Johnny Panther Quests. Ecotours

The clearest I have seen it all year.... The Flint River! We were able to see the bottom nearly all the way up to straight water on "the cut". What is strange is I ran a tour on the Flint near Davison, and the water clarity wasn't nearly as good. Sand bars and sediment deposits are growing exponentially this year, the run-off is incredible when it finally rains.

Looks like the leaves are peaking late this year, I heard one speculate the colors would not be as good. I think he is 180 degrees out on that one, hopefully I am right.

I ran a solo trip on Sunday and had turkeys fly across the Cass River in front of me. One actually belly flopped on the water and still made it across. I saw a wounded goose, that was one of the unfortunate, unique, and also depressing images Fall can bring.

I knew when the eagles dropped out of the tree over the boat, that this was going to be a special evening.

I ran a trip a week ago Friday through the Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge Refuge. On the boat were a couple of members of the Flint Watershed Coalition, and they were eager to see where the Flint River eventually flows into the Shiawassee Flats.

It wasn't supposed to rain until late in the evening, but after the rain at lunch time I knew the forecast was way off. On my way up to Saginaw I could see the cumulus building and knew we were in for some stormy weather. I don't normally take clients out when it is threatening, but these guys were cool with it, so we pushed off and headed out into adventure. It began raining torrentially at the mouth of the Tittabawassee River, and continued for about thirty minutes. Thunder and even some relatively close lightening strikes had me excited. We rode out the duration of the storm in the mouth of the Cass River.

The rest of the evening was spectacular as expected. we spotted several bald eagles, a green heron, and several night herons. What really was awesome was the sunset! It was humid, the air was sweet, and the sky was incredible! Probably the most awesome sunset of the year.

I ran another trip on Saturday. Eighty-six degrees and crystal clear. A beautiful trip to be sure, less the drama of the previous evening.

Holy cow it's Fall already! Here are a few pics from Fall color tours on the Flint River. Although I am slightly biased, this is one of the best Color Tours in the Lower Penninsula of Michigan. It is hard to imagine a better boat tour in the Fall. I am hoping that some of Frankenmuth and Birch Run's overflow might stumble upon a great respite from all the congestion those high travel areas can bring.

Morning mist on the Flint River near Davison.

Navigating the narrow, winding channels of the Flint Watershed.

Glass water and incredible panaramas.

This one is actually up near Saginaw in the Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge. This tour is rated a "GEM" attraction by AAA for Michigan, it doesn't get any better than this!
I will be running "Cheap Trip" specials the weekend of October 13th and 14th. There are still a few trips available for those that want to "Get out of the mainstream and go on a Quest!"

I did a boat tour through the Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge a couple of Weeks ago, the fog hung four feet above the water. It was an awesome spectacle, views of wildlife below AND above the "clouds". Many of our boat tours have been beyond description lately, words seem hollow in comparison to the sensations of the world around us.

Very warm weather created perfect conditions for drifting below bald eagles perched above the rivers. We were close enough to green herons twice in one week to watch them as they manipulated, then swallowed frogs. Black crowned night herons landed on mud flats next to the boat as the sun extinguished into the horizon. We saw several of the largest flocks of night herons I have ever witnessed in my life! We had a doe and fawn walk within ten feet of us mid-morning, then as we headed back down river a pair of adult beaver torpedoed into the water behind us.

Two nights ago we were out working at Bulldog Rider's Motorcycle Club in Millington, Michigan getting the track ready for our September 30th race. Thunderstorms threatened, rain teased, and double rainbows materialized. During our evening of bench racing we watched as shooting stars and satellites raced across the sky.

In the old days shooting pool, my friends used to tease me when trying to make long shots on the pool table. Trying to focus across that long expanse of green felt could be daunting. We have had a little rain lately, actually a lot in a short period. Although the water levels have barely budged, the foliage has responded! The air is again sweet with willow, and the water has a green sheen of pollen floating on top.

I had a family out the other day from California, and we had a remarkable experience. We paused in a cut to savor the sounds, or lack of them when a doe and fawn came down to drink. They strolled along the bank within ten feet of us! I have NEVER had such an experience. We sat motionless as the deer checked us out, determined we were not a threat, and mosied right on by. The experience was breathtaking.

Sunday evening I took a family out, and within five minutes we had an osprey fly overhead with a fish in his talons, a green heron fly in front of us, and an immature bald eagle drop out of a tree in front of us. We were only twenty minutes into our boat tour. We actually had a mature bald eagle soaring over the marina before we even left! The night hawks have been making almost nightly appearances, and we have spotted several night herons. All this, and people are paying me to do it!