Friday, July 13, 2018

Middlebury Land Trust

It's been pretty hot here in recent days, so I haven't felt much like going out. Lately, I've been making jokes about taking "snow baths." Is that really a thing?  Actually, I don't care for either extreme. I'd be happy if temperatures were around 65°F to 70°F all year.  (Would I like a little cheese with that whine?)  😉

This morning, we left the house early to get in a short walk.  We headed down the road to a Middlebury Land Trust property. As we walked in, the treetops were alive with bird songs. 

After passing under the canopy of trees, the area opens up. There is a strip of grass flanked by two ponds. 

Sperry Pond was covered with lily pads and flowers.


I didn't see this Green Heron first, when my husband, Lee was trying to tell me where to look. "See that lily pad that is turned up? It's near that."  Um... Did you see how many lily pads there are?  😎 I looked and looked - nothing! I began to look for it through the camera lens, instead of the naked eye. Wouldn't you know, the first moment that I put the camera to my eye, the bird was perfectly centered in the lens! Purely accidental. 


I spotted these Bumble Bees on Steeplebush flowers

Since my last visit, the Queen Anne's Lace flowers have bloomed

Swamp Milkweed. There used to be a lot more of these plants at the pond. The butterflies and dragonflies were everywhere. It isn't the case anymore. I saw none this morning.

I'm not sure what this flower is. The open flowers are similar to Hydrangea. If you know what this is, please jump in. 

Even when these roses aren't open, the fragrance is wonderful

Meadowsweet 

Buttonbush

This Great Blue Heron flew in

And spent some time pretending to be a statue. 

Another Wild Rose, this one a little more open, and a wee bee within

 Joe Pye Weed

For all the songbirds that I heard in the trees, none of them made themselves visible. All in all, it was a nice morning.  

Have a very pleasant weekend, hopefully, finding some time to enjoy a little of the nature around you. 

Until next time.  





Friday, July 06, 2018

Into the Rain to Cheer Up!

I woke up this morning, and as I was drinking my coffee, I watched the news and checked my email. It didn't take long to decide that I had made a mistake. I turned it off.  I looked out the window. It was overcast and beginning to rain. The weather matched my mood. I decided to snap out of it and head outside for awhile. Rain? Thunder? Phooey!  Who cares? Nature was waiting for me and I had to show up!

We drove to Litchfield and hit some of our favorite spots.  We're fortunate to have some places we can visit and not really have to get out of the car. There are many trails and paths to take on the good days, but when the weather is bad, some of those places offer opportunities right near the car, which is nice.

The first thing I saw was this Great Blue Heron. I was tempted to get out of the car, but the rain was starting to come down a little harder.  It was good enough just to enjoy watching the bird.

Across from the heron was this Belted Kingfisher. A crummy photo, backlit against a bright gray sky, but that's okay. My "go-to" comment is always, "At least we got to see it." 

We moved on to another little pond where we spotted this female Wood Duck. I was hoping that a male would come along, but he never showed up.

The road we were on is flanked by two small ponds, and this Mallard was standing on the other one, grooming.

Red-winged Blackbirds. 
Is there anything more fun than watching baby birds being fed? 

We sat there for awhile as the Daddy and young one interacted

 Soon it was time for the Dad to take off, much to the chagrin of the baby who just insisted, "More, more, more!"  

"Hey, where did Dad go? He left me!"  

While I was watching the birds, Lee suddenly exclaimed, "Whoa! I just saw a deer run across the road. It was a young one." Well, we looked for it, but didn't see it again. 

A short distance down the road, we spotted this family of geese. They were way too close to the edge of the road to be safe. Mama was keeping close watch over these toddlers, who will soon be on their own.

I spotted some wildflowers and got out of the car to snap a pic or two. Fresh raindrops on this Daylily.

Cow Vetch. 
If I'm remembering correctly, as children, we used to suck the sweet nectar out of the center.

Chicory. It seems a bit early, but maybe not. Time just flies!  
Speaking of "time," it was time to head off again.

Normally, I don't like to disturb families, but in this case,  I apparently did when I got out of the car for the flowers.  It was probably for the best that I spooked her a little. She shooed her youngsters into the grasses, a little more off the road.

We decided to head over to the community garden. On the way, we spotted this little bunny. We sat and watched it for awhile as it nibbled on White Clover.

There is something about this garden that is always so welcoming and cheerful.

 There were a few things in bloom, but things there seem to be late this year. 

I don't think as many people took part in planting it this year. That has resulted in a significant drop in the birdlife there, too. It's a garden where we generally will seen loads of finches and bluebirds, among other birds. Not so far this year. 

But, the flowers are so pretty that it's still a nice visit. The colors bring my mood up and soon I'm old self again.

What was left of this Poppy was such a pretty color.

It was raining harder again. I snapped this pic as I stood by the car door. I took one last look at the garden, closed the door, and we headed back home. All of this in one morning. It was time for lunch. 

Until next time. 😊