Wednesday, February 23, 2022

HUNTLEY MEADOWS ON MONDAY, FEBRUARY 22ND, 2022

Well, the squirrels sounded like Hannibal crossing the Alps as Gregg put it.  They were very loud.  We have two trees that are overhanging the roof, one in back and one in front where they have a nest.  We have made a call to the same man who cut our other two down.  Not to remove them but a good trim so that they will not touch the house.  Our furry friends will have to take the longer way around, and we won't hear the sound of elephants crossing the alps waking us up in the morning!  And we don't want them chewing through the roof and taking up residence in the attic, bless their furry cotton socks.It was gorgeous on Monday (65 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit).  Blue skies and Huntley Meadows was calling to us.  The rest of the week is going to be rainy.  The photos above and below I took because of the single leaf caught in a tangle of branches.  The splash of red in all that brown got my attention and begged for a photo.  I notice these things.  I would have taken a better photo of that leaf, but someone forgot to put the battery back in the camera after they recharged it last night.  Not pointing any fingers but I saw that person in the mirror this morning, still rolling her eyes!  The battery is now back where it belongs.All my photos were taken with my cell phone, which is my camera of choice these days, unless I want to get closer to the wildlife, and you know what happened there.  These phones are getting better and better for taking photos.  I do need to get a better holder for it, so that I can grab it more securely.  Do any of you have one for your phone that you can recommend?  I have been looking for a while.The first thing we noticed at the park was how high the water level was.  It had extended further towards the wooded path we take to get to the wetland.  Of course, the water birds are loving it.  I cropped the ones of the ducks below from the photo above.

The park's Beaver population has been busy! Below you can see one of their lodges.  I read some are big enough to fit a human inside.  It looks small but a lot of it is built under water, so who knows.  This particular lodge some time ago, almost covered the bench at the start of the walkway, but gradually the park people managed to reduce the lodge back to this size.  Otherwise, I think that lodge would have extended across the walkway, covering the bench completely and blocking the path to the wetlands.
Here's Gregg standing next to the bench where we often sit. You can about make out a couple of smaller tree stumps that have been nibbled to a point.  More clearly if you enlarge.
We arrived at 4.00 p.m., wanting to get photos when the sun was lower in the sky.  The parking lot was packed.  Also, the road leading down to the park was lined with cars parked on the side of the road for about half a mile.  We were lucky as there was one parking space near the entrance. Otherwise, we would have turned around and gone at another time.  It was Presidents Day.  We had forgotten many would not be at work.
Wire fencing was wrapped around several of the trees to protect them, as you can see from the one above.  Many trees in the park had orange marks, identifying those to be cut down. An industrious beaver had had a good nibble.  I don't think it would have been much longer for that tree to topple.  
For safety reasons I'm sure, as it was right next to where people walk every day, it had been cut down.  There were many of them like this.
The following is a photo from one of my old posts. I have seen them here but there were none today, still a little bit too early I think.

I read that Beavers form monogamous pairs and usually live in family groups of up to eight related individuals called colonies. The younger siblings stay with their parents for up to 2 years, helping with infant care, food collection, and dam building.  Talking of which, you can just about see a dam in the lower part of this photo.

Next is the root system of an old tree, the felled trunk out of sight.  It was much bigger at one time but it is slowly disintegrating back into the water.
Gregg is on the right in the next photo, and we are at the point where we decided to turn around and go back on a quieter day.  It sounds silly I know, but I was getting a bit nervous of an adult or child running or bumping into me.  I had already had a couple children doing just that.  The boardwalk isn't wide enough if all of a sudden you come across a group of people who are staring at something that catches their attention.  One person stops and suddenly you have a lot of them looking in the same direction. I didn't want to be knocked over the side!  I can't dodge that fast any more even if I saw anyone coming.  I had visions of swimming with the fishes, and the toads, and the snappers, and everything else in that murky water.  Yes, I'm exaggerating somewhat, but the thought crossed my mind as I heard yet again a parent telling their children to slow down, watch where they were walking/running, as they made their way around me.  Dodgem cars anyone?  Not that I begrudge these children and their parents enjoying this glorious day.  It is a great place for a seed to be sown in a child, to enjoy nature in their early years, better still to learn how to protect it, and maybe watch out for the older ladies who may be in the way.
So, back towards the car we went, having had a thoroughly enjoyable time, and knowing that we would be able to come back at any time the weather was agreeable.  I feel very blessed that this place is only a short car ride away.  We passed this lovely dog, what a beauty!  
The rest of the photos are sights we saw on the way back through the wood.





This is the visitor center on our right as we pass by. We always know we are a short distance away from our car.
A few photos on our way home.  It was a lovely sunset but I had missed the full onset.







That's all for today.  Thanks for visiting and a very happy Wednesday to you all.




43 comments:

  1. The leaves look like some kind of holly. And a couple photos look like you were in a swamp! I do not blame you for being afraid. I would have been as well, my balance is very, very bad now! Return when the children are in school. My favorite today has to be the glorious sunset framed inside the underpass! Superb.

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    1. Hi Ginny, it's very marshy once you get out of the wood, and the walkway takes you along about a mile if that. I'm not as steady as I used to be so I will be going on a quiet day next time :) I liked that underpass too. We were stopped at a traffic light when I took the photo.

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  2. Wonderful photos. Looks like a beautiful day. I've never forgot to put the battery back in the camera but I have forgotten to charge it and I've forgotten to put the SD card back in.

