January!!!

Welcome back to Trinity Woods 2020! The ground is covered with even more snow, but the paths are now as icy as ever most likely due to foot travel compacting the snow and refreezing. There were many tracks from small animals, mostly gallopers. By the looks of it, the tracks were of a gray squirrel and a snowshoe hare. The weather was at 31 degrees Fahrenheit, mostly sunny and not much wind. The hemlock stand featured a new fallen pine, but it was already dead before. The twigs I located were branches of an American Beech, a Silver Maple, and a White Walnut (Butternut). There was no signs of animals out and about at the time I traveled to the site. However, it was clear that life was abundant in these woods, even in January. The tracks and the tree buds indicate life in the area and make you feel right at home in a small natural area.

This is a twig of a Butternut Tree, characterized by the yellow-brown color and elongated terminal bud.