Osprey Homecoming

Last weekend I took some students to help with the Osprey Homecoming at Hogback Ridge Park, near Delaware. Ospreys are raptors, similar to eagles, that eat mostly fish. They even dive into the water to watch them. They're large birds, with wingspans approaching 6 feet.

The day was so much fun. We spent some time exploring the nature center and then went over to see the nesting platforms in Alum Creek Reservoir. I have to admit to being a little skeptical before hand that we would actually get to see any ospreys. After all, I don't think they knew that the park had scheduled a homecoming for them, but maybe they did know because eight ospreys were there including two mated pairs - one which had already built a nest and laid eggs. I haven't seen that many ospreys in my whole life, and the park had telescopes set up to watch the birds in action.

Then we finished the day with several hours of picking up trash along Alum Creek and the road into the park. To give you an idea of how long it had been since litter was picked up from the area let me tell you that some of the items I found were an 8 track (The students didn't even know what it was.) and a green glass Coke bottle.

We had a great time and enjoyed serving the park in that way. The students are the leaders for Fresh X, Ohio Wesleyan's freshmen retreat. I'm looking forward to working with them again for that event in August.