Mission Statement

Bearing Witness to Local Natural History-- from the wildness of Indiana








Monday, September 3, 2012

Burkhart Creek County Park Visit

I visited Burkhart Creek County Park (BCCP) today in the late morning. I had not been there for a while and had time to make a quick stop. BCCP is one of the two county parks we currently have here in Morgan County, Indiana. 

Burkhart Creek County Park will be a real gem in the coming years. There has been much work at creating a wonderful nature park for our community to enjoy. There are walking trails, picnic tables, shelters, and soon restroom facilities. The area has been recently planted with many trees and prairie grasses and wildflowers. A wetland has been restored with the planting of many wetland plants and trees. Now we just need precipitation. 

We received a good dose of precipitation over the weekend and I hoped to find some water in the wetland today. Did I? Nope. There was a small amount of standing water but it was in the far south end near the willow stand. We need much more rain. The plantings have all suffered as a result of the drought and brutal record breaking temperatures this summer. Burkhart Creek County Park is a wonderful location for those who enjoy the beauty and solitude of nature. Once the plantings rebound, it should be a stellar site for those who enjoy observing, studying, photographing, and communing with our local natural history.

I did hear White-eyed Vireos, Indigo Buntings, American Goldfinches, and Carolina Wrens calling near the wetland area. I saw numerous Indigo Bunting fledglings and adults. Most are molting at this time. 

We are into September already and swinging into autumn. It has been a long hot summer. I believe summer began in March this year, didn't it?


White-eyed Vireo (not at BCCP)                       ©Joni L. James



Shelter at BCCP                                                 ©Joni L. James



Black-eyed Susans in bloom at BCCP              ©Joni L. James


3 comments:

Unknown said...

Hi, Joni ~
I haven't yet been to this park, but I will go this fall.
I had heard of it through a friend on the county park board.
And...
I'm reading your book and I'm almost done.
It's really good.
You did a great job.
I'll write you more after I've finished it.
About the mouse-over code...I'll be happy to share.
I put together information from a couple of other blogs to get it to work on Blogger.

Joni James said...

Thanks Deb! Who is your friend? I am on the county park board too!
I am glad you are enjoying my book and look forward to hearing from you. Thank you for offering to inform me about the mouse over code.I don't know if/how I will use it but will be nice to have for when I am ready. I really enjoy your photography & blog posts!

Unknown said...

Greg Howard.
I enjoy your posts, too.
It's nice to relate since I know that what you see is possible for me, too.