Thursday, October 5, 2023
4:30–6:30 pm
Belle Isle Nature Center
176 Lakeside Dr.
Detroit, MI 48207
Calling all new bird watchers! You are invited to an in-person How to Start Birding field trip hosted by the Belle Isle Nature Center, Detroit Audubon & InsideOut Literary Arts. Enjoy two short guided birding walks around trails on Belle Isle and interactive poetry readings about birding and nature. One of our main speakers will be Jacqueline Suskin (bio below). After the walk, stay for an opportunity to continue the birding as we discuss the birds observed and answer questions while watching the sun set along the Detroit River.
This walk will take place on the Okonoka and Light house Trails near the Belle Isle Nature Center. The beginning of the hike will lead us around the nature center and is a paved path and board walk, it’s about 400ft. The rest of the trail will be a gravel hiking path stopping at the pavilion where we’ll have the first poetry reading. (If folks want to go back after the first read that hike will be about .25 miles round trip.)
After that, we’ll take the beautiful light house trail (also gravel) and have the second reading at the light house. After that we’ll head back to the nature center. The complete hike will be about 1 mile.
Jacqueline Suskin is a poet, editor and educator who has been teaching workshops, writing books, and creating spontaneous poetry around the world since 2009. She has composed over forty thousand improvisational poems with her ongoing writing project, Poem Store. Suskin is the author of seven books, including The Edge of The Continent Volume 1-3 (Rare Bird Books, 2018-2020), Help in the Dark Season (Write Bloody, 2019) and Every Day is a Poem (Sounds True, 2020). Her work has been featured in various publications including the New York Times, the Atlantic, and Yes! magazine. Suskin runs an ongoing creative retreat program for artists and makers at Folklife Farm. She lives in Detroit.
A waiver for Covid 19 is included in the registration process and the following protocols will be in place in order to have a safe walk for all involved:
1. Must register in advance, no touch check-in at start of field trip
2. We ask that if you have been exposed to anyone with Covid 19 or are feeling unwell to please stay home
3. Binoculars will be available to use, but must be requested during registration