From the editor: Enjoying country ponds

One of my favorite places on my acreage is the pond. As you can see from the photo below, it sits back a distance from the homestead (notice my red barn up on the hill). The pond covers several acres and is well stocked with bass and bluegill. It's a great fishing hole for friends and family. There is always an adventure waiting down at the pond, and my three kids have had their share of fun in the water over the years.

Just yesterday my daughter, Caroline, 12, and I took a walk down to the pond to check on the five new ducklings we spied over the weekend. Caroline was walking around the south shore, stepping on rocks as she looked for tadpoles. She likes to grab the tadpoles out of the mud and check to see if they are growing legs yet.

One of the larger gray rocks, a craggy-surfaced one, felt squishy when she stepped on it in the shallow water. She jumped off and looked closer. The rock had feet with long claws on the toes. It had a head with a pointy beak-like nose and dark eyes. Caroline yelled and I came running.

She had stepped on the back of a snapping turtle. Luckily, it was in some type of trance (laying eggs, maybe?) and didn't snap at her foot. I poked it with a stick, and it slowly swam away. I've seen those ugly creatures on land, and they did not seem friendly.

In case you are wondering, I don't swim in my pond!

Swim pond

The cover story (follow the link at the bottom of this page) is about another kind of pond: a swimmable pond. When I saw the photos of this fascinating acreage in Minnesota, I wanted a fancy pond like that for myself. That pond has no fish or wildlife; it's built for human swimming enjoyment. After a hot day in the sun pulling weeds in the garden, wouldn't it be nice to jump in and cool off under the waterfall. I wonder if the snapping turtles would find me there, too?

I'd like to hear about your pond adventures, big and small. E-mail me at betsy.freese@meredith.com.

Have a wonderful summer.

--Betsy Freese

Read about the swimming pond