Beauty of the Quarry

The Redstone Quarry has a history that takes us back to the days when Burlington was a spot for mining Monkton Quartzite. Standing in front of the massive rock, I felt small and inferior. Looking up, I remember thinking about how long the rock has been there. Differing colors in the layers and parts of the wall that jut out tell me that the rock was formed long ago from sand deposits from the Iapetus Ocean. The rock has been a part of this landscape for centuries and has seen every change it has undergone. 

At the Redstone Quarry, I remember seeing houses and backyards very close. I even saw a child’s bike parked on the trail. “Private property” signs tell me that some of this land is public, and some belong to the residents. 

The Redstone Quarry rock was used as material to construct some UVM dorms on the Redstone Campus when it was a working quarry and mining area. 

By 1958, the area was not operating as a working quarry and the University of Vermont bought it. Now, it is used for research and as a place for geology students to explore and learn from. 

My new phenology spot, Peck’s beach in Ocean City, New Jersey has a rich history as well. John Peck bought the island in the 1700s to use as a storage place for whales that were caught. For a while, it served as a cattle-grazing area. Eventually, people began to inhabit the island and work as cattle farmers. Eventually, four Methodist ministers purchased the land and converted it into a Christian resort and camp. Today, we see some of the histories of land-use in Ocean City. Ocean City is a dry town still since it was bought by ministers. Beaches, flatlands, and vegetation layout space where cattle once grazed. Today, Ocean City and Peck’s beach are popular tourist destinations for summer vacation. 

Works Cited: 

My new phenology spot is very different than my spot in Burlington, Vermont. Home is Ocean City, New Jersey, an island off the coast of south jersey. I have chosen one of my favorite natural sights to explore: the beach. The beach has always been a huge part of my life. It gives me a place to run, swim, enjoy with friends, and meditate. When I visited this time, however, I went with a new set of eyes…the set I received from NR. I noticed things I haven’t observed so deeply before. At my new phenology spot, trees were swapped out for dune grasses, forest soil for sand, and open rock faces for jetty rocks. While they appear to be quite different, my original and new phenology spot share some similarities.

Both The Redstone Quarry and the beach provide habitats for a variety of bird species. Today at the beach I saw sandpipers and seagulls. They interact with the environment by eating sea animals and swimming in the ocean. At the Redstone Quarry, I remember seeing bluejays poking in and out of the foliage growing from the open rock faces. Both The Redstone Quarry and the beach are wide-open landscapes. They contain wildlife and plant life that provide nutrients and habitats for one another. I am excited to continue visiting the beach with my newfound Natural Resources knowledge.

Today when I visited my phenology site, things were more energetic and brighter than last time. It was sunny and a warm 65, compared to the last time I visited, which was cloudy and windy. Everything felt more alive today, even though it is later in the season and we are nearing winter. The birds and bees were active, and the rocks were warm from the sun. More leaves covered the ground, and the leaf litter seemed to be decomposing and stomped on more by travelers.

10/25

The quarry is undergoing changes as temperatures being to drop and fall continues to roll in. Many of the deciduous trees have lost their leaves, some have lingering yellow leaves, and few Northern-white cedars remain with leaves still in tact. Orange, brown, and yellow leaves blanket the ground. A number of blue jays were seen singing and flying in and out of the open rock face on the east edge of the quarry. Spider webs remain, but flying insects such as mosquitos were not present in the chilly wind. One squirrel and squirrel leaf nest was found, and chipmunks scurry across pathways.