February 10th

Friday, February 10th, 2017

If you don’t know about Swan Park in Monticello, Google it!

Open December-March, Swan Park is one of the smallest city parks I’ve seen. A sliver of land in the middle of a residential block that butts up to the Mississippi River. The story behind it is a beautiful one; a woman living in the house next to the now-existing park always fed the swans who would winter in the shallow banks of the river in her backyard. After passing in 2011, her husband continued feeding them in her memory. Now, the city created this seasonal park so others can enjoy the swans and other waterfowl that flock there in incredible numbers. Feedings are at 10:30am every morning, so this morning we saddled up and went to watch.

It was a really neat thing to experience. When we pulled up to the “parking lot” and stepped out of the car, we heard them before we saw them. Their trumpeting is one of my favorite sounds. Unfortunately, as we walked up, kayakers were coming down the river and spooked the swans. The 50 or so swans left, but the hundreds of ducks stayed. According to the gentleman who feeds the swans, they had over 500 swans in attendance for feeding yesterday! We’ll definitely have to go back!