Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge (3rd hike of 33)

I still feel the need to get out and go. Even after a hike up Coffin Mountain. But there's time and distance that make it tiring for me and trying for my car. So I found some place nearby. After driving south and fumbling around the refuge the long way I came upon the egret boardwalk. There was little water to form a marshy much under the elevated walkway. The weather's been too dry. At the end the trail dumped me out into a shelter for bird watching. I looked out into the marshes. One egret in the distance ignored me. I stared at him until I was bored with the lack of interaction.



At my second stop I followed the trail along a string of blackberry bushes. I picked one and it exploded tartly in my mouth. A butterfly fluttered back and forth in front of me, landing on a leaf and looking at me expectantly. So what could I do but grant the beautiful insect his photo shoot?



The trail transformed into raised boardwalk, but the ground beneath it that should have been mucky or swampy was cracked and dry. There were no turtles. There were no ducks. There weren't even birds in the trees as far as I could see. I hurried on to find a vantage point where I might catch sight of something with wings. And right there around a turn on the boardwalk was a tall blue heron standing on the railing 100 feet ahead of me. As soon as he caught sight of me he took off to hide in the marshy field. I scanned the pond for him and his head poked out slightly from the grasses. At the end of the boardwalk I walked north on the mowed path to gain a better view of the heron. He moved slightly but never took flight. Impatient, I continued the walking to the end of the path and then turned to take the trail around the south end of the refuge. The wintering grounds were also very dry. The duck ponds were shrunken, more reeds than actual water.

At the furthest end of the park I spotted a second blue heron wading in a pond. After waiting a few minutes to find out whatever it is that blue herons do my attention waned and my march continued. Grasshoppers now bolted at lightening speed from in front of my path. Cut grass slipped down into my shoes. Occasionally it felt like grasshoppers were jumping down my socks. Shaking my feet occasionally as I continued on I eventually emerged near the blackberry bushes and the grasshoppers returned to hooping through the grass.


distance: 3.35 (with detours)

Again this hike was found thanks to William Sullivan's book 100 Hikes in the Central Oregon Cascades.