Instead of going into the main entrance of Centennial Woods, go to the parking lot down at the end of Carrigan Drive. Down by the plow near the edge of the woods, you will see a slightly overgrown trail. Take it. Veer right at the “T” intersection and follow the new trail deep into the woods. At the next “T” veer right yet again. Eventually, you will come to a spot where the foot-trail crosses below the power-lines, it is here where the phenology spot is. Notice how it feels like a meadow within the broader woods looking into a basin. It kind of is. The outskirts lined with new growth white pine, eastern hemlock, and older white oak with the interior being composed of very young eastern white pines, beech, white and red oaks, and a plethora of wild grasses. Here the land has been cleared to support the development of the power-lines and now represents more of a forest in its early succession. That’s why I choose it. Not only is on the far side of the side of the woods and fun/easy to get to, there is a stark contrast between here and the rest of the woods. Here, the human world butts into the woods in a way you can clearly observe.
