Riverkeeper leads Brew City Safari tour of Milwaukee River Greenway

The sun shone brightly on Saturday afternoon as I joined a throng gathering at Caesar's Pool Park for a hike on the Milwaukee River. Sponsored by Brew City Safari, the tour was led by guest guide, Cheryl Nenn, Milwaukee's Riverkeeper. I played leap-frog with the group to the halfway point at the Locust Street bridge. At that point I lost the group due to my penchant for wandering off to shoot photos. But I forged on. It was a perfect day for a hike in one of my favorite places. Here's my photo essay:

Riverkeeper Nenn leads group across the river at Caesar's Pool, site of the former North Avenue dam.

Seedling in protective tube planted by River Revitalization Foundation volunteers to restore native species along the West Bank Trail.

We saw several spots where bank stabilization work was underway to mitigate damage done by a storm in 2010.

The group circled the "graffiti wall" that adorns the ruins of a former bathing resort, when this part of the Milwaukee River Greenway was a lake impounded by the North Avenue dam.

This mattress, embedded in the tall riparian grasses, is evidence that people other than graffiti taggers frequent the spot.

On the east side of the river I enter the Rotary Arboretum and Riverside Park.

A series of cairn-like sculptures by Nic Thompkins now graces the park.

Planting native vegetation is also being done along the East Bank Trail. Here it is organized by the Urban Ecology Center, which is located in Riverside Park.

Evidence of beavers -- well, at least one beaver anyway!

One of a series of murals on the piers of the North Avenue Bridge.

And back again to Caesar's Pool Park. The next Brew City Safari hike is this coming Saturday, Oct. 15 at Havenwoods State Park. Check it out on their website.