Quiet, but Eventful

I am tired of shoveling snow off of everything, off the driveway, off the walks, off the deck, off the roof, off the foundation (after I shoveled it off the roof), I just needed to some time for myself with my camera.  Bundled in all my winter hiking gear, it was a frigid 16F as I left the house for Great Meadows.   

With each successive storm, it appears fewer and fewer people venture out to hike the trails at Great Meadows.  However, since Wednesday's storm there had been a couple of skiers and snow-shoers who had blazed a path.  

It was a very quiet morning.  There weren't many birds.  The kiosk's last entry was from 1/28.  The water by the bridge was 1/2 way frozen over & the marsh wrens were no longer there.

With not a lot to see, I focused on details.  The frost on the branches.  Plants buried in snow.  Noticing how the weathered snow is starting to get more crystalline, icy and crunchy.

As I walked out towards the observation platform, you could see tell tale signs from the coyotes.  There were the weaving tracks across the snow and a place where one started to dig for something.  What was interesting is that the frozen snow was starting to bear their weight, with most of the foot prints just in the most recent dusting of snow.

Out by the observation deck, the trail begins to narrow significantly as most people didn't continue on past there.  Stopping to rest, I started scanning the impoundments for anything interesting.  At first, it was dead still.  But then on the far side of the upper impoundment I noticed something in the distance.  At first I thought it was just one of the duck boxes, but I broke out the binoculars to get a clearer look.   Then it moved.  That was no duck box, it was a coyote.  Continuing to scan the horizon, I noticed another, and then a third coyote.  

Of course, wouldn't you know that today, I decided to travel light.  My 50-500mm lens was resting comfortably at home.  The distance was a bit far for my 70-300mm even with the 1.4 extender.  But since these were the first coyotes that I've seen outside of captivity, I took some shots for posterity.  It seemed like they have acute hearing.  They stopped to look at me whenever my shutter clicked.  They appeared somewhat bothered, but seemed more interested in foraging for food.

If I wasn't able to get a career shot, I might as well observe them more closely.  So I hiked back to the tower, to use the telescope, to get a better view.  (I should have brought my shovel, but I kicked snow off of most of the stairs.)   One of the coyotes wandered off, while the other two wandered around hunting.  One spent quite a bit of time in the reeds, near the woods, while the other wandered across the middle of the upper impoundment.   I was able to watch them for probably 45 minutes to an hour.

Up in the tower, they didn't seem so bothered by my camera.  I was able to use the telescope as a monopod to brace my camera.  One of the coyotes, wandered closer, so I was able to get these shots.  They are still extreme crops, but still worth sharing.

Just as I was packing up to head home, the Massachusetts Fish & Wildlife folks arrived.  They were there to maintain the duck boxes they couldn't get to in the fall because they were too tall, too muddy, etc.  They check each box, note if it had been used, clean it out, put in fresh sawdust, and made any repairs / replacements as appropriate.  They loaded up three sleds full of stuff and dragged it off into the marsh to begin their work.  (I always wondered how the duck boxes got there.)

A Crystalline Morning

At long last, there was no new snow to shovel.  No bitter cold that would freeze skin in minutes.  So this morning it was time to bundle up, strap on the snow shoes and see what was new at Great Meadows.  


I'm glad I got there fairly early.  The sun was still low in the sky, reflecting off the snow and hoarfrost clinging to the trees and plants making them sparkle.  A few hours later that frost was all scattered at the base of the plants.









Several people had been cross country skiing or snowshoeing since the storm ended yesterday, so I didn't have to totally break new trail.  However, the further you got from the parking lot; the less traveled the path.  On the back side of the lower impoundment, someone decided to grace the trail with a snow angel.








I didn't see a lot of animal activity.  Black-capped chickadees were pretty prevalent.  The quiet of the morning was broken by quite a few blue jays constantly scolding me for visiting.  Later in the morning their calls were replaced by the constant calling of crows.


By the tracks in the snow you could see where the coyote made the rounds of the impoundments and the river looking for food after the storm.  It looks like he personally visited each of the muskrat and beaver lodges hoping to gain a meal.






Completing a loop of the lower impoundment, I ventured back to the bridge on the dike to see if any creatures were hanging around the open water.  Unfortunately, before I could get within camera range, the Great Blue Heron saw me an flew away.  I'm still shut out in my quest to get a good shot of it in the snow.  


However, the Marsh Wrens were feeding and drinking from the water.  It was great to finally get a good photo of one.  I guess in the winter they are a lot less camera shy.  Last summer, they tortured me, constantly calling from the reeds, but rarely making themselves visible for more than a brief moment.

A Quiet Morning

Waking up early, I was motivated by the pretty sunrise, and the moon setting in the early morning light to get up and get going.  The weather is supposed to be poor the next couple days, so I high tailed it to GMNWR to see what was up.

Strapping on my cross country skis, I was soon skiing up the old railroad bed.  The only noise was the sound of my skis.  It was a quiet morning.  There were no signs of life at last year's screech owl nest, no woodpeckers on the Timber Trail, and only a few chickadees chattering way off in the distance.  As I neared the impoundment, I could hear several crows mobbing a hawk off in the woods, but there was still nothing to see.

Skiing around the impoundment, there were signs of mammal life - fresh rabbit and coyote tracks, probably some others that I didn't recognize too, but no mammals.  There was the occasional sparrow or chickadee to photograph, but nothing special.  So I entertained myself photographing the cat tails beaten down by the wind and decorated with snow.  

Nearing the holt, I started to encounter some photogenic downey woodpeckers in the trees.  Continuing on, there was one very determined (and probably hungry) chickadee working over the cat tails.

Since the sun was warm, rather than returning to parking lot, I followed the path along the upper impoundment.  Boy am I glad I did!

As I approached the bench I noticed small birds flying around.  So when I got there I just stopped and sat.  After a while they started to return.  Boy was I glad they did.  Six to eight Eastern Bluebirds returned to feast upon the Winterberries.  Once they got used to my presence, they were more interested in eating that worrying about me and my camera.