Features

MCCC has hidden pond on campus

Surrounded by a canopy of fall’s colored trees is one of the college’s campus treasures, the Hidden Pond.

The pond is tucked away in the wooded area behind the East Tech building.

To reach it, just cross the wooden bridge over Plum Creek behind the parking lot, turn to the right and follow the path.   

“The pond is man-made,”  according to  Tracy Rayl, an MCCC biology professor.  

Rayl and her students have taken aquatic insect samples from nearby Plum Creek for her class.  

It was designed in the 1960s by the college, as part of the natural preserve for students to study.  

The pond is approximately one acre in size, v-shaped with a small beach on the south end.  

It also is on the course of the Fitness Center’s 5-mile fitness run,  but you don’t have to be  a runner to enjoy it.

The  area is home to all kinds of wildlife, including many varieties of birds.  Recently, a muskrat family was seen building a nest in the fallen trees.   

Deer tracks have been seen around the paths and there are lots of fish in the pond.  

Barry Kinsey, Director of Workforce Development, has been familiar with the pond for years.  

“I used to take my kids out there fishing”, he said, before fishing was prohibited.

“We had to put up the ‘no-fishing’ signs for liability purposes,”   Jim Blumberg, Director of Maintenance, said.

That shouldn’t stop anyone from enjoying a stroll around the pond, he said, especially now with the leaves changing colors.  

“The woods are so dense out there, you’ll feel like you are up north,” Blumberg said.

It’s a chance to get away and have some peace and quiet without having to drive far, he said.  

MCCC’s  plans are to keep this natural wildlife preserve undisturbed, so that animals and humans can enjoy the treasure for years to come.