Baton Rouge Zoo, here I come

I’d been waiting for this moment for months.  It was when I would find out how Will O. Swan was faring in his new home.  I’d brought him down in January when he was still a juvenile, mostly grey in color.  He was small then, about a third the size of the female at the zoo.  I’d had all the thoughts a mother does when worrying about her youngster who’s gone off on his own for the first time.  Oh, good grief.  Get a grip.

I loaded up Friday morning (August 8) and got to the zoo just like I knew where I was going.  A mother’s instinct to find her young one.  Ha!!!

At the zoo I asked about parking up front since I was loaded and the young lady at the front gate was quite accommodating.  I changed my boots for sandals, rolled up my pants to Capri-length, paid my senior ticket way in, and I was on the search for the swan.

According to the map, the lake was straight ahead and off to the right.  Well, in order to get there, I needed to go through some other areas, like the Realm of the Tiger.  Maybe this was a good thing since my suspense was building, my excitement level was high, and I was dripping wet from the humidity.

The Realm of the Tiger, not the eye, although they certainly eye you when you are near them.  That's probably why they're behind glass.  Safer for everyone.  I did not want to become lunch for anyone, and especially not before seeing Will O.

The tigers are behind glass, but you still get the idea they are big, strong and looking at you as lunch or at the very least, a mid-morning snack.  There is also a mom with cubs who was on camera as she’ll be with them in her den for eight weeks prior to them having a coming-out party.  Sorry I won’t be here to see it.

Well, helloooooo there, honey.  What's for lunch?

So you won't be joining me?  Fine!!!  Tigers are just plain gorgeous.

The zoo is lush with plant life, totally different from when I visited before.  Then it was mostly dead and brown, winter months.

Next I walked through the bird area.  That same beautiful blue bird was there.  I was fascinated with it because it’s one of the most gorgeous I’ve ever seen.

These guys are just cute ... love little water birds.

But this bird is one of the most beautiful.  I love his head dress ... and his color is magnificent.

What's  zoo without croc?

Then I reached the lake.  There were the white birds … only pelicans.  Who cares.  I didn’t.  I walked on, hoping Will O. and Roberta would be where I could see them.  I could see another white bird through the foliage.  Nope.  Where, oh where are you, Will??? 

And there were a few others who needed their moment in the limelight.

And then, right where I’d last seen Roberta in January, there were the two Trumpeter swans.  Tears of joy flowed down my cheeks and I swiped them away with the back of my hand.  He was alive, he was well, he was healthy, he was thriving. 

Beautiful birds, beautiful setting.

Well, now what.  Two equal-size swans.  Now there was a predicament.  Two swans the same size, both white in color.  Which one was he?  How could I not know my own swan?

I used my long lens to look … the one standing or the one laying on the ground with its leg stretched out behind it?  Hmmmmmm.  Each appeared to have some grey.  I studied them.  It seemed that the one lying down could be Will.  But it was all so confusing.

Will used to stretch his leg out behind him.

The swan up and moving went over to the water, wandered around, came to the food station, nipped at the little deer to get it out of the way.  This one seemed to have some grey on it.  Will, oh Will.  Is that you?

This poor little guy got nipped by the swan and moved away from the food station.

I stood there, photographing.  I was waiting for the other swan to get up and move around.  I waited.  And waited.  And waited.  I took my phone and played swan videos from when Will lived in Alaska and I took so many photos and videos of him honking or eating or slurping his food.  I have many.  So I thought maybe he’d hear and understand.

One of the swans doesn't look very happy.  Guess which one.

And I waited some more.  Then the laying swan moved, and stood up.  And stretched his leg out behind him.  And waddled around and headed slowly over to the food station.  And then … it happened.  The bird stretched his wings.  AND … he was missing the vital piece that told me this was Will O. 

When I looked you could just see the little nub at the end of the wing.

This was my handsome boy swan who was now nearly white, who had feathers on the wing that had been amputated.  And he still had that wild feather that stuck out from his body at a 90-degree angle.  This was my baby boy swan.  Oh good grief.  Get a grip.  But I couldn’t.  It was so exciting to see him, to know he was in a place that was beyond my wildest dream for him in a placement.  Because this zoo is the top-of-the-line for a bird like him.  Oh … this was wonderful.

Then he showed off ... what a beautiful bird he has grown up to be.

I watched him, leisurely moving around.  I began to think he was teasing me … showing off, showing how beautiful he was, showing his white, pristine color, that he was “the man” by moving some of the others out of the way hissing and snipping at them.  It was so funny I had to laugh out loud.  Who knew he’d grow up to be a little bit of a bully.  Guess he’s just a typical swan.  How I loved it.

