Springtime at Gallup Park

One of my all time favorite places in the world is Gallup Park in Ann Arbor. It has many things going for it. The walkways wind along the Huron River and it's a little bit wild and unruly but so so beautiful. It is easily accessible from the expressway and is only a mile and a half from the corner of Washtenaw and Huron Parkway which means it's close to the Starbucks in Barnes and Noble. And we all know that coffee shops are my favorite after walk place (if you've been paying attention). So I did a loop around Gallup Park and then walked down Huron Parkway to have a coffee and my day was complete.

I think the main reason I love Gallup so much is because I have memories of it going WAY back. I mean ancient times in the late 60's early 70's when I was young oh so many years ago I went to free concerts there. That was when all the old hippies with scraggly gray pony tails that you sometimes see walking around Ann Arbor or attending a concert at the Ark were young and cute and very stoned. Those were great times despite everyone being a little bit confused.

Then they moved the dirt around Gallup Park and made all the pathways and little islands that are there now. You can rent paddle boats and there are lots of ducks, geese and the dreaded swans to watch. There is also a trail that goes east all the way to Dixboro Road and one that goes west to the Arb and beyond. They parallel the Amtrak train tracks. So you can really get a good walk in or just a nice short one.

So back to today: The geese were hissing at me which to be honest I really hate. I'm scared of geese in a big way. That makes going to parks in this area very problematic at times (springtime) when they are warning us to stay away from their nests. Geese also leave green poop laying around all over the place. I have a traumatic memory of trying to get out of a mean goose's way and landing in that green poop. That was in Oregon so I can't blame it on the Gallup Park geese but there you are. I'm prejudiced against geese.

It's supposed to be colder tomorrow so I don't know if I'm going to broaden my horizons and maybe go over to Jackson and Branch county or if I'll go to Bally's and walk on the boring treadmill. I could tell interesting stories about Bally's too but at least there's no goose poop.