One Smelly Nature Center

Last week found my family and me on a little vacation in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Actually, it was a work trip for Chris, but the rest of us got to tag along and take advantage of the hotel and rental vehicle that his company provided. The highlights of the trip were getting to spend time with relatives who live in the area, playing with the kids in the hotel pool, and not having to cook (the hotel provided breakfast and supper at no extra charge!). My most memorable experience of the trip, however, was the morning I decided to take the kids to a nature center. It was a rainy, windy morning, and I thought visiting a nature center would provide a nice outing for the kids since we didn’t have anything else scheduled for that day. Our destination was only about 30 miles from our hotel, but the drive took us twice as long as it should have because I tend to drive slowly in the rain, especially in an unfamiliar vehicle on unfamiliar roads. High winds were also cause for my reduced speeds. The Ford Explorer we were renting was quite a bit larger than the car we normally drive which means it caught more wind on such a blustery day. I kept imagining myself and my kiddos getting blown off the road and toppling into a ditch. I finally came to Bertram Road on which the nature center was located--a rural, pothole-ridden, washed-out road well off the Interstate. I immediately began looking for signs to the nature center. For some reason, I had gotten it in my head that this nature center would have an agricultural focus (maybe it was all the corn fields we passed on the way). So, when I came to a lot with silos, some man-made ponds, and a nice office building, I automatically assumed that this was my agri-focused nature center. I might also add that when the building came into view, I was struck by a very foul odor— like a bean-eating skunk getting shoved into my nostrils. I quickly attributed this odor to the horse manure and hog pens that must be close by. I pulled into the parking lot, unloaded the double stroller and the kids, and ran up the sidewalk to the entrance. (Note to self: bring umbrellas and wind breakers next time we take a road trip.) We were chilled and dripping by the time we made it through the front door and I’m sure quite a spectacle for the nicely dressed lady at the front desk. As soon as we walked in the door and saw no pictures of wild flowers and no “touch and feel” displays of fox furs, snake skins, and rabbit feet, I got the sickening feeling that I was going to have to go back out in that cold rain. “Is this the nature center?” I asked hopefully. The receptionist smiled (I bet she’d never been asked that question before). “The nature center is down the road. This is a sewage treatment plant.” A sewage treatment plant! I guess that would explain the smell. Back out in the wetness, back in the car, back out to Bertram Road. After many more potholes, we did find the nature center. There were no agricultural displays, by the way, and no explanations on how to raise a fine field of corn. But they did have an interesting assortment of stuffed coyotes, turkeys, owls, and other creatures, and there were a couple of basins containing live critters from a nearby creek that we found fascinating. Overall, I would classify the nature center as “not very impressive,” but I’d say that the humor caused by our little detour to the sewage treatment plant made the trip worthwhile.