Mill Creek Park Remembered

echoed the collective voice of more than a dozen Scouts, “We are the Gypsy girls, we wear our hair in curls; we like to dance and sing and shake our tambourines. . . .” We built boats, dwellings, and animals made from Popsicle sticks, twigs, leaves, and mud. We looked forward to lunchtime when we consumed bagged lunches lovingly prepared by our mothers.

Our most memorable lessons that summer were taught by the Park Naturalist, Mr. Lindley Vickers, who resembled actor Sam Jaffe, co-star of the 1960’s TV series, Dr. Ben Casey.

His white, wiry hair stood out stiff around the perimeter of his balding head, freckles dotted his face and arms, and he had a pronounced underbite. Mr. Vickers was keen to point out the importance of stewardship, and his lessons imparted great respect for the abundant natural resources that graced this ethereal playground. He led our troop through the park’s rich wet woods and its wooded and rocky slopes. He guided us as we explored the steep banks, glens, caverns, ledges, and cliffs.

His extensive knowledge of the park’s flora and fauna was fascinating: he directed our attention to beetles, snakes, butterflies, moths, dragonflies, turtles, rabbits, squirrels, goldfish, tadpoles, spleenwort ferns, oak and maple trees, hemlock, and mushrooms. Joan was aghast the afternoon that Mr. Vickers invited me to sit on a giant tortoise! He shared with us his collection of arrowheads and told stories of the early pioneers who were associated with the park. One day we were hiking along Lake Cohasset toward the Goldfish Pond (now called the Lily Pond). The lake abounded with moss-covered rocks massaged by the steady knuckles of the meandering current. As we crossed Cinderella Bridge, we tossed flat stones into the lake and watched as they skipped and danced along the water’s surface. As we approached the Goldfish Pond, Mr. Vickers picked a bunch of poison oak. Then, he ATE IT! We were flabbergasted. Poison oak, ivy, and sumac were plants to avoid at all costs. He grinned and explained that he was one of only a few folks who were not ill-affected by the poisonous oil of this plant. I still remember his words of caution: “Leaves of three; let them be.”