Blustery Day

Hiking at the lake in 20 degree weather with winds gusting up-to 30 mph!
A Red-tailed hawk was hunting and winds created snowy twisters across the lake ice as snow squalls moved through the area. Gaige and I bundled up and had quite the adventure...   Wahoo!

Frost bite was not obtained in the making of the video

Snow twisters

 Red-tail hawk 

Gaige hanging onto his ball, which is getting blown away by the gusts

Snow twisters and a heavy gust approaching

Me bundled up!

Quiet day Friends

  Out hiking on this quiet, snow showery first day of winter, produced a Barred owl hunting and a Golden-crowned Kinglet

 

I'll have to say, it was a good day! 

Owling

 

Owling with Gaige...

 Gaige and I set out for a hike. It was a gloomy day, a great day to look for owls! 

Although we had a adventurous time, we didn't see nor hear any owls.

Willard Pond, NH

Willard Pond, New Hampshire

A hike on Tudor trail at Willard Pond...

 

It was breezy, mostly cloudy and in the 60's. It was a great day for a hike. The breeze kept the bugs off and the temperatures down. Gaige was in his Glory!

 As we started out, we came across a Eastern/Red-spotted Newt. It seemed cold and was hardly moving.

We continued on the trail which meandered through the woods by the edge of the pond. The woods were open and you could see all around. There where boulders that looked like they could roll down the hillside at any time.

 

We came across Lady slippers that were growing on-top of rocks and a  small sapling once taken down by a beaver,  now growing branches

 

I often think of my friend Jane when I come across tree cavities, although mine never seem to have animals nesting in them!

As we made it to the end of the trail, the trail opened up into a spacious pine-needle peninsula.  Gaige played in the water and we had a snack as Cedar waxwings and a Thrush kept company

Head plant...to retrieve stick!

Bald Mountain, NH

On the way back I noticed two different flowering bushes which I didn't see on the way out...incredible! Me not noticing something like this is unheard of!

June foliage? Yahoo!

Back at the car, Gaige decided to grab our orange that was placed by the Crocs as I was putting my  gear away, good thing oranges need peeling!     Love this dog!

Time Slips way...

Time slips away... and Sticks! Oh my...

 Wow! the end of March and the beginning of April? Where did the last week or so go?  Most of the snow is gone and the woodlands are very dry. The Great blue herons have been busy building their nest  as the Eastern bluebirds visit nesting boxes. In the meanwhile, the swallows catch bugs from above, the ducks and the geese voice their concern over me and my boys as we walk the edge of the swamp, while hawks and Turkey-vultures soar from up above.

Great Blue Heron on branch

 As the ice melts from the ponds and the boys take a dip, it is a true reminder that spring has sprung.

Now that most of the snow has melted and the sticks are available, Gaige has been finding some interesting sticks to carry. Although Hikah doesn't think so...

 

Gaige plowing through Hikah (ouch!) with stick, poor guy...

 Gaige even managed to get himself stuck with the stick, ground vs tree...

A one point Gaige came across a few different sticks he thought I would throw for him...yikes!

"How about this one mom"!

"This one"?

"Yes! that one Gaige"

Gaige was being silly with these sticks, at one point I had to leash them to walk down the street 100 feet to continue on the trail, Gaige had to bring the funky stick!

As you can see, we struggled with the stick...it got tangled and then some.

Hikah was not to impressed...

However we made it to the trail, released Gaige and off he went... Hikah still not all that impressed.

Gaige finally did give up on that stick and it laid lonely across the trail.

Hikah was surely happy and alert to see that stick left behind.

Hikah happy and Gaige in foreground, stick-less

"Click on picture for larger view"

New hiking area

A new hiking area...

I had a new place in mind that the boys and I were going to venture out into. I figured, if the area failed, then we could always return to one of our other spots near by. As we pulled into the parking area I noticed we had the place to ourselves, that is of course if no one living near by had hiked in. I decided we would walk the perimeter to get the most mileage and to get and idea of what the area was like.

Map of the area

We were all happy to be in a different area. The boys were exploring the area and all the different scents. You could just tell we we're all happy to be somewhere new!

Boys happy to be in a new area to explore

Me Happy and the sun in my eyes!

As we continued down our new path we encountered a very well-marked trial which went around the pond, followed a stream through some really nice forest and then continued to a ridge-line. It then dropped back down to the fields. The forest had a nice feel to it and it offered a lot of different types of vegetation and terrain.

Hikah along the stream

You think? Silly sign.

The boys and I at the pond

Swamp area

Nice running stream

Woodpecker tree and Hikah

Stream/wooded area

Variety of Conifers

We had perfect conditions. It was a little cold and a couple inches of snow covered the ground which I'd hope will keep the ticks away. The sun was out which made for a comfortable hike. This will go down as being one of my favorite areas, in Ma. It offers everything in an area (nice trails, pond, swamp, streams, ridge-line, terrain and vegetation) except an elevation view. Well... you just can't have it all! :)     Great time with my buds!

As always...(click on the pictures for a larger view)