Wild Turkeys

Nature’s Way Almanac – 2024 Edition

Oakland County, MI Government Leave a comment

Two of my favorite quotes from Henry David Thoreau are the perfect gateway for today’s New Year edition of the Wilder Side of Oakland County. I did not have to look up these quotes for they have been part of my spirit of adventure for as long as I remember. In 1876 Thoreau wrote these timeless words:

“I wonder what the world is doing today.”

“I went to the woods because I wished to see if I could not learn what life had to teach — and not, when it came time to die, discover that I had not lived.”

Henry David Thoreau
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Wild Turkey Tales for Thanksgiving

Oakland County, MI Government Leave a comment
tom turkey snowy ground

WILDER SIDE OF OAKLAND COUNTY

Thanksgiving feasts of golden roasted turkey, cornbread stuffing, and tangy cranberry sauce, accompanied by alluring arrays of delectable garnishments and mouth-watering pumpkin pie await. It’s a beautiful looking meal. About the only thing more eye-catching than a ready-to-be-carved Thanksgiving turkey, is a Wild Tom Turkey strutting his stuff in the woods of Oakland County.

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Stage Nature Center – An Oasis of Wildness

Oakland County, MI Government 6 Comments

WILDER SIDE OF OAKLAND COUNTY

“The wild requires that we learn the terrain, nod to all the plants and animal and birds, ford the streams and cross the ridges, and tell a good story when we get back home.” That sentence comes from The Practice of the Wild, a captivating book of essays by Gary Snyder that shares his thoughts on wildlife, wilderness and the world. It often came to mind on major nature-embracing adventures such as the ascent of Mount Kilimanjaro, a week of backpacking on the Appalachian Trail, or a month on South Manitou Island. Last Sunday morning it came to mind in a place I would never have expected: the City of Troy, the 11th largest city in Michigan by population and the largest city in Oakland County, a region I equate with office buildings, upscale shopping plazas, landscapes of flatness and the constant din of traffic. Continue reading →

Turkey Tales and Tidbits from the Wilder Side

Oakland County, MI Government 3 Comments

WILDER SIDE OF OAKLAND COUNTY

No one seems to think about turkeys very much until the turkey’s internal temperature soars to 180 degrees Fahrenheit and it’s surrounded by sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, cooked greens and a pumpkin pie. Invite me to your Thanksgiving table and I won’t ask about the wishbone; I will try to engage the gathering in a lively conversation of snoods, wattles, caruncles, dewlaps, spurs and beards. Continue reading →