Massachusetts Urban “wildlife”

Posted on August 17, 2011August 17, 2011 by Dusty Roads

My day trips have been cut a bit short because one of my kitties may be sick. I say “may be” because there are a bunch of subtle signs which may or may not mean anything. Like me, they are getting older and a bit more “creaky”. Complicating the puzzle is that I don’t know which kitty is having the issues. They are both acting pretty normal so this has prompted a visit to the vet and blood panels. Not cheap.

Editor in Chief

Rocky, our Editor- in- chief, went first. I should have preliminary results in a day or two.

Then it will be Smokey’s turn. Smokey is actually the older of the 2 cats so statistically , he should be having age related issues before Rocky but who knows. We all age differently.

Smokey

So between worrying about the “boys” and finding myself cash poor from the vet bills, I haven’t been able to explore too far from home.

But even with those restrictions I still managed to run across a bit of urban wildlife. Last year I watched a Ground hog all summer as it nibbled the grass right next to busy route 44.

I saw it a couple of time this summer but not as often as before…until today. I think I know why it hasn’t been quite so prominent. It has a family. Today there were 3 of them. One larger one and 2 smaller ones.

I’d tried to photograph them before but they seemed more skittish this year than last so I tried something different today. I parked across the road in the Wendy’s parking lot and tried to time the pictures between the passing cars.

The bigger one has a much darker face and head. It’s a big one!

Something scared them off before I got the camera set up but I waiting around and pretty soon 2 of them came back out. Clearly the traffic doesn’t bother them.

I didn’t see the third one again.

Cog Railway Photo Has Been Submitted

Posted on August 16, 2011August 16, 2011 by Dusty Roads

First I want to thank you for all your feedback and help in picking the photo to submit to the Cog Railway Photo Contest.

This contest seems to be a little different from others that I’ve entered. They don’t have a place to upload a photo. It has to be submitted by email. So that means there’s no link for a “public” vote. If I get a reply I’ll update everyone.

The poll showed a bunch of “ties” but I also send the pictures around my office so when those votes were added in the winner by 1 vote was # 4.

Almost everyone who chose this picture gave their reason as that “it looks like it’s about to fall off the mountain.” So with that in mind, I captioned the photo Over The Edge.

Now that it’s submitted it’s on to the NH Dream Vacation Photos. Truthfully, they weren’t as much fun as this contest and I think it shows in the pictures. For that contest I can submit 5 photos. Now that I’m back home I can think of so many missed opportunities. I’d forget to bring the sign along and then there’d be a gorgeous photo. I took the picture but I can’t use it for the contest because I didn’t have the sign…bummer LOL

Well I’ll start getting those photos ready this week and in the meantime if anyone wants to checkout the Cog railway the web link is www.TheCog.com

A is for Alaska

Posted on August 15, 2011August 15, 2011 by Dusty Roads

or Alabama or Arkansas or Arizona..any other “A” states? I think I got them all.

Where is this going? you might ask and my answer is Alaska , Alabama, Arkansas and Arizona.It’s not just where am I going but where have I been and where do I still want to go.

There’s a magnetic map they make where you can collect a magnet from each state you visit and eventually the whole map will be covered with magnets. Maybe I’ll get one someday. Until then I think I’ll just go on chronicling and planning .

To that end I thought I’d take stock of things and the easiest way is alphabetically.

So of the 4 states that start with A I’ve only been to one, Arizona, the Grand Canyon State, home of Red Rock Country and the New Age land of Sedona. It’s where I took my first and so far only helicopter ride. I’ve stuck my feet in the Colorado River at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. I’ve marveled over ancient Indian Ruins and strolled through an “African Serengeti” and all that only scratched the surface.

Alaska. Where to start? It’s such a huge state. It’s where I hope my vacation will take me in 2012. I want to see the glaciers and animals; lots of wild animals. There should be bears and seals and bald eagles. There might even be a wolf and whales. We’ll cruise the Inside Passage and spend time in Denali.

Now we get to the other “A”s. Arkansas and Alabama. I don’t know much about them as far as tourist locations but lets see what I can dig up.

