Minto-Brown Island Park: 7 September 2008

Rose Dickson

7 September 2008 

1315 – 1400 hours

Stream bank about .3 miles NW of parking lot 3 of Minto-Brown Island Park. Salem, OR, USA

86 degrees, clear skies

            I have come to realize why, above all else, I love hiking through the Pacific North West. It’s not the shimmering coastline, the lush vegetation or the enormous evergreens. My new fascination is the Himalayan Blackberry (Rubus Discolor). Okay, I guess the other natural amenities make the adventure pretty nice too, but this berry is a perfect hunger-quenching snack for the trail. (It even beats out Costco brand trail mix, and that’s quite the feat.) Today I am exploring and adventuring through Salem’s largest community park, Minto- Brown Island. Looking to my left I see the Willamette River running east to west and to my right the invasive, non-native, but refreshingly tasty Himalayan Blackberry, growing for as far as the eye can see. I begin walking northwest of parking lot 3 along the river’s edge. As I explore a shady spot on the waterfront, I become increasingly more cautious where to set my feet, due to the astonishing amount and size of the Banana Slugs (Ariolimax columbianus), who seem to have decided, as I did, this would be a great spot to spend their Sunday afternoon. One slug I paid particular attention to, seemed to only move about his bodies length in a minute, and in doing so seemed to lose half his body mass in slime. How does such a small creature create so much slime? I eventually gave up on the thrilling idea of Banana Slugs and walked a little farther into an agricultural clearing. As I relaxed in the sun I spotted 3 types of birds, turkey vultures (Cathartes aura), osprey (Pandion haliaetus) and a red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis). The turkey vultures and the hawk were circling for prey hiding out in the crop fields, most likely seeking a bunny of some kind. The osprey, however, came right over my head. He only stayed a short while but long enough for me to enjoy the grace in his flight, as well as become ever more jealous of the ease at which he soars.