Howdy, y’all! I made a choice yesterday. That choice was going to Centennial Woods even though it was about 3°F with windchills down under -10°F. I grabbed a buddy whose phenology site is also in Centennial, and we headed over in the afternoon, about 1:30-2:00 pm. Somewhere along the way, our eyelashes, eyebrows, and even some of my hair began frosting and freezing because of the condensation coming off our breath. Sorry, I’m still a little fixated on how damn cold it was.
Once I split from my friend and made it over to the always-lovely Hummingbird Point, I was somewhat disheartened to see that there were a lot of shoe prints all over my site. That being said, it didn’t stop me from getting some cool finds in and around my phenology site!
In terms of what’s actually alive at Hummingbird Point, not much has changed from my last post. The conifers are essentially the only green to be seen in the area, and on my side of the marsh, it’s mostly Eastern Hemlocks dominating the scene. Since coming to Vermont, Hemlocks have kind of found a place in my heart. When I first learned about them in class and how to ID them, I went home for Thanksgiving break and quickly realized we have a very young hemlock in our yard; an ID I could only make because of NR 1. These trees are strong, hearty, stay green year-round, are very shade tolerant, and can live to be 800 years old. That’s just mind-boggling. Yeah I don’t know how else to explain it; I guess I have an affinity for them now, and I always look for those simplistically beautiful two white stripes of stomata on the underside of their little but numerous leaves.
Alrighty now the bread and butter of winter in New England as a budding phenologist: tracking! Conditions weren’t great for tracking when I was there, quite frankly. Snow was powdery, and winds had blown away the definition of the few tracks that could be seen. That being said, there were definitely signs that something had been active in the area, and it’s relatively safe to assume some of the tracks were of the same species I believe were active there before winter break: coyotes, foxes, and squirrels. Even if it’s pretty hard to tell what was there, I like seeing and knowing SOMETHING was there; the outdoors are for everyone and everything.
While I always love making my way to Hummingbird Point, it was a little too cold to be fully enjoyable there yesterday. I always try to take my time there, to relax and take in the environment around me, but when your ears and fingers hurt even with a hat and gloves, –albeit, not of the most amazing quality– you don’t necessarily want to take your time. That being said, I spent a few minutes doing something I haven’t done before but have wanted to do since being introduced to Hummingbird Point; I walked out into the marsh. The layers of snow had build up undisturbed in the marsh, and without all the plant growth and water and mud, it was pretty easy. The setting sun always lights the spot up the most beautiful colors making everything more vibrant, and although I wasn’t quite there for the sunset, I did get a few pictures I’m kinda fond of. Check ’em out!
Alrighty, y’all that’s all I got for this trip to Hummingbird Point, but it sure is a beautiful place. I’m glad we all have a place like Centennial Woods so close to campus; it’s nice for getting away from it all for a little bit. I hope you enjoyed the pictures and videos, –this old soul is finally learning how to use basic technological functions– and words can’t describe how excited I am for the spring at Hummingbird Point, in the marsh, and throughout Burlington.
Peace and love 🤙🏽