Point Pelee: All We Enjoy We Owe to Them

Hmmm, it is such atragedy that they will never know the beauty of this place.

There has not been muchopportunity to get away from it at all the last two years with the restrictionsput in place around the pandemic. With things finally settled down, I indulgedmyself with a mini three-day vacation to PointPelee Provincial Park near Leamington, Ontario.

You may know Pelee as amigration birdwatching mecca. I hiked its paths many times in the past beforemy back woes scratched birdwatching off the list of things I can do. Fortunately,Pelee is an ecological gem at any time of the year.

I came across the warmemorial sign at the top of the post near the Pelee marsh boardwalk. Thesentiment it expresses is profound. I am gifting you with a few photos of allwe enjoy at Pelee which we owe to those who gave their lives in other lands.

This shot is from theDeLaurier Trail which honours the DeLaurier family who inhabited that land backin the 1800’s. You’re looking at one of the canals that was dug by hand (althoughnot by the DeLauriers) to drain the marshland for agricultural purposes. It isa portrait in soul soothing greens that I could stand before and admire fordays on end.

This Eastern Comma butterfly was found alongthe DeLaurier Trail. Eastern Commasare not cooperative when it comes to being photographed. But I managed to sneakup on this one. It posed perfectly to display the dead leaf pattern on the outerwing and just a hint of the profusion of colour on the inner side. Do you seewhy this species is called “Comma Butterflies”?

HackberryEmperors do not occurin my usual stomping grounds. But they are common at Pelee where they oftenperch cooperatively on the ground as this one did. The elegant study of brownswith white highlights makes them appear quite regal. This one narrowly escapeda predator to which the chomp out of the wing edge attests.

Point Pelee covers sixsquare miles and four of those square miles are marshland. A stroll around thelooping marsh boardwalk is a must for every visitor. It offers a glimpse ofPelee’s expanse of marsh and some treasured moments of tranquility.

I dedicate this posthumbly to the men and women who lied buriedin the earth of foreign lands and in the seven seas.

~  Now Available Onlinefrom Amazon, Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: Hunting Muskie, Rites ofPassage – Stories by Michael Robert Dyet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is alsothe author of Until the Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel whichwas a double winner in the Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’swebsite at www.mdyetmetaphor.com .

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