-231, over the Grand River, under M-231 and north to Leonard Street and back. It is called the Spoonville Trail. 

 
I found this bit of history about Spoonville, "John Spoon, born 1829 in Seneca County, N.Y., arrived with his brother, Daniel, in Crockery Township in 1856.  They established the town of Spoonville. A carpenter by trade, the centerpiece of the town was Spoon’s sawmill, that he built that same year.  Spoon also owned the largest farm in Ottawa County at one time. It was on this 848-acre property that Spoon discovered the Indian burial mounds where skeletons, copper and stone tool implements, and ornamental earthen vases were unearthed."  "Spoonville is a historic archeological site, located on the banks of the Grand River in Crockery Township, Ottawa County, Michigan. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973."

The ride was just over 7 miles, and it was on the first cool day we had this September.  Fun ride! 

M-231 Trailhead with parking, portable toilet, bike tools and air pump, and a bench!

                                             Grand River from M-231
On another nice day, we started again at Connor Bayou and rode our bikes to Riverside Park, about 4 miles east on the Grand River Explores Trail.

 Grand River from the boat launch at Riverside Park, Ottawa County.

Some pretty leaves, I couldn't decide which ones I liked best so I included all of them.

 Mike and I walked at Crockery Creek Natural Area, August 31, and I found Nodding Ladies Tresses growing in the path!  We were there again on September 7 and found all the Nodding Ladies' Tresses Orchids had been Mowed!  Sad but true.





Still a good walk.

With just a day or two of cool weather early in September, we returned to unseasonably hot and humid weather.  We also had some record rainfall, which brought out a fresh and frisky batch of mosquitoes!  Still I always appreciate getting outside for a walk or a bike ride!  Thanks for stopping by.