Hello Urban Bird Lovers;
I made it out to the cranes today, at an Audubon wildlife sanctuary not too far from Jackson State Prison. First, I stopped by Sandhill Crane Winery, which was hosting a car show for several Thunderbird owner's clubs. Dang, I could have brought B, who specializes in collector car shows. After snapping pictures of Cranes and Thunderbirds, he could have caught the 6:07 PM Amtrak back to Royal Oak.
What happens when a retired Detroit police office starts planting vineyards and buys and hand-cranked press? Well, when he appoints his wife, A, chief salesperson, trains his daughter H as a vinter and delegates publicity to his daughter, Hr you end up with a small estate winery where the flagship white blend, Chanson, sold out in a day when a wedding party under tents on the lawn drank through the year's production. To give the wedding party a bit of slack, I'm sure the bridal party packed away with several cases for anniversaries. You'll love the clever blends between raspberries and sweet white wine or the pure joy of bottled blueberry cordial.
Although the winery squeezes an enjoyable Merlot, the winery is sticking to whites, even putting forth a buttery Chardonnay ready for your dinner table or your condo's coffee table. I bought a bottle of the Crane Blush, a beautiful vino I tasted on a tour of sipping that included more than ten samples.
A, the queen mum of Sandhill Crane Winery, poured for me, and she regaled me with hunting stories. She had every member of the Red Hat Society in Jackson, Michigan in her tasting room. It is said that more deer are alive today in Michigan than when the Indians dwelt freely upon the prairie. A farmer who sees a deer pestering his corn can slay the deer if the meat is donated to the New Tribes Bible Institute in Jackson, Michigan.
The same is true, perhaps, for Sandhill Cranes. In 1930, less than one hundred sandhill cranes were counted in Michigan. This is a prehistoric bird that knows how to make new territory work for its hatchlings. (No Eric, no volunteers are requested for culling !)
Most wineries decline to pour more than six; most of the ones in Napa/Sonoma charge at least ten dollars, letting you keep the lead crystal glass.
I declined to go visit Lone Oak, just a mere ten minute drive from Sandhill Crane Winery. After a break, as I drove along the gravel path to Walz Avenue, a two-lane lined with grape vines still hanging with grape clusters counting twenty over-ripe berries and one or two rotting berries, a squad of Sandhill Cranes foraged amongst the alfalfa. Four cranes descended down, down, down on extended wings as I watched from my car. The over-ripe fruit is awaiting freezing frost, and the vinter will send the frigid berries to Lemon Creek in Berrien County where an high-pressure press will coax out the ice wine.
Filming is allowed at the sanctuary by making arrangements with Ron Hoffman, 517-769-6891, Sanctuary Chairman. Volunteers are standing around with scope son stands, focused on clusters of cranes socializing down on mudflats of water from Eagle Lake and Portage River floods.
The sanctuary has an apparent theme of father-daughter relationships. Casper Haehnle donated it to the Audubon Society in his daughter's memory. The volunteer who let me view through her battered, antique Bausch scope, J, came first to the sanctuary 25 years ago, dragged by her father, and at first waking up for the 15 minute spectacle of thousands of birds rising to feed amongst the neighboring fields really interrupted her party girl schedule. You know that old scope was passed on to her by dad. Are they raising Amazons in Jackson? Maybe a sometime local, Ted Nuget knows and will tell.
There is a short film on the birds in flight at Jasper-Pulaski State Park, an hour southwest of Haehnle Sanctuary. It features the Governor Joe Kernan of Indiana praising the bird and their twice-daily spectacle of flight. The sound of the birds is quite unique, an ancient trumpeting that has triumphantly echoed over eons.
Sandhill Cranes in Indiana
Sandhill crane vineyard: Gonzo Wine In Jackson
Audubon's Haehnle Sanctuary: Sandhill Cranes In Middle Michigan
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