Last week, we went to Hubbard Park twice and had a blast both times. On our first adventure, we met some friends and friends of friends on a weekday and threw rocks in the water, played in mud, and watched the salmon swim up stream.
Since it’s the end of the beer garden season, we went on a day that no beer was being served. No matter, though, because we kept ourselves very busy with new and old friends.
And mud. Did I mention mud?
The biggest kid in our group was brave (and tall) enough to wade out to the middle of the river to check out the mysterious things we saw jumping and floundering in the river. Our initial guesses were: a duck trapped by a rock, an otter, a beaver, and finally it was confirmed that it was just a GIANT fish swimming up stream.
And speaking of fish going upstream, after our weekday adventure, we came back on Saturday for the Fish & Feather Festival.
There was live music, beer a plenty, and tables, activities and booths by The Urban Ecology Center, Schlitz Audubon Nature Center, Riveredge Nature Center, Trout Unlimited, and music by Sigmond Snopek (some of the most unique music I’ve heard in a while).
Baby S enjoyed the celery that came with my bloody mary (I didn’t know I could get one at a beer garden! I tried one, and then switched to an Oktoberfest beer, which suited the afternoon much better).
The kids got a pretty much hands-on viewing of a turtle from Schlitz Audubon Nature Center, and had lots to say about the turtle’s diet of worms (which they got to see in action).
We all had a pretty good time horsing around and rolling down hills and painting pumpkins and snacking on pretzels.
And while uploading these photos, I realized I could dedicate a specific space to Baby S making this smiling face.
The river was a great source of fun for the kids, and we did a great job of getting as wet and dirty as possible.
Kayakers were on the river, and the kids were exited to say hi and wave to such a fun sight!
We had cuddles in spades that day.
In all, we had two wonderful trips to Hubbard Park. The folks at the beer garden were friendly, we got to be outside and play, and now that fish fry season is coming up, we’ll have another reason to head back to Hubbard Lodge.
Hope you’re all enjoying the fall weather, and a beer to go with it 😉
A. Storm
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