audubon goose pond is a turbid pond with surrounding prairie in a marshy basin of ground moraine. we hiked the prairie in the year’s first good snow—a little dodgy at points, but piloted with grace and confidence by my brother.
the pond itself is not accessible due to the protections in place for the many bird species who make the area their home, but the prairie was lovely as the snow fell and wind blew. something about prairies in winter; i just love it.
two further notes: this plot and some surrounding parcels are further remnants of the formerly huge empire prairie that spanned swaths of these parts north of madison.
back to the flip phone for this venture.
a.
winds away southward
new snowfall
on russet and black
b.
this rolling swelling
ground was once
the empire prairie
c.
a single oak leaf
rattling
in the grassy wind
Jacob Riyeff 