MORNING WALK IN THE MARSH AND SCOOTERS SQUEAKY WHEEL PROBLEM

 ONE OF THE HULLETT MARSH'S WATERWAYS FLOWING NORTH 

Sometimes things come along and knock me right off my feet and I know exactly what it is, how it happened, and why.  Other times things creep up on me slowly and take me down gradually.  With things on my mind when I woke up a few days ago I tripped over myself and tumbled into that all too familiar dark hole I periodically fall into and that cost me a few down days.   And I had been doing so well these past couple of months too.  Today was day one of crawling back out of that abyss.  For me, these dark hole days generally lead to brighter and more positive days ahead and for some folks like myself, it is all a part of these challenging days many of us occasionally have to some degree or another.  So onward to the next in the never-ending series of life's little dilemmas I shall go:))

 OUR DESTINATION THIS MORNING WAS AN OLD IRON BRIDGE DOWN THERE AT THE END OF THE ROAD

 SWAMPY SPRING SCENERY ALONG THE WAY

 AND YES, THIS PLANT IS CALLED A 'SKUNK CABBAGE' FOR AN OBVIOUS REASON

 BUDS ARE BREAKING OUT ALL OVER

 A PAIR OF BUFFLEHEAD DUCKS

Nice sunny morning so Pheebs and I were off to the Hullett Marsh.  Picked an area where I figured there would be no people and we got lucky again.  There are two old iron bridges in the Marsh that once connected country roads running through the area.  This bridge is at the extreme east end of Conservation Road.  The road ends at a parking lot trailhead and it's about a quarter-mile walk eastward to the bridge.

 WE REACH THE WEST END OF THE OLD COUNTRY ROAD BRIDGE

 LOOKING SOUTH FROM THE BRIDGE AND TODAY'S FIRST PHOTO IS FROM THE OTHER SIDE LOOKING NORTH

 FROM THE BRIDGE I THOUGHT I SPOTTED A RARE HURON COUNTY PURPLE HEARTED  PEGASUS PENGUIN BUT ALAS IT WAS JUST A TREE STUMP

 AND NO, PHEEBS AND I DID NOT TRY TO WALK ACROSS THIS

 HERE IS THE MORNING'S SUN TAKING A COOL DIP IN THE REFRESHING MARSH WATERS

 I WAS HOPING TO MAKE IT TO THE TOP OF THAT BERM AHEAD BUT FIGURED TWO SOAKERS WASN'T WORTH IT

 PHEEBS BARRELED RIGHT THROUGH OF COURSE BUT WHEN SHE SAW I WASN'T COMING SHE QUICKLY SPLASHED HER WAY BACK ACROSS

 SO MANY BEAUTIFUL SPRING GREENS EVERYWHERE

I SEE A MAN HERE IN THE WATER WITH HIS ARMS STRETCHED TOWARD THE SKY

Just a few days ago at a different location, we were in the Marsh as well but all was quiet then.  Not so today with lots of honking Canada Geese and birds a-twitter.  Its a busy nest-building time and tiny feathered hearts were all a-flutter.

 HEADING BACK TOWARDS THE BRIDGE

A SECTION OF  OLD CEMENT CULVERT FROM LONG AGO

 A SINGLE TREE WITH MANY TRUNKS

 HEADING WEST

 AT THE WEST END OF THE BRIDGE LOOKING EAST

All three of us in our small Class C Winnebago early this afternoon but we didn't go far.  On a quiet stretch of paved road near our Park Kelly drove along slow while I walked alongside trying to determine where the squeaky sound in the wheels was coming from.  I had suspected the driver's side rear duallies but no, that was not where it was.  Turns out it was the two front wheels, both of them having an identical squeaky type sound at a certain spot as the wheels went around.  It was beyond us to figure out the problem so I dropped Kelly and Pheebs off at home and headed for the Bayfield Garage.  Luckily, a nice personable mechanic fellow had just finished a job so he came right out to have a look and listen.  He crawled in and around both wheels checking things out.  He said the dust covers were good and the brakes looked fine.  We took it for a drive around the block and I noticed the squeaky sound wasn't as bad as before.  Because the rig sat all winter and I had only driven it maybe have a dozen miles so far this Spring the mechanic fellow zeroed in on some probable built-up rust suggesting I take it for a 20-mile run tapping the breaks a few times along the way.  So, that's what I did and by the time I got Scooter back home the problem was solved.  No squeaky anymore.  All gone.  Problem solved:)) 

 MIRRORED REFLECTIONS

 ANOTHER PAIR OF BUFFLEHEADS

 THIS IS THE HULLETT MARSH'S LATEST FIELD GUIDE WHICH CAN BE FOUND IN YELLOW METAL BOXES IN THE PARKING AREAS

A few cold and rainy days ahead but Pheebs and I will be out and about anyway looking for a few photos here and there.  We'll have the Jeep's heater on and the windows down.  And Libby will probably be one muddy mess by the time we get her home again.  It's what we do with our time, and it is what we enjoy doing.  Oh, and then there is all the great music we always get to listen to along the way as well.  Bonus:))  

PHEEBS ON THE OLD IRON BRIDGE THIS MORNING

GROANER'S CORNER:(( Someone broke into my garage last night and took a bunch of stuff, including my limbo stick!  Seriously, how low can you go?

- An Albertan's favorite movie? Tarsand.

What do you get when you play a County & Western song backwards?
You get your wife back.
You get your kids back.
You get your house back.
You get your truck back.
You get your dog back.

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Sometimes these cartoons hit a little close to home for me