I watched him marching across the back field, chest puffed up like a proud warrior returning from a victorious battle. His long wings dragged on both sides, and he strutted with all the bravissimo of a young matador.
As spring unfolds around us, enjoying a sunny, warm walk outside is a pleasure that can be sullied by few things, save a few pests: bugs, scary dogs, garlic mustard.
Whether you are a forest manager, landowner or enjoyer of the outdoors, it can be intimidating to know your role in the management of our forests.
Meeting in surreal circumstances, the Charlotte Selectboard decided during an emergency meeting on April 2 to postpone a scheduled April 7 vote on the town budget and town trail funding. In order to comply with Governor Phil Scott’s Stay Home, Stay Safe order, the board unanimously agreed that it was in the best interest of Charlotters as well as town election officials to postpone voting until it can be conducted in a safe manner that meets all legal requirements.
We dress like bank robbers to grocery shop. We can’t visit or hug our loved ones. Too much screen time anyone? Fear. Confusion. Isolation and loneliness for some; way too much togetherness for others. Getting outdoors can help us stay sane—and healthy! Herewith are some ideas, prohibitions, constraints.
Right now, our world is struggling with the unknown. We have not faced more uncertainty, fear, anxiety and concern for humanity in many generations. Our faith is being tested like never before.
On March 14, the Charlotte Energy Committee co-sponsored a walk in the Hinesburg Town Forest with a discussion by the Chittenden County Forester Ethan Tapper (fourth from right in this photo), and Dr. Tony D’Amato of the University of Vermont.
With the vernal equinox on March 19, spring arrives. Snow could bury us any day, yet birds serenade at all hours and steam rises from sugarhouses. Crocuses and snowdrops elicit smiles. On warm rainy nights amphibians venture from winter homes to breeding territory- bodies of water.
In Vermont, we’re “Forest Strong.” Our 75% forested landscape constantly endows us with gifts: clean air, clean water, wildlife habitat and carbon sequestration and storage, to name a few. It also produces opportunities for forest-based recreation like skiing and mountain biking and supports local economies that thrive on these industries, all while making Vermont a beautiful place to live, work, and visit.
The last week of February and the first two weeks of March are one of my favorite times in winter. The days are growing longer, the sun is higher in the sky, and the breezes begin to carry the promise of warmer days ahead. And most importantly the Great White Perch season is in full swing!
How is it that sometimes our eyes don’t see things, things in plain sight? How many times have I driven or pedaled past signs that barely register! Small blue and orange signs announcing, “Ahead of the Storm, Stormwater Resilience Demonstration Site,” have become part of my Charlotte wallpaper.
If you’ve ever walked in Vermont’s woods, chances are that you’ve stumbled upon a “wolf tree.” These giants of the forest are hard to miss; massive, gnarled trees with huge lateral branches extending from their trunks. They are called “wolf” trees because they were once standing in the middle of an open field, like a “lone wolf.” Their unusual form is due to their lonely nature — with no adjacent trees to compete with, they stretched their branches out to reach light in every direction.
It’s in the single digits on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and it’s pretty quiet around Charlotte. The occasional car or brave cross-country skier is around, but for the most part it’s a day for the indoors—unless you’re at the Charlotte public ice-skating rink. Not many people get excited about days of freezing temperatures, but Bill Fraser-Harris isn’t one of those people.
Short of getting on an airplane, how do we cope with winter? Crank up the woodstove, invest in a therapy light, strap on winter traction devices….? Critters have some remarkable strategies. Read on!
A trip to Essex, N.Y. on the ferry from Charlotte involves traditions: lunch at the Old Dock, a walk for an ice cream down the street, cocktails at the Essex Inn, and a stroll to the playground.
We are all saddened that the emerald ash borer (EAB) will ultimately lead to the demise of 99.7 percent of our native ash trees. The Town of Charlotte has allocated funds to begin taking ash trees down along our roadways. The first area targeted was on Lake Road, between Ferry Road and Thompson’s Point Road. The next will be along Greenbush Road from Barber Hill to Ten Stones and along Ferry Road west of the Greenbush Road intersection.
The old muzzleloader has been put back into the gun cabinet. Unfired for another year.
There is a wave of sadness that I couldn’t bring a deer home this year. But on the bright side there is this: We are sitting in our makeshift shore blind fabricated from driftwood caused by an early November Nor’easter, and we’re huddled behind the twisted branches with cattails and johnson grass woven in between the homemade front.
The 864-acre Hinesburg Town Forest (HTF) is many things. It is a historically important property, one of Vermont’s early town forests, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is also a site for demonstration and education, with a history of high-quality forest management.
Celebrate the holidays with gifts of the outdoors.
Deck the halls! That’s what we hear as the winter solstice and holidays approach. In Vermont, natural greens, berries and cones are the norm. It’s amazing how expensive these “found” objects can be.