Comments on: Thurston Pond Gets Its Thirst On

By: Myra

Myra — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 23:27:06 +0000

We have lived on Prairie St. across from Thurston for 45 yrs. now. As the first Girl Scout leader, my troop planted sprigs of weeping willow trees recommended by Bill Stapp to encourage birds to come to the pond. What a delight this pond has been -used as an ice rink for skating and hockey in winter and fishing, feeding geese, etc. in summer months. Like all things it is now overgrown and stagnant. Any plans to revitalize the pond would be welcome.

By: Colin Brooks

Colin Brooks — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 04:13:38 +0000

Thanks to Neal and Dave for this great article. I encourage everyone to check out the Thurston Nature Center web page at http://www.thurstonnaturecenter.org

By: Gary Hochgraf

Gary Hochgraf — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 14:12:04 +0000

Dave
Thurston pond is part of the headwaters of Miller Creek, which I was involved in studying with other volunteers from the Huron River Watershed Council. Ponds like this one are an important connection to our understanding of our environment, the river, and education for all. Thanks for the article.

By: Stew Nelson

Stew Nelson — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 13:52:31 +0000

Superb article Dave. Hopefully, this draws Neal and Thurston Pond some of the attention they deserve.

For part of my childhood, I lived close to the pond on Scio Church Rd. It was a magical place that brought out the Tom Sawyer adventurer in us in the summer and dreams of becoming the next Gordy Howe in the winter.

The Orchard Hills Maplewood Association is the perfect archetype of a homeowners association taking charge of their own destiny and improving their neighborhood.

By: Garrison Dyer

Garrison Dyer — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 05:58:28 +0000

Having grown up in this neighborhood and attending Thurston Elementary, I consistently helped out with spreading the woodchips. Mostly what I remember on those days is the vast array of adventures to be had exploring in the cat tails or on the “island”.

Also, some of my favorite photos I took during a photography class in high school were snapped with my dad’s old SLR around the pond.

Thanks for the article — it’s great to hear about the continuing interest in our ever-important natural spaces!

By: Liz

Liz — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 16:13:09 +0000

I also enjoyed the article and grew up three houses from Thurston Pond. It was a magical place to grow up and at that time a small creek flowed behind my house which added to the richness of built-in play areas, frogs, snakes, and all kinds of creatures to find! Add to that skating on Thurston Pond was a winter ritual which included looking across the pond every winter day to see if the flag raised by an unknown person was red or green – giving us the okay to skate! Fishing was a huge summer event where you learned how to first hook the worm, unhook the fish and take the wayward hook out of friends heads every once in a while! I am so glad there are still caretakers of this urban pond! It is truly a fond part of my childhood!

By: Geoff

Geoff — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 15:07:23 +0000

Great article. I grew up in a house that backed up to Thurston pond and I have many fond memories. I used to fish for bullheads with my dad, feed bread to the ducks, venture onto the ice in the winter, and walk or run through the border trail. The snapping turtles used to come out of the pond to lay eggs in our backyard, and one day we found one scratching at our garage door trying to get in the house. I also proposed to my wife on the bridge you mentioned…

By: Neal Foster

Neal Foster — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 13:21:58 +0000

Dave – this is just great, lucidly and delightfully written. It demonstrates that you are a careful listener and notetaker. Thank you!

Two comments – within a few hours, after the detritus in the “plankton jar” settled out, the water turned out to be full of copepods, tiny tadpole-shaped crustaceans that would serve as the principal food of the fathead minnows.

The “waders” are more properly referred to as hip boots.