Let Birds Nest and Children Climb

A family trip to Swan Island — climbing cliffs and wading over rocky shallows

This summer was cold at first, but now there has been over a two week with heatwave. What could be better place to spend warm days than lake water? My oldest child is either swimming or reading a book. The middle one and the youngest are playing on the shallow water with their swim rings.

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One day we had a lazy day — just a lot of swimming, diving, and jumping from a paddleboard. But then we did surprising trip with rowing boat. I picked up an island. This island was small, rocky and high. My partner rowed and children were exiting about new island to take over.

When landing on small island like this, you have to be sure there is no bird nesting. If any signs of nesting are noticed, it’s not okay to land at all. We always keep that in mind and look for signs of nesting. Also children have learned to respect and to protect birds.

There is something special about tiny islands. They are like their own little planets, with their own biodiversity and cliffs. The fact that there are only a few trees and just a couple of different plants makes everything feel more meaningful and helps you focus.

With so little to take in, you notice more — the texture of the bark, the patterns of the rock face, the way light filters through one branch. There’s no visual noise, no clutter. Just a quiet presence — if you ignore the screaming kids. It becomes easier to breathe, to be still, to listen.

First we noticed a beautiful purple-loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria) growing alone in the crack in the cliff. It looked like a violet Hattivatti — those silent, white, electric creatures from the Moomin stories who are often seen gathering on remote islands.

After landing, we noticed a window in a cliff. Actually it was tunnel piercing through the rock. The kids crawled through it. That was exciting, i guess. We adults couldn’t fit there.

The kids love to climb, and the benefits of climbing far outweigh the risk of falling down. Climbing not only helps develop motor skills — it also does wonders for children’s self-confidence. A sense of achievement boosts children’s belief in what they can do. The adults’ role is to encourage and observe — not to constantly warn about falling or forbid it. And if a fall happens, there’s no need to panic or scold. No ‘What did I tell you’ is needed. Just a calm ‘Oops, are you okay? Keep going!’ is enough. That shows children that trying and failing is okay.

Other side of the island was shallow water with cliff bottom. We waded on it, explored the bottom with our soles of the feet. A big old a sun-bleached dead tree full of holes of woodpecker. Base of the trunk was hollow and water was climbing a bit of way inside of the tree. That was fun-looking place to explore! Kids walked along it, push hand inside the empty space and dropped stones inside through the holes. I took some underwater videos just for fun. One of them is below.

This island got its name by us. My son and I saw a big swan on the island a week earlier when we paddled past it. The swan wasn’t nesting, only hanging on shore. But that was enough to give the name for the island. While rowing back while sun was setting, I chatted, should the name be changed to Tunnel Island. But any of our family didn’t want to change the name. So it is Swan Island now and forever.

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