A few weeks ago I went on a full moon hike at 5 Rivers in Delmar. As the night got cloudy, I got a peek at the moon driving over there. I was early so I sat in the car contented to have missed some of the crazier traffic. About 15 minutes before the center opened it started to rain. First a sweet, gentle spritzing then a downpour. I laughed, well Mother Nature is canceling this hike! The center opened and the naturalist was enthusiastic and hopeful that the rain would stop or at least let-up and we could proceed. Actually, it did! Twelve excited humans went out into the night to experience the mystery of the woods in the dark. Owls had been heard and beaver seen on the previous night in the full splendor of the moon. Would we be so fortunate on a cloudy night? The incredible thing about being out in the dark is that our eyes really do adjust and things begin to come out of the shadows!The r ods in our eyes do not reach their maximum sensitivity for about half an hour. But ...
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It has been too long since I posted. The weeks passed and surprised me - it has been well over a month! Winter has waned and then returned with a vengeance. Icy trails and mud replaced a snowy path for skiing. At Grafton a few weeks ago the trails were a mix of dirt and ice. Microspikes are a blessing! As I made my way around Long Pond, the pond spoke in cracks and groans. At times it sounded like the rumblings of an empty stomach. I imagined a water- being under the ice, groaning for the coming of spring, moaning to be released from the prison of ice. The ice on Shaver Pond was still 8 inches deep. I walked the length of the pond and talked to the ice fishermen who were squeaking out one last day before the ice would be unsafe. A perch and pickerel had been the catch of the day. Even though I like eating fish, I always feel bad for them as they are jerked out of their homes into a world where they can't breathe. The sufferings of other species often go unnoticed as w...
Sunday was a glorious ski on the Foxy Brown Trail in Piseco. The day brought a bright blue sky and bone-chilling temperatures of zero degrees. The winter woods is a mystic place. Snow and ice crystals clung to the trees and were dazzling in the sunlight.The earth is blanketed and slumbering. Animal tracks tell stories in the snow. I got to see some otter tracks - a first! The creature walked a bit, dragging its tail, then slid in the snow. Otters are so playful! There were also tracks of mice and rabbits. It feels like you can enter their world and walk with them on their journeys. Silent stories in the snow of mice and men and creatures in between. Common tales of tiny prints, seeking shelter, seeking food. Long shadows cast: tree and...
I spent time with my family in South Jersey over Christmas week. We were greeted every day with huge flocks of "blackbirds" mostly grackles. When I googled this phenomenon I found that this massing of the birds happens regularly. The birds are on their way south but stay around until snow cover prevents them from feeding. The grackles did make a din. Their wing beats and movements created a constant swishing sound. They chattered and then fell silent. Thousands of them. They moved to the oaks in my sister's woods, to the cornfield behind my other sister's house. The black cloud rose in a swarm depositing birdie "gifts" as they flew. People were amazed, but also fearful. There was real annoyance over the droppings on cars and decks and steps. Folks said it was eerie and reminiscent of the movie, The Birds. Some folks shot off guns to scare the birds away. I enjoyed the movement, the murmurations. I enjoyed seeing a huge flock of wildlife, perhaps like thin...
Christmas Bird Count
Yesterday I experienced my first Christmas Bird Count right here in Schenectady. I have always wanted to do this because the data that is collected is so important in protecting birds and their habitat. An expert birder who has been doing this for many years initiated me in the Count. We walked one site after another listening and looking for signs of birds. It was cloudy and cold, so we were challenged to stay with it for over 5 hours. It was very exciting to go on the "hunt" for birds. We really wanted to find a great horned owl, but no luck. We did see 5 species of woodpeckers: Downey, Hairy, Piliated, Yellow- Bellied Sapsucker and Red Breasted. That was a real treat. At one site we estimated a mob of 250 crows - American and Fish. They were making quite a din! That always means something is disturbing them; they are the sentinels of the forest. In this case, they had spotted a coyote! We counted many other species. I loved the mallards and common mergansers by ...
Sorry, it has been a month since posting. I have been having computer troubles! Yesterday, December 2 I went to 5 Rivers Environmental Center in Delmar. I was "celebrating" five years of my mom's going home to God. I always go to the woods for healing, solace, celebration, reflection. There I find peace, comfort, joy... Yesterday was cloudy but pleasant. The December woods are stark but still alive with tales of life and promise. The brown fields, the crunching leaf litter, and the soft, piney duff speak of things that have passed. Woodpeckers and crows were still busy. Deer in their dark winter coats came out to feed. Nature has no problem letting go and falling asleep after a job well done. Spring will come, green will return; songbirds will sing again. All that spoke to me of my mom and how I know I will experience the fullness of her presence once more and have the pleasure of her company, face to face!
Yesterday I hiked in the Northwest Bay area. It was a gentle four mile hike with some longtime hiking buddies. The day was crisp and needed layering. The woods were in the in-between of November - in between all the leaves down, all the plants brown with frost. The fern was luciously green. The moss, swollen with water, soft. I sunk my fingers into the sphagnum and club moss and touched a deep inviting world. Humans belong in the woods. A magic comes over us. We seem alive, curious, ready to play and share. We are subjects among subjects - kin to the trees and fern and moss. We don't need to own and hoard. There is enough of the coolness of moss, the music of flowing stream, the green of fern and foam flower, the tangy smell of duff and dead leaves, the rich ooze of mud. There is more than enough. And we rejoice!