Fly-In Guests

          In the past 28 years, thousands of guests have come to Indiantree Farm for a getaway.  Sometimes they stay at our bed & breakfast for a couple of days, occasionally for several weeks.

          But there's one couple that definitely stands out as very different.

          They fly in.

          On their own.

          "They" are a couple of Canada geese who stop by our pond each spring.  They wing in from warm winter climes, spend a short time hanging out around our little pond, then disappear until the following spring.

          There was a period of 8-10 years during which only one goose would come for a visit.

          Since they reportedly mate for life, we surmised that somewhere along their travel route, a sad fate befell the goose, leaving the drake a "widower."

          He stopped in every year, but usually for just a few days.

          This year, everything changed. 

          We have a pair, again.  No one knows when they arrived, but we spotted their heads bobbing along in the tall pasture grass about a week ago.  Then, a couple days later, we discovered more good news.

          They had three goslings in tow.  We spotted them doing a leisurely paddle across the pond and couldn't help but wonder: Is one of them a returning "veteran" who was hatched in our pasture? Did our "widower" decide the mourning period had expired and it was time to look for, "new talent"? Did "newlyweds" spot our pond and the gentle sloping pasture around the Indian Mound and make a calculated decision to stop and raise a family?

          We'll never know the answers to those questions, but they're a delight to watch.

          We fervently hope the feral cat that roams our farm from time to time doesn't find the nest of our "fly-in" guests.

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