Three-Season Mondate at Back Pond Reserve

October 26, 2015 ~ lmachayes ~ 5 Comments

OK, so it wasn’t three seasons all packed into one Monday date, but walking up the Mountain Trail at GLLT’s Back Pond Reserve in Stoneham today brought back memories of previous visits by my guy and me.

The woods are awash in golden-green yellows right now, especially where the trees include beech, big-tooth aspen and striped maple.

Climbing higher, variations of red join the carpet display.

We were surprised by how quickly we reached the summit, which is what got us recalling previous visits. Today, the water of three of the Five Kezars sparkled while Pleasant Mountain stood watch in the background.

As I looked through my photo files, I realized we have never hiked this trail in the spring. In the summer there are wildflowers to make us pause, and winter finds us exploring mammal activity–thus our treks are slower.

Today’s view included snow on Mount Washington, the grayish-white mountain located between the pines.

As we enjoyed the view, we topped off our PB&J sandwiches with the last couple of truffles we had purchased at Ganong Chocolatier in St. Stephen, New Brunswick, earlier this month.

And water, of course.

Instead of letting the arrows confuse us, we turned 180˚ and followed the connector trail between the Mountain and Ron’s Loop. It’s not on the map yet and still needs some work, but it’s full of surprises–only a few of which I’ll share right now.

We’ve always enjoyed this trail and today realized that though it’s much easier to follow than it was a few years ago, many trees have blown down along the way.

They’re easy enough to climb over. If you go, do know that there are two or three mucky spots along this trail as well, but again, easy to get around.

This lone red pine always makes us wonder. Perhaps it found its way here via a seed on a skidder?

Today we found moose tracks, plus red fox and coyote scat. If there was bobcat scat, it was obscured by the leaf litter, but we know they frequent this area.

We also know the bobcat’s favorite meal lives here–we saw this guy in early March and of course, always see his prints on winter treks.

A couple of fun finds along the way–artist’s conk, crowded parchment and an old lion’s mane.

The bridge on Ron’s Loop is all decked out with autumn colors–a contrast to its winter coat.

We’re forever thankful to Ron for his leadership and foresight,

even when we can’t see the plaque that honors him.

We met no other people on the trail today, but one of my fondest memories dates back two years when one of GLLT’s interns, Kendra, offered her arm to Jewell for a safe journey. Once upon a time, Jewell was Kendra’s Sunday School teacher and on this summer day, Kendra was Jewell’s guide.

As we walked into the parking area of Ron’s Loop, we noticed that someone had left behind a water bottle. If it’s yours, it’s still there.

Each time we visit, we take a moment to check out the wasp nest at the kiosk.

We can’t remember when we first noticed it, but it’s been there for a while.

One last thing to note before we walked back to the Mountain trailhead where our truck was parked–Magnolia coffee. Wish I’d ordered more than one this past year. Dark roast.

One Mondate–three seasons. And now the quest is to turn it into a four-season destination. Stay tuned.

Embracing Splashes of Color

October 10, 2015 ~ lmachayes ~ 6 Comments

Walk in the woods any day of the year and you’ll find color, but nothing beats a day like today.

Early this morning, I waited at the Holt Pond Preserve parking lot for Jon Evans of Loon Echo Land Trust. Well, I didn’t actually wait. I walked off the trail, taking in the morning sunlight on the red maple swamp–knowing we’d return to it later. By the time I arrived back at the parking lot, Jon was waiting for me–we hitched a ride to Bald Pate, where today’s adventure began.

Together, we lead eighteen people, including six Boy Scouts from Troop 149, to the summit of Bald Pate and back down, where we connected with the Town Farm Trail and continued on to Holt Pond.

As we climbed up Bald Pate, we paused to take in the western view. This week, the colors have popped.

The fall foliage was delayed because of September’s warm temperatures. Not only does less daylight trigger the chemical change in tree leaves, but a drop in temperature is also important. That being said, it doesn’t have to be cold enough to create a frosty coating.

The decreasing daylight hours and temps below 45˚ at night are signals to the leaf that it is time to shut down its food-making factory. The cooler night temps trap sugars made during the day, preventing them from moving to the tree. Once trapped, the sugars form the red pigment called anthocyanin.

As we witnessed along the Muddy River at Holt Pond, when the chlorophyll begins to break down, the green color disappears. This allows the yellows to show through. At the same time, other chemical changes may cause the formation of more pigments varying from yellow to red to maroon. While some trees, like quaking aspens, birch and hickory only show the yellow color, sugar maple leaves turn a brilliant orange or fiery red combined with yellow.

Not to be left out, the flowering witch hazel, pitcher plants and buttonbush display their own variation of colors.

Five hours and almost five miles later, we were back at the Red Maple Swamp I’d photographed at 7:30am.

The day was too beautiful to head indoors, so after a quick stop at home, I endured the Fryeburg Fair traffic and drove to the Gallie Trail at the Heald and Bradley Ponds Reserve in Lovell. My intention was a reconnaissance mission for next weekend’s Greater Lovell Land Trust hike to the summit of Whiting Hill.

On the way up, I scanned the beech trees, searching for bear claw marks and wasn’t disappointed.

The beech leaves have yet to take on their golden-bronze hue that lasts throughout the winter and appears like dabs of sunlight in the white landscape.

The maples, however, provide a brilliant contrast in the canopy.

It’s beginning to look a bit like . . . autumn from the summit.

One red maple was particularly dazzling.

This northern red oak provides a much more subtle hue,

while a white ash shows off its magenta-colored leaves.

A goldenrod continues to bloom and the bees know it. This one is doing a happy dance.

As I hiked down a different trail, the community changed and the striped maples dominated the understory

with their yellow-green leaves.

Similarly, the Indian-Cucumber root’s leaves have taken on its lime-green color of fall.

Splashes of color. Nature on display. How fortunate I am to be able to embrace these moments.

A Perfect Beech Day

May 7, 2015May 8, 2015 ~ lmachayes ~ 6 Comments

Eighty-some odd degrees, plenty of sunshine and a welcome breeze greeted a couple of friends and me as we explored the Sucker Brook Outlet Reserve on Farrington Pond Road in Lovell–certainly a beach day.