Oh, hey, Squeaks.
I have something to tell you, that’s a little hard to say.
I got a new job in a different state, so my family and I are moving away.
We’re moving to Madison, Wisconsin, which is where I grew up!
I’m excited to go, but it’s pretty far,
so I won’t be able to visit the Fort much any more.
Well, it won’t be easy to get there.
I’m going to pack up all my stuff, and put it on a big truck,
and drive it all the way to my new house!
I know I won’t be right here any more, but I’ll
still be able to video chat with you and Jessi.
And even though I’ll miss you guys,
there are going to be some good things about living in a new place!
You know how much I love the outdoors.
Well, in Wisconsin, there will be lots of opportunities for sailing…
and swimming… and fishing…
It’s not by the beach in the way you’re thinking!
Wisconsin isn’t all that close to the ocean.
But it is close to some of the biggest, most beautiful lakes anywhere.
A lake is a body of water that’s separate from the ocean.
It’s slower-moving than a river or stream.
Sometimes lakes are salty, like the ocean, but often the water is fresh like a river.
Lakes are smaller than the ocean, but they can still be very big.
The biggest lake in the world is called the Caspian Sea.
It’s in central Asia.
It’s almost 400,000 square kilometers.
That’s close to the size of Montana, the state where the Fort is.
But the second biggest lake… well, it’s next to Wisconsin!
Check it out.
This is Lake Superior, and it touches the states of Wisconsin,
Michigan, and Minnesota, plus the country of Canada.
It’s one of a group of five huge lakes!
They are pretty great!
In fact, that’s what we call them - the Great Lakes, because of how big they are.
Lakes like these are pretty special.
It takes some big changes to create such big lakes.
Well, it all started about 100,000 years ago.
Even though that’s a long time ago, the dinosaurs were already long gone!
But in some parts of the United States, you might have been able to see
saber-toothed cats and even mastodons, giant extinct relatives of elephants!
Around that time, big sheets of ice started to cover parts of North America,
including where Wisconsin is now.
I’m talking huge blankets of ice all over the place!
You might think we get a lot of snow now,
but this ice was around for a very long time.
It didn’t just melt every spring.
The ice sheets were also very heavy.
They slowly scraped over the land, back and forth over a very long time.
And as they did, they wore away some of the rocks and dirt,
leaving big holes in the ground.
Kind of like what happens when you drag your feet through sand at the beach;
you leave long tracks where the sand got pushed away!
Well, it’s a little
scary to think of ice changing the land like that,
but it happened very slowly.
If people had been there to watch,
it would have happened so slowly that they wouldn’t have noticed it.
Eventually, all that solid ice melted into its liquid form – water!
And that water needed somewhere to go.
Can you guess where?
Exactly! The liquid water flowed into all the holes the ice sheets had carved out.
Over time, the holes slowly filled up and
turned into the Great Lakes we have today.
And Wisconsin is full of smaller lakes that were also formed by glaciers,
like these four lakes that surround the city of Madison, where I’m moving!
In fact, there are more than 15,000 lakes in Wisconsin,
so I’ll have plenty to explore!
Hey, you guys talking about lakes in here?
I love lakes!
Oh, hey, Jessi and Sam.
Squeaks and I were just talking about the Great Lakes.
I’ll get to see them when I’m in Wisconsin.
I heard that you’re moving to Wisconsin!
We’re sorry to see you moving away from the Fort.
But we know you’ll have an amazing time there.
Oh, sad, Squeaks.
Don’t cry, buddy! Moving can be hard,
but there are good things that happen when people move to new places too.
Moving means new friends to meet and new foods to try…
That’s a great point Jessi!
And that reminds me of one more thing I’m so excited to tell you, Squeaks!
Wisconsin is really famous for… cheese!
This is a little going away present from me to you, Squeaks.
And for you, Jessi, so you’ll remember all the fun we’ve had going birdwatching,
here’s an American Robin, the state bird of Wisconsin!
I love it! Oh my gosh.
And a field guide of the birds of Wisconsin,
so we can go birdwatching when you and Squeaks come visit!
Oh, this is perfect.
Thank you, Mister Brown.
You’re welcome.
And for you, Sam… cheese isn’t the only thing Wisconsin is known for!
They also make great…bratwurst!
Wow! With sauerkraut! My favorite!
I also have a present for Bill and Webb, too.
Has anyone seen them?
Did somebody say present?!
Ha ha, that’s right! I’ve got a bottle of root beer that’s made in the neighboring city
of Milwaukee…but I only have one left, so I guess you’ll have to share!
It’s mine!
No, it’s mine!
No! Mine!
Alright, alright, I’m just messing with you two.
I have plenty for both of you!
I have an idea.
Once we’re all settled in, why don’t you guys all come visit us,
and I’ll treat you to some Wisconsin cheese curds?
And brats, too?
Of course!
That sounds amazing.
You can count us in!
We’re so glad that you moved here and that we got to meet you and learn with you!
I know that change can be sad and scary,
but change can be really exciting and lead to fun new things!
Like if those glaciers hadn’t changed the landscape in Wisconsin all those
thousands of years ago, we wouldn’t have all those amazing lakes!
That’s right!
Thanks Jessi, and thank you Squeaks!
I can’t wait to see what you guys learn next.
And we hope you’ll come back and teach us
all the cool things you learn in your new home!
And thank you all for joining us here at The Fort!
Before I go, I want to encourage everyone out there to keep exploring and learning
about our amazing world, and keep sharing kindness,
knowledge, and respect with everyone you meet!
And if you want to keep learning and having fun with all of us,
be sure to hit the subscribe button. We hope to see you next time here at the fort!
[♪ OUTRO]