Hike in New Hampshire

I continue to hike in the woods and take pictures at Monson Village, Beaver Brook, and up North to see animals, birds, scenery, etc.   I wish I could tell you I take pictures of unique subjects no one has seen before ... like a White Water Lily ... or a Blue Bird ... WAIT ... how about this Water Snake or this Dragonfly.

Am I the first to take a picture of a Frog ...the Monarch Butterfly is rare ... NOT ...


I WANT ACTION SHOTS.  Something unique ... a different angle. 




This Blue Heron coming in for a landing had more action. 

I WANT TO SEE A BEAR IN THE WOODS !!!  WITHOUT USING THE NEIGHBORHOOD BIRD FEEDER ... WHERE ARE THE MOOSE ... YES I KEEP SEEING DEER IN THE FIELDS BUT THEY DON'T COUNT ... although they are pretty and the bucks are in velvet. 

I need apples, bird seed, corn, Frank's food plot ... or $25 to purchase one ticket to the ZOO !!


Now that I vented ... my hikes will continue ...

Monson Village - Great Blue Heron

I went to Monson Village to see if the Great Blue Heron were building nests. 

I counted 6 nests that were being built.  I saw Blue Heron flying around retrieving branches then arranging them in the nests.

It appeared like there were more birds than nests so there must be others around that I couldn’t see.  The birds were paired up and seemed to be coddling one another.

I caught these 2 in the act !!!

I don’t know the timings of eggs being laid then hatchlings, etc.  I will wait another month or so and go back to see if I see little bird heads sticking out over the top of the nests.

They blend in so well and were difficult to spot with the trees and branches in the background. 

Stay tuned ...

A Quick Hike in Monson Village

It was a cool windy day with clouds rolling by.  I thought I would take a quick hike at Monson Village to see the Great Blue Heron in their nests.

I counted 11 nests this year.  The distance to the nests, the mostly grey sky, the color of the trees, and the bird colors all blending together, made it difficult to spot the birds without a zoom or binoculars.  I had both.

Birds in flight can be interesting.  I watched and waited long enough to see a couple Heron make their approach and land by their nests.

I saw a couple geese also.  The prior year I didn't see any geese or ducks.

I didn't expect to see synchronized swimming on my walk in the woods?

The Heron were paired up.  Each nest had one of the pair sitting.  I saw no little ones in the nests so the eggs have not hatched yet.  When not moving around in the nest it is hard to make out anything but a head and beak.  I spotted a couple heron on the ground gathering more nest material.  I may return in a few weeks to look for the youngsters.

As I headed for my jeep, dark clouds rolled in.  Unexpectedly, it started to hail.  Hail makes lots of noise in the woods!  Once I cleared the woods to the open field, the hail slowly turned to rain so I picked up the pace.  I wasn't expecting to get wet with my camera and all.  Next time I will check the weather report and plan better.

Monson Village - Hollis/Milford line

I occasionally drive the back roads of Hollis with my kids looking for deer, etc.  While driving on Federal Hill Road (near the Hollis/Milford town line) I passed a gate across a dirt road leading into the woods and would occasionally see cars parked at the entrance.  One afternoon I decided to take a walk to check it out.   I grabbed water, GPS, knife and a multi-tool and headed down the trail.

A few hundred yards from the road there was a sign for Monson Village (about 300 acres).  Turns out it is a old settlement from the 1700's.  Some large fields, trails, nice rock walls and bench's throughout the area.  A great place for a picnic.
There are old homestead foundations from settlers in the 1700's.  They have made small signs by many of the foundations that talk about each family that settled there.  One person’s son was killed in the Battle of Bunker Hill in Boston.  My guess is in those days most men able to carry a gun were in the militia.  I enjoy the history of the New England area.

I took one trail and ended up at a beaver pond with a couple beaver mounds.  I saw 5 blue heron nesting in the trees.  The first time it took me a while to see the birds.  It was very windy and all I could see was a yellow beak protruding from the nest. The second time I visited I saw this heron perched near a nest.
My old friend Bill H. is an avid birder and WWII vet. He always tells me about the different birds he sees. He knows so many by sight and has his bird books all marked up.

It's 2 miles round trip to the heron nests.  Bill is in good shape for a 93-year-old but said he can't walk that distance. I will figure out another way to get him in there as I think he would enjoy seeing them.  I wish I had a Rokon Trailbreaker.

I will take more pictures as the flowers come out. This is a pretty place to check out and have a picnic.




UPDATE: I was able to take Bill through the woods to the beaver pond.  I picked him up in my Silverado and drove down the path, across a field, over a rock wall, and into the woods.  There were some tree roots and rocks which made things a bit bumpy but the path wasn't particularly steep.  The real challenge was the narrow trail with trees on both sides.  I had to fold in my side mirrors.  At one point I had about 4 inches to spare on each side of my truck trying to maneuver through the trees.  Kevin was in the back bed helping to guide me as I had no side mirrors.  It's not often I wish I still had my narrow Ford Ranger.

I parked about 75 yards from the pond and we walked the rest of the way.  At the beaver pond, Bill saw the Heron in their nests.  He brought his binoculars and a spotting scope.  Bill and Kevin spotted several other birds which Bill identified and told us all about.  He also pointed out the different plants around the pond.  He seemed to really enjoy himself.  We saw more birds in the trees next to the rock walls by the fields on our way out.  Bill said, "this place is a gem!"     Thanks Russ!

The last time I went to the beaver pond the flowers were blooming from the lily pads.  There was no wind and very quiet. Every 5 minutes or so I would hear a frog go jumping across the top of the lily pads.  When I took the picture I was focused on the 3 flowers and neglected to see the snake at the bottom.  If I saw it I would have followed it around to see if it would catch something.  That may explain the frogs moving around.