The Starkweather Slide Step - Part III

Yesterday afternoon the sun finally came out, so after the Badger game I took the walk around our section of Starkweather creek to get a closer and different look at the new steps and slide.  I've never done this short walk before and this seemed like a good reason to get out and do it.  I start at the end of our street and walk north, crossing the bike path bridge then walking south to the Milwaukee Street bridge, and then back north a bit to our street again.  All pictures in this post, and there's quite a few here, were taken on this walk.

Google reminded me that a year ago today I posted about the creek and the flooding and the progress of the water as it was going down a bit.  Things look a bit greener this year than last, you can take a quick look at a year ago today here, and all my flood-related posts here.  While the levels look a whole lot better than this time last year, all the lakes are still well over their set summer maximum levels.  The creek empties into Lake Monona, which is still much too high so the creek is at least a foot and a half higher than it should be right now, by my reckoning.  Lake levels can be checked and animated here, at least until Flash Player goes away.

But enough of that for now.  Come and walk with me around this section of Starkweather Creek - after the break, of course.  And mind the ducks!

The starting point is the slide area.  Grass has grown, and the ducks are suspiciously absent.

Perhaps this is easier to get your canoe or kayak into the water, but I want to see it being used yet.

I turn north, this is past the bit of road and is the proper bike path.

Further north, yet.

Is that what I think it is through the trees?

Yes, it is the ducks...

Looking so peaceful (and reflective!), it would be a shame to bother them.

Ahead to the bike path bridge, the bigger bike path bridge over the busy, big road is in the background.

The view south from the bike path bridge, steps just ahead on the left.

From this bridge I notice balloons and flowers that must be the sight of Madison's first murder of the year, closer than I thought.  Another grisly fact; a couple hours after this walk Madison had its second murder of the year, this time on the north side of town.

I approach the ducks slowly, and they are very wary.  If they're going to scatter then perhaps time for a video, I thought.

The steps appear only as steep as an ordinary staircase, yet I would have expected less of an angle or at least a handrail.  You can see as the steps disappear under water.  And the duck poop, of course.

I got my pictures so I moved on without sending them all into the water.

And I continue south along the creek.  I'd never walked this side before today.

In the distance is the other bridge.

Coming up to the slide from the other side.

For this last bit I run out of road and cut through the edge of an apartment building's lawn, then follow a path to the bridge.

A look back upstream.

And looking north from the bridge.

Then it's just a short walk north again on the bike path.

And I arrive at the same place I started.  Still no ducks here, but perhaps the bike path traffic disturbs them.

Not a terribly long walk but I'm glad I did it, now I can't say I've never walked the other side.  That's it for this over-dramatized short series of posts, until and unless I get pictures or video of it in use.  They're installed now so I suspect they will get use, but how frequent is yet to be seen.  Thanks for coming along, and please tell me, what do you think?