Will O. is just being a swan.  Yahoo.

As I watched he started moving closer to the fence where I was standing.  He’d look, waddle a bit closer, stop.  Look some more.  Did he recognize me?  I don’t know.  But eventually he came to the fence where I was and walked up and down, back and forth in front of me as much as to say, see.  I’m well, I’m happy, I’m the big swan in the pond.  He was strutting his stuff, this Will O. 

This silly swan was waddling, walking toward me.  What was going on?

Will O. just stood there and stared at me.
 

He came right over to the fence and first looked at me, then put his beak through.

Then he was just a silly bird.

He stopped in front of me and stuck his beak through the fence.  I, however, did not put my hand or fingers there.  But it sure made me wonder if he knew me.  It appeared he did.  (Even if he did not, I’m sticking with the story that he did.)  Oh, how I was loving this.  And then … over came Roberta.  They both stood in front of me  Was he showing off his lady to me?  I believe he was.

Will and Roberta were swimming in the lake; I stopped to visit, some photos to take; someday maybe, some cygnets they'll make; and I'll visit again ... cuz I brake for swans!!!  HAHA!!!

A golf cart came by.  It was Sam and one of the zoo folks.  Sam is who I turned Will O. over to.  He’s the head bird dude.  He remembered me.  We chatted  a few minutes and he said Will O. does not like kids and tries to nip them.  Occasionally he gets one.  I told Sam I’d taught him well then as I do not like kids either.  We laughed about it. 

You can still see a bit of grey on Will's head.  Next year it should be gone. 

Sam also told me that while Will is not mature enough yet, Roberta is practicing nesting tactics, so perhaps next year there will be some young ones?

Sam took some photos for me with Will O. and Roberta and I knew I needed to get on my way.  I’d been by the swan area for at least an hour-and-a-half.  I needed to do some paperwork.  Sam took me in the golf cart to the Administration Building where I completed the paperwork to adopt Will.  It was the final step in this process for me … unless there are young ones that I need to come visit. 

Yep.  It's done.

I cannot stress enough how this happy ending is some of what motivates me to volunteer at the Bird Treatment & Learning Center in Anchorage.  Sappy?  Sure.  But it makes me happy.  Sometimes you go above and beyond, and I believe I did in this case.  Worth it?  More than.  It makes up for those that don’t make it, or that cannot be placed easily.  Will was not easy, but it happened, and this is a true success story with an ending beyond happy.  Yay!!

Then it was time for me to get on the road, heading to Texas and Slider.  Of course, do you think I could find my way out of the zoo?  Of course not.  I’d set my map down somewhere and lost it.

But I found the tortoises.

And, in passing, I found the rhino again.  He’d not been out and about when I’d gone by the first time.  So another photo op.

Nothing like chewing with your mouth open.  Ha!

And I found these curious creatures.

Then I found the flamingoes.  These birds are favorites of mine, too, so I needed a few photos of them. 

There were a lot of flamingoes, and it was difficult to know which ones to photograph.

The incredible colors make them a spectacular bird

While the colors are not as vivid here, it shows the beautiful beak these birds have.

Couldn't help posting one more.

Out of the exit, back to the bike, sandals exchanged for biker boots and I was on my way.  The Baton Rouge Zoo was in my rear view mirror.

I’d decided to run a few back roads, but ended up not liking the road I was on.  It was not well-maintained and I just wanted to make some time.  So I hopped on Interstate 49 and rode hard.  At speed plus to make some time.

Interstate 20 was in my sights and I was running the line.  Traffic wasn’t bad but the sun was starting to get to the point that it was across my line-of-sight.  And in contacts with Slider, she told me there’d been a lot of accidents on the highway.  That’s when it was time to call it a day.  And I did.  I’d have coffee with Slider in the morning.

 

Off to find Will O. Swan

Look what I found ... Queen City, Missouri.

Wednesday (August 6) came early and I was up and on the road again, running some wonderful roads from Missouri into Arkansas.  There were twisties, and gentle corners, then a sharp corner or two.  The trees kept the road cool, and I saw a single deer, a fawn, right next to the road.  It just stayed frozen in place … that’s what I like.  I did not see momma.

The roads are spectacular, with loads of greenery but few places to pull over.

While I wasn’t making good time, I was enjoying the roads … and the scenery.  I knew that all too soon I’d have to somewhere along the way run the Interstates for a while.  But it was definitely worth it to be able to ride slower on these back roads.

There are some beautiful old bridges, and I had to stop to take a photo.

