They Love Each Other

Last Friday I went back to Maple Lake because it was warmer and sunny and I thought I might still be able to enjoy the loons. Oh boy did I! These two swam next to each other the whole time.....I think they're in love!
Not just a spring fling they have, because I hear loons mate for life. Good luck Mr. and Mrs. Loon, I'm rooting for you!


Here is a handsome fellow. Do you see his bill, it's rather white. I can't figure out if that's the sun's reflection or if it was really was lighter because their bill does turn gray in the fall/winter.
I do not know if they are still at Maple Lake or if they started their trip to the North.
Someday when I retire, I want to retreat like Mr. and Mrs. Loon to the North, where the air is clean and the surroundings are peaceful and my neighbors are the Loons!

Just a Bit Loon-y

OH BOY guess what!!!
Today I saw my first Common Loon, (Whooooo Hooo!) thanks to my bloggie buddy, Dave...whom I met the other week! Dave emailed me a message saying some loons were spotted at Maple Lake in Willow Springs, IL. I read my emails on my lunch break at work and knew what I had to do...

After work, I jumped in my car, blasted my classical music and raced....in a dramatic fashion....through snow, sleet, rain, and then sleet again to Maple Lake (well, not really raced, but I was excited). The weather condition was nasty, but that didn't stop this (never seen a loon) gal!
Here is what awaited me:


WHAT'S THAT!?! What is that? Let's zoom in.....


Why, it's my first loon! Not only was I blessed by the beautiful sight of 6 loons, but I actually heard one call! I heard it!!! Now, all you nature lovers out there that had the benefit of hearing a loon call, knows exactly why I'm so excited! That beautiful sound!
I watched them while standing in the sleet for several minutes with only a spring jacket on because darn it, yesterday was so warm!
The loons were looking for food by diving underwater. When they dive underwater, you expect them to pop back up in the same spot, but they don't! They swim as they dive, for a very long time and pop up somewhere else! It was very fascinating to follow them and guess where they were going to appear.


Here are some pictures of the area. This is a great spot to fish. The Cook County Forest Preserve District did a great job building this area up and creating an area where fisher people can sit, for it use to be just a shallow shore of marshy reeds.


Well, I have to say the loons picked a great spot to rest during migration. The loons do not live around here, but they are migrating to Canada to spend the summer. I really don't know how long we are going to have this terrific opportunity to see them.
I am just so fortunate to have had the chance.
Thanks Dave!

Maple Lake East

Have you ever watched the movie, The Lake House? With dreamy Keanu Reeves (aaahhhhh)....oh yeah and Sandra Bullock? Well, I'm going to take you to the very site where Hollywood came to town to shoot the movie. Hollywood received permission to construct a temporary house on Maple Lake for filming. I once saw the pier and foundation for the house after it was said and done, but all has been taken down. There is another pier now but it is not the same. Here is a link to the movie's site where you can watch a clip of the movie and actually see what I'm talkin' bout. Click here.


OK. Maple Lake East is region 6 of the Cook County Forest Preserve System. At the end of the parking lot you will find this short trail that will lead you to the lake. Can you see it in the distance? Oh how beautiful the snow looks on the forest floor, FINALLY we got some snow! Enjoy it while you can for tomorrow will be 46 degrees :(


Here is Maple Lake. Notice the tree all the way to the right of this picture? When you watch the movie clip, near the end of the clip you can see Keanu sit under this very tree. Oh how I wish I were a bird sitting in that very tree looking down on Mr. Hotty Reeves.


This is a picture I took while standing at the end of the pier. Barren but beautiful. Sort of romantic in a way, even without Keanu.


This is a really neat shot of oak leaves trapped under a thin layer of snow on the lake. It just stopped me in my tracks. It is located at the shore or where the pier begins. My camera was getting all wet because the snow changed to ice/rain due to a slight temperature warm up. I decided to head home before the roads were completely iced over!

I hope you enjoyed viewing the site from The Lake House. I liked the movie, corny as it was with an impossible ending and all, but hey the actor was GREAT!