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    1. Thanks Ann, it certainly was and is today also. We have all the windows open letting some warm air in for a change. Back to rain tomorrow. I have forgotten both camera card and battery at different times :) Hopefully this is a reminder not to do that again for a very long time ;)

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  3. I like being outdoors too...WITHOUT the rambunctious kids!!! That's one of the best parts of being retired...you can choose the quiet times to go out.
    I'm sure I could sit on that boardwalk bench a good long time and let the day pass...awesome trek. I'm glad I went along.

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    1. Like minded, thanks Anni, and isn't that the truth? Happy you enjoyed, thank you :)

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  4. Hello,
    It is great you were able to get out for a walk and enjoy the warm weather.
    Huntley Meadows is a very popular park. Love the ducks and the cute dog. The sunset is beautiful. Take care, enjoy your day!

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    1. It is very popular Eileen, and usually we avoid the weekends but forgot about the bank holiday. Thank you and you take care and enjoy your day, and the rest of the week, also :)

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  5. what a goregous place and those trees are all magnificent. not able to zoom on the red leaf would have made me crazy. I once put the battery in but let the SD car on the table and was dumb enough to take photos that were in the camera but no way to get them out. i was broken hearted. I could not walk on that board walk without fencing.

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    1. Ah, that must have been frustrating Sandra, I know the feeling. It is a gorgeous place, even when there is nothing blooming and the trees are bare. Still a wonderful place to be in this season as well as the others :)

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  6. The weather has been so lovely and you certainly picked a good day to visit Huntley Meadows. The boardwalk is not a place to fall in and I would have been wanted to mosey back as well, Denise! Beavers are so interesting and so industrious. Thank you for sharing your outing. I always enjoy your commentary and your photos!

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    1. You are very welcome and thanks Martha Ellen, so glad you enjoyed my post. We think alike on moseying back to the car :) It was gorgeous today also but didn't go anywhere.

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  7. You choose a good day weather-wise, Denise, and like yourself, we also prefer less crowded visits to our nearby park. It is not fun to dodge people on a narrow boarwalk no matter how food one’s balance can be, and falling unintentionally is a concern for most people. The beavers are certainly busy critters.

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    1. Hi Dorothy, we certainly did and I agree with you. I have had my falls, one not so long ago, and I was listening to my instincts on this outing :) Those beavers are always busy and generally the park people like the natural order of things which I applaud, but one too many nibbled trees where people walk, spurred them into action.

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  8. The dog is a friendly face.


    Beaver dams and lodges are fascinating structures.

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    1. He did, thanks William. I could have adopted the sweet little thing :)

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  9. Wetlands always hold interesting things so lots of good photos.

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    1. They certainly do, I love to go in every season :) There's always something interesting to observe.

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  10. Nice day out. I don't like beavers. Thank God they don't exist here in Hawaii.

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    1. Now you made me laugh about the beavers Gigi. When we rented a house for a year while looking for a home in our area, we lived on a lake with a lot of trees. There was also a beaver family who kept toppling much prized trees. My temporary neighbors didn't think they were very cute :)

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  11. Nice to see the weather warming up!

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  12. Looks like a good visit except for all the people. Nice thing about being retired is that you can pick and choose when to see things.

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  13. I have an old phone and I seldom use it for photos. You have done a good job here though. We have owls dancing on our roof at night!! They originally built their nest under our tiles but we had to block the hole up as they were staining our ceiling!!
    Spring is getting closer but not yet close enough! Keep well Diane

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    1. Thank you Diane, and how interesting about your owls. You keep well also, and roll on Spring :)

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  14. I'm so glad you had a nice day out Denise. The photos are beautiful and I love seeing the work of the beavers. Can't see anything like that around here! Enjoy the rest of the week. :)

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    1. Thank you Martha :) and happy you enjoyed. You enjoy the rest of your week also.

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  15. I would love to visit this wetlands, but I would want to go when there were few people there. I would want the peace and quiet...never mind the risk of getting knocked about.

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    1. Hi Rose, we are in agreement :) and going back when we know it will be quieter.

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  16. We're alike then Linda, on both counts :) Cell phones are wonderful aren't they? And getting better and better as time goes on.

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  17. Beautiful. And now we're looking at totally different weather tomorrow. So crazy!

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    1. Thanks Linda :) It is strange weather isn't it?

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  18. I've left it rather late to comment, but want to say that I enjoyed seeing where you walked in Huntley Meadows. It sounds a popular place and a good one to see signs of interesting beaver activity. :)

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    1. So glad Linda, it's always interesting, with all kinds of wildlife but the beavers are a favorite :)

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  19. So nice that you are able to get to that beautiful park late in the afternoon -- good light and then the sunset! And I'm glad you had a nice-weather day in between winter days. Beavers are so interesting -- we see evidence of them often, but have only seen them maybe twice in all the time we've spent outside.

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    1. Thank you Sallie :) I used to see them a lot at a local pond, but we haven't been back there in a while. Time to go :)

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  20. What a beautiful park! I would love to spend a day there, enjoying some sunshine, nature and maybe a picnic :-))

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  21. i did chuckle at your description of the squirrels. we cut 2 trees down that were exactly as you described, it really bothered me to do so but we were also worried about them coming down/on to the house during a storm. i do not have a phone case and have thought about getting one but have never looked in to it, i should have one, i usually use a pocket.

    it was 72 degrees on wednesday, did i tell you that in my last comment?? we went to a local park/reservoir to enjoy the sunshine and blue skies. lovely pictures, i always enjoy parks that have a lot of "natural" areas. it looks like those beavers have been busy. i especially enjoyed that sunset!!!

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    1. Wow, that's wonderful Debbie! You may have mentioned it, I'll have to go take a look, about the 72 degrees. Glad you enjoyed our park. I'm always enjoying your photos. Your birds are super sharp and look fabulous :) can't wait to see your butterfly pics too when it gets more into the heat.

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