There wasn’t much photo-taking as the roads were narrow with no shoulders.  But no matter.  My mission was at hand … get to Baton Rouge, get to the zoo, see Will O. Swan.  Ride, baby, ride.

As I stopped to consult my map this guy was quite curious about what I was doing.

Arkansas was home for the night, then on Thursday I was back on the road running into Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  This time I was actively seeking out a Harley shop, the one in Baton Rouge that has been closed the other at least two times I’ve stopped. 

This intrigued me as I rode by.  I turned around and went back to see what it was.  Mammy's Cupboard, a little restaurant that's been around since 1940, and built by Henry Gaude'.  It's one of the few of that era still around and continues to be owned by the same family.  It's been operated as a gas station, restaurant, gift shop and craft center over the years.  It's located near Natchez, Mississippi.  I'd ridden into this state for a short time before going on into Louisiana.

 

While I didn't want any lunch as I'd already had a bite earlier I couldn't pass up a piece of pie.  The recipes are ones developed from long ago and still used today.  Everything they had on the menu looked wonderful.

Now that's a mug of iced tea.  I've never cared for iced tea.  Now, at 67 years old, I've taken a liking to it, unsweetened, of course. 

I also found a place to mail the box that I'd purchased, packed and taped.

Transylvania, Louisiana ... a marvelous place to mail a package.

The plant life will take over everything.

Bayou Memorial Park.  This one's for you, Hobbs.

The foliage is beautiful and lush.  Trees grow in the canals and lakes, and to me it appears quite unique.

Do you think I could remember where the shop was?  Of course not.  I put it into the phone.  I wasn’t far away.  Whoops.  This isn’t the right place … in fact, I was on narrow roads, and did not stop to ask directions.  It appeared to be a rather shady part of town. 

I backtracked and got my way back to the main road and a main store area where I could stop and run the GPS again.  Oh.  There.  Whoops again.  Found it. 

The humidity was extremely high.  I was sweating so much that my phone (that I had inside my bra for easy directions access) had gotten water inside the case.  I had to pull it apart at the shop to let it dry out.  My wonderful little phone GPS.  You are a lifesaver.

I spent quite a bit of time at the shop.  It was cool in there and I wanted to let the sweat on my body dry before going back out into the humid, hot, sunny day.

This stuff makes my life so much easier on the road.  I've been using a lot of it and I truly believe it helps with the heat and loss of fluid.  It has electrolytes in it to replace those lost when sweating, and I've done a bunch of that .. sweating.

When I’d been here in January we’d stayed at a hotel I would have liked to find except I couldn’t remember what kind it was.  That was probably a good thing as I’d stopped up the toilet with Will O. food and you-know-what.  They most likely had my photo posted and a “do not rent to this person” sign hung up somewhere. 

Found a spot to lay my weary head about 14 miles from the zoo.  I was hungry, though, not having eaten much during the day.  I asked about restaurants and headed across the parking lot. 

Wow.  Found a Penthouse club.  Who knew.  I looked at a couple of restaurants … Chinese.  Closed.  Mexican.  Closed.  Bar and grill.  Open, but smoking allowed.  No go for me.  Wandered a little further on and found Gino’s, an absolutely delightful Italian place that made me shrimp fettuccini Alfredo, a wonderful garlic-butter bread, and a salad.  This place was worth finding.  Glad I took a photo of where I was so I could find my way back, kind of like a trail of breadcrumbs, ‘cept restaurant signs. 

With the use of my restaurant sign trail I was able to find my way back to the hotel.

My last night until I’d see Will O. Swan again.  I was excited because I’d planned this for some time.  Of course, I’ve also worried about him.  That something happened and no one told us.  That the other birds would pick on him.  That he would not bond with Roberta, the female Trumpeter.  That he'd venture onto Monkey Island and they'd eat his beak off (nasty monkeys).  Tomorrow I’d know.

The last to leave

They must get some big ones here in Minnesota.

Cousin Kate and I had talked and considered leaving early.  Better sense and a need to relax changed our minds, especially as a few others were also staying over until Monday.

It was a Sunday well spent.  Some went to church, I worked on a blog, some slept, I suppose.  But when we all came together to go back out to Jim and Susan’s, it was perfect timing.  We met in the casino hotel lobby and drove out together in two cars …

What we found out, though, as we were walking in the parking lot to the vehicles was that one of our group had gone to the parking lot in the early morning to get something from his vehicle and had gotten robbed.  It was horrifying to hear, and luckily there was no harm … just money gone, his casino winnings.  It was caught on camera, another dumb criminal.  Charges will be pressed as it appears it’s not the first time … and this person needs to be put away. 

