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Upward Bound Discovery Map

Upward Bound students took several different excursion during their Listening to the River time. We spent time at Sabin Pond to learn about the equipment and followed that with trips to Peninsula Township Park, the Boardman River in Downtown TC and near Keystone Rapids.

Click on an icon to See , Listen , Read or all three more about what we experienced! The media displayed on the map below are pretty tightly grouped, so you'll need to zoom in to really see what was collected. Alternatively, click the links below to go directly to zoomed in maps.

Sabin Pond

Peninsula Township Park

Boardman River in Downtown TC and near Keystone Rapids

Jack's Creek near Sabin Pond Here is Jack's Creek near Sabin Dam where we documented photos of the area watershed and its surrounding habitats. These habitats include such plants as�White Cedars, sensitive ferns, and Balsam firs.�These all create homes and�a�niche for many critters. � "Fallen Wonder" "Just Around the River Bend" "Serenity" "Water Life"

T2 Video At the end of boardwalk Video of leaves of a ironwood tree swaying in the wind. this is a video of ironwood leaves swaying in the wind at the end of the boardwalk at Sabin Dam, Traverse City

A Special Spot The location of this particular picture was our unique spot. Our special spot was beneath two pine trees, distant from the Old Mission Peninsula trail. We found this spot unique because the light caught our eyes right away when we first walked by. Then once we sat beneath the two trees, it was so calm and peaceful. The birds were chirping and the breeze was fresh with the bay's wounderful smell. When underneath these particular trees it's almost a whole new world. It's as if everything surrounding us didn't even matter with how peaceful and calm it was. The feeling we had stayed with us the entire day. It was incredible. When we took this picture we were lying on our backs and looking up through the trees. We like this picture because of the view through the branches of the trees and how it makes the sun look not quite as hot and more distinct.

American Toad N44.99168, W085.48059 We found this little guy right off the shore of Lake Michigan by Old Mission Point. I turned over a rock to find him lying under it. It was a hot sunny day so I think that he was lying under it for the shade and moisture. This toad is an American Toad. Also known and Bufo Americanus. It is commonly found all over the state.

An Ant Moves on Old Mission Penisula Mark, Randy and I were maybe three hundred yards down path #1 of the Old Mission Peninsula trails. The canopy shaded most of the path, but the trees allowed a certain amount of light at sporadic points. The ant was found moving back toward the lighthouse so I decided to follow it while Randy and Mark went on ahead.

Beach Sounds and Zinging Stones This location was near a lighthouse on the Grand Traverse Bay in Traverse City Michigan. We sat on the beach, and recorded the sounds around us. This is what we heard! Download File This audio clip, contains the sound of seagulls off in the distance, and crickets in a little weedy area about fifteen feet in front of us. The beach, of Grand Traverse Bay, has receded and has left a mucky area about fifty feet out. When you stepped in this substance, it squished underneath your feet and got mud all over your shoes. Download File This audio clip was of different types of stones about the size of quarters. About every third stone made this weird zooming noise as it headed off into the distance. We were hitting the stones with a mini wooden bat between 1 1/2 to 2 ft long.

Beech Leaves and Light These are pictures of leaves from a Beech tree in the middle of the woods that just happened to grab our attention. When we first saw the leaves they were blowing and moving in the slight breeze. The way the leaves were moving so peacefully was very intriguing to us. The way the light hit the top of the leaves was simply remarkable. Then when we looked beneath the leaves you could see so much detail it was really moving and a great learning experience.

BJ's House Interfering Sounds This location was in downtown Traverse City, MI, in a residential neighborhood. His house is near the end of a cul-de-sac, and there is not very much traffic. It was extremely hot that day with temperatures reaching into the '90s. Download File This is the sound of the engine of the same Honda Civic. Download File This is the sound of a chain saw. Download File This is the sound of the exhaust coming out of a fifteen passenger van. It is the same van as in the above audio clip. Download File This is the sound of a huge fifteen passenger van revving its engine. Download File This is the sound of a Honda Civic beeping its horn.

Black Cherry Up Close This location was on a skinny path with trees on both sides. We took pictures of the plants around us that looked interesting to us. This picture is of a Black Cherry, or Prunus serotina, that we found that had green fruit hanging in a loose cluster. Their fruit's are edible, and they are usually found out in the open. They grow to about the size of 50-75 feet tall. Uses for this type of tree are for veneer and furniture, interior trim, printers' blocks, scientific instruments, woodenware, and gunstocks.

Chicken Of The Woods This fungus I found was about 1 1/2 foot and about 10 inches wide. This fungus was located at the bottom of a pine tree in the Peninsula. Believe it or not this fungus is edible. It's called Chicken of the Woods, because it has the texture of cooked chicken.

Contrasting sounds: rocks and walks This location was near an old wooden bridge on the Boardman River, right past the Sabin Dam. Download File This location was a sandy and rocky path about two feet wide and on an incline. It was between 80 and 90 degrees and very windy. What you are about to hear, is three people, one walking, one skipping like a nanny, and one sprinting next to me. Download File In this audio clip, we are dropping three different size stones into a shallow area of water. The three stones varied in size from the size of a penny, to the size of a golf ball.

