Maggie: our June hike

It was the last hike of the season, and what a lovely day we had - at last!  It was a comfortable walk through the Maison de la Nature reserve at the étang de Méjean in Lattes.  

 

 

Maggie, Y-J, Rosie, Mariannick, Robyn, Katharine J

 While we were picnicking alongside the Maison de la Nature, we noticed some of the employees carrying what we thought might be crayfish, caught in the canals, but when we asked what they had caught, they showed us a snapping turtle, which they called tortue exotique, or tortue de Florida.  Just goes to show that we are not the only Americans in the area.

 

We had barely left the carpark when we saw a heron standing in a field.  Then just inside the entrance to the reserve we saw nests full of storks, 

 

 

 

and as we walked along the waterfront, we saw flamingos and other birds.

Further inland we saw taureaux and chevaux de Camargue, including some foals.  I wonder how many people know that, although the adult horses look white, the foals are born black or brown.  At one point along the path we met some leaping frogs, one of whom stopped long enough for us to snap some photos. 

 

The wildflowers were beautiful, and we look forward to another hike in the same area, when we will try to do the loops we missed because we ran short of time.  Merci to Y-J's friend Nicole, who took most of the group photos for us.

 

Maggie, Katharine, Rosie, Y-J, Mariannick, Robyn