By Shea Hilton of Middleborough Massachusetts.
*If you have time bring a fishing rod or binoculars to pass the time and fish or bird
Follow this Nature Guide for Betty Neck and the cranberry bogs surround the area between Lakeville and Middleboro
Start as you drive down between the lakes in Lakeville and down the insanely bumpy road of Betty’s Neck. To start park your car/bike/truck or whatever you took to get here. Start by walking up straight through the Woods to Betty Neck Reserve (Go to 1). OR take a left before the trail goes into the woods and walk along the Cranberry Bogs (Go to 2) to an inlet on your right-hand side as you walk away from the parking area.
1) Betty’s Neck
Before you even walk up the path, take a moment to notice what is around you. An abandoned cranberry processing facility sits halfway hidden away by trees on your left hand side, looking at the woods. Dark wood still clings to the building as there are holes from where storms have damaged it and rotting has taken place. on your right-hand side, you can see the clear-cutness (Definitely not a word) of the cranberry bogs, and if it is the right time you will see people walking their dogs along these. As you start walking up this path here look up at the canopy of the trees and watch as sunlight creeps down into the forest floor. As you walk up the path, white pines and some birch trees dominate the forest. Look for an oak tree around these areas and notice the difference in leaves from those of the pines. What bird calls do you hear while you are in the forest? Songbirds fill the canopy with their music and red-winged blackbirds can be seen at the edge of the paths here. I know for the times I have been here I have been able to hear woodpeckers going at it on these trees as I walk towards the massive clearing that the path takes me to. As I step over roots growing alongside the path you step out into this sea of reeds and plants with a mowed walkway around the outside. Bird houses are lined all around as swallows swoop and chirp at each other in pretty immense numbers around this area. Short chrips chirps fill the air as in the summer and spring you can see mother birds bring food into their houses to feed their young. The photo I am going to send is a mother bird watching me and standing her ground as I walk by her. After you have made the loop around the reserve look to the ground as you walk on the path back. What plants and bushes are you noticing as you make your way back to your starting point.
2)Cranberry Bogs and lake
After you arrive or finish your walk to Bettys Neck Nature Reserve, walk along the side of the tree line and between the cranberry bog. Fair warning, bring sunscreen or a hat to protect from the sun and long pants or socks would be helpful in protecting against ticks. As you walk along the side of the cranberry bogs there are many places to look to find intoxicating nature. In the sky watch out for kites or other predator birds as they swoop these open areas looking for muskrats or other small prey. As you look down in the sandy areas near the edge of the bogs do you see anything moving? If you look close enough you might be able to see hoards of little bog spiders hustling and bustling around the bogs if they are flooded or in the actual cranberry vines of the bogs. As you walk on the edge of the cranberry bogs on the left-hand side, go to the water line which should appear about 200-300 ft from the start of your walk. Watch where you step here as little garden snakes slither around in the tall grasses here. Catch one safely if you find one, by pinching the area on the back of its head and holding them out in front of you! As you get and walk along the water line try and see if you can see fish in these waters. Sunfish, largemouth bass, perch, and pickerel are all found here. Cast your line a few times if you feel like it and have a rod. Just be careful for basking snapping turtles that lie out in the sun and quickly scamper back into the water when frightened as if caught, it will hurt them and mess up your line. About 500 ft from the start of the water, you will find a small red water pumping house that after it lets you turn right into an inlet into a large pond that you can walk along if you don’t mind getting a little mud on your shoes. Here you will find one of my favorite birds, the herring a lot as they wade and float atop the water. Mallards also swim in these areas as this inlet is surrounded by trees aside from a small driving/walking path that if you follow these directions correctly, you should be on. Here is where I will often sit, fish, lie down with a blanket, or just listen to music for an extended period of time. Here try to notice how the different birds and animals partition their shared space. Where are certain birds found? Why do these plants grow here and not over in the plains of Betty Neck? Why are snakes and spiders in the same area, but in different-looking locations here? Take time to reflect on your walk and experience and maybe write down something you would like to remember here.
Writing this as I do it myself really helps to visualize what the reader would be going through as they walk and read this guide. I loved it as I am able to show whoever is reading this, the spots I wanted them to see and that I enjoyed as a child growing up. Doing this also helped me to notice certain aspects of this site that I would more likely than not, ignore as I walk on past. It makes me take a second at every area and really get a feel for it. Like what is around here, what animals, trees, and plants call this area home? How is this area being used? It just really gets me to think of these natural areas in context to me and to human development as people often visit these areas here too. I want to thank you Laura for giving us this WonderBlog assignment because it was so helpful in awaking that initial “awe” I had when I was first shown these bogs and I asked all these questions while looking around in every nook and cranny here as a kid and is something I want to take the perspective for to use wherever I go.