Daddy Long Legs These little creatures I found were located on top of a fern. The area where I found these spiders was a shady area. Sometimes you ask yourself, are these little guys poisonous? To tell you the truth, they are not. They mostly make their living by eating decomposing plants and animals that they trap or find in the ground.

Differential Grasshopper This grasshopper was located on the Lake Michigan shore in the Peninsula. I was looking for chipmunks and gave up because the chickmunks were not cooparative, so I decided to take a walk by the water. There wasn't really water, it was mostly dry when I found this little guy. The weather was great, sunny and windy, about 85°F. This is a Differential Grasshopper also known as Melanoplus Differentialis, commonly found all over North America.

Downtown Construction Zone This location is where they are knocking down the old Grand Traverse Auto building, and putting in a new building for use. They have cranes and other different types of heavy machinery there. This is a video clip of some interfering sounds that we heard and saw downtown. Download File This is the sound of a crane slamming a piece of metal shrapnel into the ground. IT IS VERY LOUD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dragonflies These dragonflies were flying back and forth close to us. They were landing on the wood of the deck railings. I will describe the place we went and found the dragonflies. In the distance we saw an area that looked like a pond with different kind of bushes and the ground was covered with green plants. The dragonflies were flying around us and they were landing in the wood next to us, but if we moved, they will fly away. The weather was muggy.

Fighting Crows It was a hot day; around 90, but the shade of the trees made it cooler. There was a slight wind. Download File We heard crows fighting in the distance, so we went in with a parabolic microphone to investigate. We found out that birds fight for many reasons such as territory, mates, or other things. Also, crows DO travel in large groups, and are usually all from the same family. It is also possible that the ones we observed were feuding with another family of crows.

Footage of chipmunk and ant hills FOOTG1 This location is on the trail of the Old Mission Park at the end of the Old Mission Peninsula. It is a mild density forest with decaying hollow logs and various different kinds of species. It was interesting to observe the animals in their native habitat. The trees you can find in this forest are an oak, pine, red wood, and many more. This forest is right next to the lake so it is very cool. Some of the animal species you can find are chipmunks, crows, squirrels, and more. It was about 90 degrees out at the time and was lightly humid. Tamias striatus or the Eastern Chipmunk is native to the eastern United States and southern Canada. We observed many of this type of chipmunk over the small area we covered. They are extremely light weighing in at only 3 ounces and they measure up to 6 inches long. Their diet consists of grains, nuts, berries, seeds, mushrooms, insects, and salamanders. Any food they don’t eat they store in their cheeks for storage later. This Ant hill caught our attention not only because we couldn’t find much more but because they help the decomposition process. They eat and take apart dead and decaying plants and animals in the environment. They also help in the spreading of seeds. These by the way are Carpenter Ants also known as Camponotus pennsylvanicus

Front Street Bridge This location was near the bridge on Front Street. We video taped, and captured video of the things around this area. The weather was warm, but it was extremely cloudy. Download File This is the sound of ducks sticking their heads under the water, and grabbing some long vegetation in their mouths. You can barely hear the sound of their feet splashing against the water when they dive, and when they come back up. Download File This is an audio clip of some interfering sounds. It is the sound of traffic off in the distance.

Garter snake This is an Eastern Garter Snake we found along the Bordman River. Check out the video for details.

Gray Mushrooms This is a Grisette which is a type of mushroom found all over North America. They grow in really moist areas, with mostly shade and little bit of sun. This kind of mushroom is not edible.

Hollow Stump This stump was right beside the trail close to parking lot and the reddish tree in another photo. It looked as if it had been cut off a long time ago and left to rot. The inside was completely gone; there was only empty space. This stump was surrounded by trees in a shady area. It was covered in holes and probably had bark at one time, but it was all gone. It was honestly amazing to see what time and weather can do to a single tree or stump.

Light onTrees This picture was very moving because it was right in the middle of the woods were it was really quite dark, then all of a sudden right there in front of us, in the middle of the forest was a tree lit up with one stream of light. This particular tree stuck out to us because of how the light hit only that tree, like it wanted us to make sure to notice it and its presence in the forests. It was just remarkable how the tree coverage selects which trees are noticed and which trees are hidden in the darkness of the branch coverage.

Nature's Call Download File For the past year, Interlochen Public Radio producers have been assisting students in using state of the art recording technology to produce short educational features about their local watershed. The project is called Listening to the River and partners this radio station with the Land Information Access Association, the Great Lakes Children's Museum, and is funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation. This past week, Traverse City Central senior Logan Dillon and TC West senior Seth Siladke were part of an expedition team documenting sounds with a parabolic microphone up at the tip of the Old Mission Peninsula. It was hot day and they were drinking lots of water—which taken together—lead to one, totally unavoidable, but perfectly natural dilemma….

