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Ms. Lillian
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Ms. Lillian Lillian Anderson Arboretum is on M43 highway a few miles west of Kalamazoo. Lillian was a graduate of Kalamazoo College and she was a city librarian for decades. She inherited her family’s homestead farm and donated a hundred acres of it to her alma mater in 1982. The park is now a hundred and forty acres and is open to the public, free. It’s a mixed hardwood forest of oak, maple, cherry and hickory. On the far western end is Bonnie Castle Lake and in the southeast corner lies Batts Pond. We first hiked the arboretum a week ago- it’s several miles for us to drive there. The drive is well worth it. This is a natural preserve very much like Al Sabo and Asylum Lake. The trails are kept clear but otherwise deadfalls are left to lie where they fall and go back to the earth. We walked west through the marsh and circled back to try the east side by Batts Pond. Then we walked back through a pine grove. Thursday we took the marsh trail again. It was bright and sunny and still pretty warm hiking with a sweater on. After the marsh we looped north and then west on the trail to Bonnie Castle Lake. Gracie could smell the lake and was beside herself wanting to get to the water. We found a bench on the shoreline and sat and watched while she swam. Then we looped north and east again on the Gathje Hill Trail and back to the truck through the pine grove once more. We probably covered two and a half miles altogether. Along the lakeshore and in the marsh the colors are splendid. The red maples and sugar maples stand out in red and pink and yellow. In the uplands the greens are getting lighter and some yellow is creeping in. I’m guessing that in a week the forest will be spectacular, especially if we get some frost, but the forecast for daytime temperatures is for above normal, maybe even as high as eighty one day. Gracie has to walk on a leash here- it’s a new park to us and like all public parks that’s the rule, but we cheat at Al Sabo since we’re so used to it, and she knows the trails by heart. The arboretum is a beautiful forest, and parts of it are old growth- not original old growth but left untouched for a hundred years. There’s very little brush in those groves under the thick canopy, much like the oak-beech-hickory woods along the south of Atwater Pond at Al Sabo. We’ve only hiked here on weekdays so far but we’ve more or less had the place to ourselves those days. I’m sure we’ll be spending more time there this fall and winter.           Become a member now and get a free tote bag. |
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One more... Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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Thanks, Cinnamon. It is pretty there! Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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Last... Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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I love these photos! Colors of fall are so beautiful. And I love that view of the lake, the one from under the tree branch.   Visit my blog It's a Mad, Mad, Mad World of NaughtyInSO, leave a comment, become a watcher. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LIVE AND LET LIVE Be happy! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Beautiful!
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10/15/2016 4:32 pm |
i so love people , that do stuff like this.. they think of others , not themselves.. they think of the future and not the present. and with the help of other organizations , I'm sure.. the built on this.. we have that happening here in the desert.. cities actually love when organizations come to buy up parts of land.. and keep it from the home builders or factory builder, or malls.. we need to preserve what we have and more.. great story.. thanks much Bill. face piles of trials with smiles.. MOODY BLUES please feel free to visit my blog happy blogging
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10/15/2016 4:34 pm |
Beautiful pics, sure makes me homesick. Grew up in Michigan and never knew that place was there.
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It's nice when people donate land and it gets put to a good use for the public rather than sold or developed. Nice views.  Vive La Difference
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I love these photos! Colors of fall are so beautiful. And I love that view of the lake, the one from under the tree branch. Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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Beautiful! Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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i so love people , that do stuff like this.. they think of others , not themselves.. they think of the future and not the present. and with the help of other organizations , I'm sure.. the built on this.. we have that happening here in the desert.. cities actually love when organizations come to buy up parts of land.. and keep it from the home builders or factory builder, or malls.. we need to preserve what we have and more.. great story.. thanks much Bill. Bless Lilian Anderson! Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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Beautiful pics, sure makes me homesick. Grew up in Michigan and never knew that place was there. Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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It's nice when people donate land and it gets put to a good use for the public rather than sold or developed. Nice views. Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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How beautiful  the colours are magnificent this fall. I took my umpalumpas for a walk in the forest today too, quite enjoyable
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Be on the lookout for clowns. People are strange when you're a stranger."
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Those are gorgeous pictures. Thank you for sharing!
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thank you for sharing...the story, the pictures, the narrative of your nice walk together. Read RESPECT WE all NEED to do Better and Re Petition to Stop Transsexuals from Using Female Profiles
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Lovely. Keep sharing those fall photos. I don't get to see leaves change colors like that here where I live! Rachel Mae
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How beautiful the colours are magnificent this fall. I took my umpalumpas for a walk in the forest today too, quite enjoyable Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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That's one of the things that's wonderful about hiking the same trails every day. We see subtle changes each day in every season. The forest is a living thing. Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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Be on the lookout for clowns. Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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As are you, Missy! I love Michigan. It would be easy living where it's warm year round, but I love the seasons here. This is home. Gracie and I love the forest in winter. Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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Those are gorgeous pictures. Thank you for sharing! Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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thank you for sharing...the story, the pictures, the narrative of your nice walk together. Become a member now and get a free tote bag.
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Fantastic pics. One of the things I like about New Jersey is that people here love nature. A mile from my house is mercer county park. It is huge, with mercer lake in the middle. U.S Olympic rowing teams practice here. Google mercer county park images, you would like it. It truly is awesome. State of the art facilities and wilderness seamlessly blended. "Rules for happiness: something to do, someone to love, something to hope for.”― Immanuel Kant .
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