At Salmon Hole, you are surrounded by busy traffic ways, a flowing river, and a small downtown Winooski. I was intrigued in choosing this specific phenology spot because I wanted to identify if the surrounding area, especially the Winooski river, had any effect on the phenology within the forest throughout the seasons. Within Salmon Hole, I chose the area at the bottom of the stairs. There is a large riparian buffer, and what seems to be a small stream that drains into the river right under the bridges. I am excited to study if any of these natural features alter the surrounding ecosystems over the next few months!
Common Woody Species Found
- Norway Maple
- Common Buckthorn
- Honeysuckle
- Intermediate Wood Fern
- Broad-Leaved Goldenrod
- Multiflora Rose
- Oriental Bittersweet
Woody Species Description & Other Observations
The woody species in the area are still fairly green, while the taller trees are starting to change color, or have already shed all of their leaves. There is about 60% ground coverage between all of the ferns and shrubs while the leaves are covering the majority or about 30% more of the ground. A lot of the shrubs such as the buckthorn, honeysuckle, and multiflora roses were intertwined with each other. These species were located closest to the riparian buffer as well. The tree species were spread throughout the area, including Norway and Sugar maple. They have slim trunks and stand straight with other fallen trees scattered in the forest.
The stream is currently clogged by the fallen leaves, so it was difficult to capture a picture of the flowing water. However, it is noticeable how the land slopes down from the busy rode at the top towards the Winooski river, most likely becoming the biggest source of surface runoff and soil erosion. I am interested to see if the there will continue to be a stream as the months get colder, or if it was present due to the amount of rain the past few days.
Directions
To get to Salmon Hole from campus, you can either take the bus to downtown Winooski and then walk, but for today, I walked to get there. From the main part of campus, you can start the walk towards the Medical Center and take a right on to Colchester Ave. From there, the walk continues straight all the way to the bottom of the hill, past Trinity Campus, until you reach Riverside Ave. When you take a left on to the street, you will notice the large sign for Salmon Hole as you walk down, if you take a few steps further you will notice a trail start to form into the woods. This will take you straight to the stairs, and at the bottom is where my phenology spot is!