South Bass Island Lighthouse — South Bass Island, Ohio

Posted on June 22, 2001 by Roger

We took the ferry from the Ohio mainland to the island to visit Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial. While there, we walked the short distance to the South Bass Island Lighthouse. It is owned by Ohio State University and, at the time we were there, the property was off limits. I had to crouch under a bush to get the photograph on the left. The light was in service from 1897 to 1962 when it was replaced by an automated light on a tower, visible in the photo on the right, taken from the ferry as we were heading back to the mainland. The lighthouse can also be seen through the trees near the very tip of the island.

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Indians vs. Twins — June 21, 2001

Posted on June 21, 2001 by Roger

We were in the Cleveland area primarily to see James A. Garfield’s house. It was a very muggy day with frequent thunderstorms. We parked three blocks from the stadium (for $8.00) and wandered about the neighborhood and the gift shop until the gate opened.

Our seats were high up (row U) in the upper deck just beyond first base, three rows from the back wall. I bought a program, a pop and some peanuts. The tarp was on the field, so there was very little to look at.

The game was pretty exciting. The Indians scored three runs in the bottom of the first. The Twins came back with five in the top of the second. The Indians scored four more in the bottom of the second. Then the rain hit and there was a forty minute delay. We discovered one advantage of sitting where we were — we didn’t get wet.

When the game resumed, the Indians scored two more runs in the fourth. The Twins scored one run in the fifth. We saw four home runs. We knew more rain was coming, so as soon as the game was official (five-and-a-half innings) we left. It was drizzling as we walked to the car. A lot of people were leaving, but traffic wasn’t heavy. I stopped for gas at a nearby station ($1.38/gallon), then pulled onto the interstate. We listened to the game on the car radio. As we passed the stadium, the rain hit. It poured. There was thunder and lightning all around us. It was coming down so hard, the groundskeepers couldn’t get the tarp on the field. The game was called after six-and-a-half innings. The Indians won the shortened game 9-6.

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James A. Garfield National Historic Site — Mentor, Ohio

Posted on June 21, 2001 by Roger

We visited the Cleveland area on a hazy, humid day full of summer thunderstorms. One ended about an hour before we arrived at Garfield’s house and another one rumbled through 20 minutes after we left. We were the only ones on our tour. We started with a slide show in the visitor center and were then shooed up to the house to meet our guide — Ed. He came out of the house to meet us as we approached. He gave an enthusiastic talk as we walked across the famous front porch where Garfield spoke during his campaign.

Eighty percent of the furnishings in the house were owned by Garfield’s family. His descendants lived there until the 1930’s when they turned it over to a historical society. Ed was very proud of what he knew and urged us to ask questions. But when we did, if he didn’t know the answer he just brushed it off as a topic of no interest. He was pretty comical, and we appreciated his enthusiasm. He was actually informative. The tour took 45 minutes, and we weren’t allowed to take pictures in the house. We walked around outside taking photos, then looked at the displays in the visitor center.

Two views of the front of the house. I’m standing on the very spot from which Garfield gave his famous campaign speeches.

The east side of the house with the front porch on the left.

The left is the west side of the house with the front porch on the extreme right.

The back of the house. Garfield used the small building as his campaign headquarters.

The barn was on the property when Garfield lived there, but in a different location. The path on the left is on an old roadbed, laid during the campaign to link to a special train station built just to bring visitors from Cleveland to hear Garfield speak. The two large trees on the left were there when Garfield lived in the house.

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Gerald R. Ford Museum — Grand Rapids, Michigan

Posted on June 20, 2001 by Roger

My nephew and I took a short vacation through Michigan and Ohio. We drove down from Grayling in the morning and visited the Gerald R. Ford Museum in Grand Rapids. Downtown Grand Rapids was a treat — with roads curling back and forth like a mess of wet spaghetti. A sign told us where to get off the interstate, but once we were off, we had to wander about until we stumbled upon the museum.

It was very well done and interesting. It covered Ford’s entire life with a lot of photos and documents and artifacts. The most interesting were the tools and filing cabinet from the Watergate break-in and a life-size replica of the Oval Office with the furniture Ford used. It took us about two hours to see everything. We took our time and read most of the descriptive plaques. It wasn’t as big as I expected, but worth visiting as long as I was in the area. I wasn’t allowed to take photos inside, so you’ll have to settle for these postcard views.

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Bird #402 — Trumpeter Swan

Posted on June 19, 2001 by Roger

cygnus (swan) buccinator (trumpeter)

Tuesday, June 19, 2001 — 2:52 pm

Seney National Wildlife Refuge, Michigan

On Tuesday, we drove east across the Upper Peninsula to Seney. I’ve always wanted to visit there, but never had a chance. The part of the refuge we were in was laced with large pools separated by swamps and strips of trees. The water level is manipulated to make it attractive for waterfowl. Trumpeter Swans were reintroduced on the refuge in the early 1980’s and have flourished. There are now over 400 in the state and almost 200 on the refuge. At least 18 pairs are nesting there regularly.

We walked the Pine Ridge Nature Trail behind the visitor center. I was watching for swans. The trail skirted I-Pool, and I soon spotted a white speck about 400 yards away. I could tell it was a swan and knew it was a Trumpeter, but couldn’t see any field marks, of course. It was preening its back feathers next to a bed of reeds along the shore. A few minutes later, two others flew over the pool. They landed near the first one, but were soon chased off. They flew past us, about 100 yards away, then a few minutes later flew back in the other direction, now joined by a third one. We heard their trumpet notes a few times, sometimes singly and other times doubled. This was the point when I decided to consider them a lifer.

A side trail bordered the pool. We walked along it a ways and got a little better look at the first swan. I soon spotted a second adult and at least five babies in the reeds behind it. After walking the trail, we drove the Marshland Wildlife Drive. We soon spotted two adults with two young on F-Pool. We got out of the car to take pictures and get a better look. After that, we began seeing them all over. We passed a few that were feeding within 15 yards of our car. Two were tipping bottoms-up in deeper water. Others had just their entire necks and heads under the surface. One group of six were swimming in single-file, evenly-spaced across a swamp. At another time, in E-Pool, we saw 38 at once, scattered in groups and singly across the area.

They were huge, especially in flight, and very pretty. Many that we saw had their heads and necks stained rust by the water. We could spot them way off against the darker green background of the woods and reeds.

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