Arkansas: Well the Clinton Library immediately comes to mind. After all, Bill Clinton is still a prominent figure, not some dead president. But if that’s all there is it would be a very short visit. Arkansas is a center for quartz crystal mining. Hot Springs and Mt. Ida have Dig-Your-Own Crystal Mines. That could be interesting. The Arkansas Ozarks are beautiful forests and mountains with loads of hiking trails but beneath your feet is a labyrinth of cave systems. Tours abound so that could also be interested along with canoeing and kayaking the wilderness areas with my trusty camera in hand. I’m sure there’s more and I’ll have plenty of time to see what else I can find.

Last but not least is Alabama. Right off the bat I can tell you there are National Parks. A great opportunity to collect my Park Stamps. I believe there are 7 separate parks spread throughout the state. Indian culture…the Trail of Tears of the Cherokee people as they were forced to leave their homeland. How about other history. Alabama was a hot bed of history in the civil rights movement and a visit the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute sounds like a good way to start exploring it. There are Zoos and Aquariums and more history with the Civil War Trail. Sounds like that could be a very full vacation too.

After the “A”s comes “b” but I don’t think there’s a state that starts with “B”? Am I wrong? If there are no B’s we’ll have to move on to the C’s. But I’ll save that for another post.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

If any of you have been to these states or live there and can offer some suggestions or insight, I’d love to have your comments.

The Battle of Rhode Island 1778

Posted on August 13, 2011August 13, 2011 by Dusty Roads

Have you ever heard of the Battle of Rhode Island? I hadn’t. But when I was in Portsmouth at the Green Animals I ran across a reference to it. It was quite an accident. I saw a scenic pull off and decided to investigate and there was a story board.

The Battle of Rhode Island was also known as the Battle of Quaker Hill and took place on August 28, 1778. It was the objective of the Continental forces to recapture the island then known as Rhode Island (now called Aquidneck Island) from the British forces. It was an important objective of the colonials that the coast remain in Rebel hands to facilitate communication amongst the coastal colonies.

Rhode Island was a key , strategic location. Whoever controlled the island controlled Narragansett Bay.

The Battle was inconclusive resulting in a standoff. But the Continental army was plagued by recruitment issues and desertion so on the evening of August 28, 1778 the rebel force retreated to Bristol and Tiverton giving control of the island to the British .

Today the location of the battle is a National Historic Landmark.

Green Animals???

Posted on August 12, 2011August 12, 2011 by Dusty Roads

It’s not Green Eggs and Ham and it’s not a little green man from Mars. So what are Green Animals. Maybe they’re cookies with green icing? Or did some weird pet owner dye their pet’s fur for St. Patrick’s Day?

Policeman

No, none of the above.

The Green animals aren’t even small. In fact they’re kind of tall..ha ha, couldn’t resist a little Seussism.

Seriously, Green Animals refers to the Green Animal Topiary Gardens in Portsmouth, RI.

I bet it’s been 30 years since I was there so with only a few hours to spare I thought it might be nice to see if it was still around. What a silly concern.

The Green Animal Topiary Gardens have been around for years. It started it’s life as a small country estate known as Green Animals.

It sits on a hill overlooking beautiful Narragansett Bay. The original homestead consisted of seven acres of land and a classic white clapboard summer residence, some farm outbuildings, a pasture and a vegetable garden.

The property was purchased in 1872 by Thomas E. Brayton of Fall River, Ma. His daughter Alice Brayton inherited the little estate and made it her permanent residence in 1940. Upon her death in 1972 she left Green Animals to The Preservation Society of Newport County.

Today, Green Animals is a rare example of a self-sufficient estate. It combines formal topiary, vegetable gardens, and former orchards. There is a museum in the clapboard home that is open to tours.

The Gardener responsible for creating most of the formal gardens was Joseph Carreiro. He was in charge from 1905-1945. His son-in-law, George Mendonca took over in 1945 and remained in charge until his retirement in 1985. The gardens and topiary are now cared for by the Preservation Society Staff.

So with a history like that, how could I possibly think that it might not be there anymore, even if it has been 30 years?

Topiary gardening is a true art form..

It’s the fashioning of living plants into shapes of animals or geometric figures. The art has been practiced for centuries.

There are topiary at Disney World in Orlando.

There are more than 80 different pieces of topiary at Green Animals. As I wandered the paths on this lovely sunny, warm summer afternoon I kept thinking this must be what the gardens were like in Alice in Wonderland.