Old Mission Peninsula Chipmunk2 With my camera's battery dying, I found another chipmunk who didn't know I was watching him and filmed him rummaging through a piece of litter. The battery pack died while I was filming the chipmunk.

Old, Eroded Tree This was right beside the trail close to parking lot. The trees inside was hollow and had a reddish color. The tree looked old and eroded. When we first saw it, it was breathtaking seeing the colors inside and how it had eroded away was just simply amazing. The way it was in a shaded area would make it so most people would over look it. It was a nice change in scenery to see something that brilliant in color in our area.

Partridgeberries These photos were taken right beside our spot. They were first discovered by Cati when we were about to leave. When first discovered we thought the white flowers were just wild flowers but after some researching we figured out that the flower were actually Partridgeberries and that they are usually found in dry woods during the summer. The flowers are usually in pairs with white petals that are hairy on the inner face. Sometimes they have pink blossoms but they are rare. The leaves of the flower are green all year round and are 1/2 in. long.The red berries you see in the last picture are the fruit of the plant.

Pine and Daisy Close-ups Here in the pine woods of the forest we have all assortments of pines. this area in general is a contrast of plant and wild life to that of Jack's Creek. Here it is more dry and dusty. Pine trees make it hard to coexist with other plants because they place acids in the ground that limit the plant life that can survive in the acidity of the soil. "Two is Just as Lonely" "One is the Loneliest"

Quaking Aspen in the Wind Here a Quaking Aspen or a Populus Tremuloides is trembling in the gusting wind in the watershed near the Sabin Dam. Here we have a tree blowing in the wind.

Red Beetle

Red Spot on the Trail When we saw this flash of red, we both paused for a moment to think why is there only one red spot. As we pondered there, we decided it was a red berry on a green leafy plant. Right in the middle of the trail all of a sudden we spoted this brilliant red berry on a green plant. The odd thing about this was it was the only pair of them on the plant. We thought it was very intriguing and different.

Redflower This flower we found in Pyatt lake we call it the Orange Hawkweed. When we found it the flower was in a shady area with dry leaves. The orange hawkweed was the only one we found in the ground.

Shy Bullfrog Windy, Hot day. Download File A Bullfrog was heard in the distance, so we went in to investigate. We found the frog, but he was a little shy.

Snake Grass Sunny, Hot. Snake grass seemed to grow abundantly in the Sabin pond area.

Sounds from the Sabin Trailhead Pavilion Pavilion Sound coming from the pavilion at Sabin Dam. Download File This is a interview with Kitty and James sitting at the Sabin Pavilion, asking James what sounds he can hear at the pavilion.

Spider Web This spider web was right next to the trail. When we were walking back to the meeting point I almost walked right through it. As I stopped and looked back at Cati I said, "Take a picture because if it turns out it would be a sweet shot." So she did and it turned out pretty nice. The best way I can describe this particular picture would be to say look at all the indepth detail. If it had been darker out this shot would have never turned out, but the lighting and everything else just happened to be perfect at that particular time.

Swamp Milkweed This flower was tacking by Amanda Hentschel in the Pyatt Lake. This flower is call Swamp Milkweed. This flower was close to a pond in Pyatt Lack. The area was we found it was wanted and were buds flaying arrowed use. The flower was in a big group of the same kind, but the flower was more close to the water

Union Street Bridge This location is on the Union Street Bridge, and it is a recording of sounds from beneath, and above the bridge. Download File This is the sound of cars driving on the bridge. However, it is a recording of the sounds from under the bridge. Download File This is the sound of some more ducks swimming in the water. They also do this swimming/splashing thing in the water which you can see in the video. YOU NEED TO FASTFORWARD THE VIDEO 25 SECONDS FROM THE BEGINNING!!!!!! This is the sound from above the bridge as the cars drive by.

Veery Bird A small forked trail in the woods was lit up with bird noises. The wind was calm and the air was cool. Download File As we were walking down a trail in the woods, we picked up a strange noise mixed in with other familiar bird sounds. We later found out that this mysterious noise was created by the Veery bird. This little bird sings two pitches at once, creating the effect that the bird is in a metal tube.

West Hall Interfering Sounds This location was in the parking lot in front of West Hall of Norh Western Michigan College. It was sunny and extremely hot! Download File This is the sound of a twelve-passenger van backing up. It makes the sound like when a semi or other big truck with heavy equipment is backing up. Download File This is the sound of a Buick Park Avenue's horn. It sounds exactly like the horn on a train.

What's Under That Log? Stag Beatle A wooded area, just off the trail had lots of fallen logs. It was warm out, and the wind was minimal. Download File A gross looking squirmy white thing was hidden under a log. It was so gross, we just had to find out what it was. Turns out it was a Stag beetle larva. It was about 2 and a half inches long and had already molted once; you could tell by its empty shell sitting nearby. Nasty!

This page last updated on 4/22/2008.

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