This past year, I’ve been hearing a lot about a couple patches of land just south of the city along Cedar Villa Estates Road. One of these parcels of land is a small park called Chappell Marsh Conservation Area. I know it seems weird to visit a marsh in winter, but I was tired of putting it off for the past year so on my last day off from work, I wandered down there to check it out.
On the east side of the area is a large parking lot with the trail head. I walked in not really knowing where to go as I didn’t take a good look at any maps. I’m also embarrassed to admit that I also went in not properly dressed. In my defense, I’m still slowly fishing out all my winter gear and packing away the fall wear. But, I’m a prairie girl and I really should have know better. After all, it’s not the cold that gets you, it’s the wind. And damn, was it windy! Despite a couple bad clothing choices, I soldiered on, walking a small loop that took me to the marsh, through some grassland, and into a bit of forest. Not much wildlife tp speak of which is not surprising considering the time of year, but I did see a couple of magpies, scared the crap out of a few ducks, and was lucky enough to see a gorgeous white-tailed deer bouncing away from me in the neighboring field. Definitely a nice little walk!
As usual, I had my camera with me to snap off as many pictures as I could get. One interesting thing I noticed about my photography that day was an obsessive need to capture the trails themselves. I realized this about halfway into the park and of course, when I did, Robert Frost’s poem about two roads diverging into the yellow woods popped into my head. Am I trying to say something to myself? Possibly, but maybe I’ll find out more the next time I visit which I hope will be very soon! And I will definitely make sure to dress warmer on that day because I only scratched the surface of what’s to discover in this conservation area and I can’t wait to see more!