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When this log first washed ashore, it came to rest on the grassless scar of clay on the south side of the lake. In the months of completely unenthusiastic rain, much of this clay washed down the scar and collected itself beneath the log.
And so it was that eventhough Peregrine was in water deep enuf to float it free, it was held in place by the clay mud that had collected under it. So, of course, I had to try to free it with the long-handled shovel that is my regular companion on my hikes about Roundrock. (There are so a number of uses a shovel can be put to in the woods.) I managed to free it, but it needed nudging to get it away from shore. The length of the shovel could get it some of the way, but even this didn’t really get it adrift. I couldn’t walk any closer to it because the mud was thick and threatened to take me down. I despaired of succeeding in liberating Peregrine and hoped that another big rainstorm would come and wash it free.
But I was hiking with a competitive person. Adam saw that I hadn’t succeeded and decided he would succeed just to best me. (Fathers provide all kinds of functions for their sons.) Unfortunately for him, he was wearing sneakers, which the mud would suck from his feet with great delight. But he had a plan.
Adam threw a smaller log onto the muddy area and then stepped onto it, thus giving himself the range to push Peregrine into the deeper water and set it adrift.
And so Peregrine travels again. Someday I suppose it will grow waterlogged enuf to sink to the bottom, but until then I’ll always be eager to walk around the lake with an eye out for Peregrine.
Missouri calendar:
- Listen for the gray treefrog chorus.
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