A Day with ACRES LAND Trust: Eagles, Beauty and Surprises

On February 18th I participated in an ACRES Land Trust event, Swift Hike and Eagle Watch. We did not hike that much, and we only saw three eagles. Still, for so many reasons this was a great event. Our guide was ACRES Outreach Manager, Reena Ramos. The plan was for us (Acres members) to caravan to five sites looking for eagles. It turned out that the sites, the camaraderie, and a few unexpected surprises were the real reward for spending a Saturday in Miami and Wabash counties.
 
For those of you not in Indiana, ACRES Land Trust is the oldest land trust in Indiana. It protects land, in perpetuity, in Northeast Indiana, Northwest Ohio and Southern Michigan. ACRES owns 120 preserves of which 31 are open to the public. Each preserve highlights unique geology, history, and biodiversity.
 
We all met at Hanging Rock Natural Landmark. This is an impressive “rock” standing 65 feet over the Wabash River. The rock is in fact the remnants of a 420 million year-old reef. The area was part of a prehistoric shallow sea. The uniqueness of the shape of the rock has lent itself to multiple uses. It has been used as a navigational point, a military observation point, and as an astronomical observation point. My reaction to the rock was pedestrian, “Oh wow”! I walked around the rock; I walked along the shore of the Wabash. I savored the adjacent barns and farmland. I imagined all the different species of plants and animals that had lived in this area for the past 420 million years.  It was here that I met our caravan members and Reena described our itinerary. The scenery was beautiful but there were no eagles.
 
Our next stop was at the Kokiwanee Preserve. This is a large preserve by ACRES standards. It is a 139.5 acre preserve near Largo Indiana. This had originally been a Girl Scout Camp. This is a beautiful setting. There are bluffs along the Salamonie River and there are waterfalls. While this was the longest hike of the day we did not hike down to the waterfalls. This is a wonderland of massive trees, wildflowers, snow trillium, wood ducks, great blue herons, and eagles. We stood on the bluffs looking down toward the river and up to the heavens looking for eagle. This is normally a common place to spot eagle. We did not but we did observe large hawks circling the area. I look forward to visiting this preserve in the future.
 
Our next stop was a brief stop at Asherwood Preserve. I was here last year for their Maple Syrup and Pancake Breakfast. The next breakfast will be Saturday March 11, 2023. The first thing I noticed, during both visits, were the metal buckets hanging from trees. They were gathering maple sap. There is also a prominent sugar shack where the sap is boiled down and converted into maple syrup.  The preserve is beautiful. It has ravines, forest, the Asher Creek, and of course the sugar maples. There were no eagles, but we were not here for that. The stop was to freshen up and hydrate.
 
Our next stop was our only non-ACRES site. We stopped at the Mississinewa Dam Outlook. We did see two eagle flying above us. However, the big surprise was looking down at the curve of the river. There we say 35 White Pelicans in the water. These are large birds. I know they can be found in Indiana, still, this was early and not expected. We left for the next site with smiles on our faces.
 
Our final stop was very special We arrived at the ACRES Seven Pillars Preserve. Yes, there are wildflowers, Dutchmen Breeches, and squirrel corn and there is the beautiful Mississenewa  River. That however is not the most impressive part of his small preserve. On the other side of the river are seven 25-foot-tall limestone pillars.  The Miami Nation used the small “rooms” between the pillars for gatherings and trading. The pillars are seen as sacred ground for the Miami. The Miami Nation of Indiana own the land across the river from the pillars and next to ACRES land. If the first surprise of the day was seeing the pelicans the second surprise was speaking with two members of the Miami Nation who were working on their land. They talked about communing with ancestors and guardian spirits while at the Pillars. They talked about their land and their Nation. They invited us to come back and attend the The Days at the Pillars in August. It is a cultural celebration open to the public.
 
We did not see any eagles at the Pillars. However, we slowly drove down the road. We went past the Chief Richardville’s second home and the site of the Forks of the Wabash. Not far from there we saw our third eagle.  
 
This was a day of natural beauty and historical inspiration. It was a day that reminded me of why ACRES Land Trust is so important to our area. In a time of climate change the need to protect land and support biodiversity has never been greater. The value of working with Indigenous Americans and to learn from them to help heal our environment is critical. The value of being overwhelmed with the beauty of nature is necessary if we are to continue to focus on restoration and not be immobilized by despair. Yep, an ACRES day is rejuvenating.