A map of the lakes and how they connect.  I guess it's all one, but sure looks like many.

 At Jim and Susan’s, Jim took us on another pontoon boat ride.  This time we were out for quite a while and even the dog got to go … Sophie. 

John, Cousin Kate and Sophie. 

Mike and his hippie shirt.  He said it's very comfortable.

Mike's wife, Marsha, might be wondering about that shirt.

These are such nice people.  I sure do hope to see them again. 

Kate was relaxing after all the hard work preparing for the reunion.

Chris, Jim and Susan's daughter.

Jim, our happy captain, who safely piloted our boat.

Susan, Jim's wife.

Bill, King of Cheesecakes, and John resting.

We cruised around, in and out of the little canals leading to other parts of the lake.  We saw beautiful homes, and boats, and docks, and even a silver statue of a bear that reminds me of the one Barry had made for the House of Harley in Anchorage.  It was rather interesting to see it in someone’s yard.

Not my choice of yard art as mine tends to be toward pink flamingoes.

This was the prettiest little boat house, or whatever it is, I've seen.  Most folks could probably live in it.

We prepared a meal from the leftovers from the day before, along with burgers Jim cooked for us.  It was a great time and a nice, relaxing way to ramp down from the wonderful chaos of the day before. 

There are so many beautiful flowers.

I took photos of many, but couldn't really do justice to them except to share the endless colors.

Cousin Kate shows off some of the bounty from Susan's garden.  She also has blueberries that we used in salads.  It was all so tasty. 

Then it was time to pack up things into Kate’s vehicle and head back to the casino.  We needed to play a little before hitting the racks.  While I like slot machines, we also ended up playing three-card poker.  That's a fun game and easy to get the hang of.  Of course, it's easy ... the house almost always wins.  But I seem to have some very lucky cousins.  Another great day in the books.

I won a few bucks here and there on the penny slots, and pretty much broke even after a couple of days of playing.

On Monday (August 4), I was ready pretty much when I wanted to be.  I called Kate and she and Bill and Mike, Marsha and their son, John, came down to wish me a safe journey.  I’d spent time with all of them, enjoyed so much getting to know them, and now it was time to say good bye.  Hugs, a tear, and I was off.  Now it was riding … just getting to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to visit Will O., the swan I’d shepherded to the zoo there in January.

Down the road I went, running smaller roads and avoiding the Twin Cities.  Imagine, my road would take me to Red Wing, Minnesota.  I have a friend there and I called to see if she was available for lunch … yay, I was going to see Joanne.  I told her I thought I was about 150 miles away, but it could be more or less, and probably 200.  I think that was closer to right.

No matter, I found Joanne, after going the wrong way again.  Oh well.  That’s my life, and it ain’t all bad if that’s the worst thing that happens to me.

Joanne and me ... enjoying a short visit and a great lunch.

 We enjoyed a wonderful, leisurely, two-hour-plus lunch.  Then it was time for me to get on the road again.  I needed to get some more miles under my belt since the GPS in my phone showed it was about 1,400 miles to Baton Rouge.  Knowing my routes, it would be a bit more.

On I went, crossing over into Iowa in search of more barn quilts.  This time, however, I watched the road signs carefully so I’d not get off on a road I didn’t want to be on.  While I could enjoy the ride and stop to take some photos, I also needed to make time.

Then, there it was, the dreaded engine light yet again.  This was getting frustrating.  It came on a couple of times as I rode, and I was about 45 miles out of Waterloo, Iowa.  There’s a Harley shop there, so guess I’d be visiting it.  I’m starting to think that the great Harley dude in the sky was not happy with me passing up Harley shops, that I wasn’t buying enough T-shirts, so he was plaguing me with these motorcycle issues.

I got to Waterloo and checked into a hotel.  Then I was in for the night.

On Tuesday (August 5) I was up and at the shop … they took my bike right in and diagnosed the problem shortly thereafter.  A little green wire (he showed me) had stretched and was loose, thereby causing the engine light to go on periodically.  They fixed it and I was on my way … after buying my required shirt, of course.  Hopefully, the Harley dude figures I've met my quota for this trip and I don't need to make any more shop stops.

Barn quilts and corn.  That’s pretty much what I saw this time.  I needed to make time as I was taking too long, but I also didn’t want to pass up some nice roads. 

 

Each barn quilt is unique. 

Some have more color than others.

This one was probably my favorite ... blue and gold

And there were lots of corn fields.

And don't forget the trains, art included.

I crossed the state line and made Missouri my home away from home for the night.  I’d be back at it the next morning, heading south.  And my little gremlin light has remained OFF!!!