Back to the Daniel Webster Wildlife Sanctuary

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Finally a day off when it isn’t snowing or raining. That’s not to say it’s beach weather but it’s a lot nicer than it’s been. The sun is out and although there is a stiff breeze it isn’t that cold, cutting wind. I have to drive to Plymouth so I think I’ll swing up to Marshfield and see how the sanctuary survived the winter. I intended to get there during the winter but it seemed like there was a winter storm every time I got a day off. So here it is …almost spring…and I’m just getting back here now.

As I pulled in to park I saw that the little garden and bird feeders were still there next to the entrance. I scared a flock of blackbirds but then I think I saw a flash of red. I think they may be red wing blackbirds.

My goal today is to make it to the end of the main trail. A friend of mine asked me if I’d been there yet. He said there are often deer and that you can almost always see a red-tailed hawk or two. I knew it was the wrong time of day for deer to be out in the open but I mainly wanted to see the area.

I started down the path and right off the bat met up with another couple who were really walking fast. I stopped and let them pass ahead of me. I wasn’t looking to run a race. I think I have seen this couple here before, He, like me, takes pictures and she seems to be along for the walk.

I took the right path down by the pond. There were ducks and swans and the ever-present Canadian geese. I passed the otter slide on the left but it didn’t look like it had been used in a long while. I entered the woods and here the path was still covered with snow and ice so I had to step carefully. I took the “Secret” Trail along the boardwalk that led to the meadow where I saw the deer last year. All was quiet, the leafless trees making for a surreal landscape.

Back in the woods I followed the boardwalk until the trail split. I went right this time and took the loop trail which is just what it says…a loop. Back on the boardwalk again I hooked up with the main trail and followed it up to a wooden platform. This must be the Fox hill Observation platform and the end of the trail. I sat there listening and looking out over the varied terrain thinking about what it would look like in a month or two when spring has really “sprung”. Out of the corner of my eye I spotted a movement. A large bird was flying low over the landscape. It was too far away for a picture so I just sat and watched. It landed on a fence post and I used my telephoto to get a little better look. I think it was a hawk but I couldn’t tell what kind. Maybe the red-tail I’d been told about?

It didn’t stay there very long before it took off circling higher and higher. It was soon joined by 2 others, the three of them dipping and gliding in a kind of ballet in the sky. I’m not sure how long I watched but eventually I figured I should head back. Other than the 2 people I had met when I started out, I hadn’t seen another soul.

Leaving Fox hill I took the right trail again. This one was marked River Walk. I had started it last visit but had turned around. This time I was determined to walk the whole thing and I’m glad I did.

The Green River was slow and meandering here, it’s smooth surface acting as a mirror for the trees along it’s banks. Not too far in the river made an oxbow and led me around to a pretty wooden bridge. This too was reflected in the calm river waters.

Crossing the bridge led to a board walk over a swampy area and on to another bridge. Once I crossed that bridge I recognized the other end of the River Walk. I was back on the main trail. A bit farther on is a little trail to the right that I remembered from last year. It’s where I got the picture of the buttercups and sunshine. Today it was just dead grass but it still held a surprise. As I headed out of the last bend a hawk took off from the tree right in front of me. I got a good glimpse and then he was behind the tree line.

I moved up to the end of the trees only to see him winging upward to do the same soaring dance I’d seen the other 3 hawks do earlier.

I continued along the main path until I reached the duck blind. I let myself in and probably spent a good 30-45 minutes there watching the geese play on the pond. They were splashing and bobbing like so many little kids playing. They all seemed to be in pairs too.

By now it was definitely time to move on. I still wanted to find the Marshfield beach .

I was impressed by the condition of the trails and the blinds. Everything is groomed and some of the fence posts looked new. If they are, then the Audubon folks have been busy indeed as winter hasn’t even come to an end yet.

　

　

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Grand Canyon Railroad and the AAA Travel Show

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As I wandered on to the 2nd half of the show floor I seemed to be moving into the more local booths, local as in states. I stopped at The Hershey, PA booth and right next to it was Lancaster County, PA, Amish country. And then I saw a big sign…Lake George and I had to stop there. I have to laugh because even after I told them I was from the area, they pressed the brochures into my hands. One of the reps was a young lady who has a store on Main St in Bolton. She knows my mother and brother so I told her to tell them she had seen me.

More local was the Concord Booth manned by reps in colonial dress.

 There was a National Parks booth too where I stopped for a chat.

As I was preparing to leave…if I could find an exit…I saw a booth that I has somehow missed. The Grand Canyon Railroad! There were 2 young ladies manning that booth and it wasn’t crowded so I had a chance to have a nice visit. I told them we had a trip planned in May and would be taking the train and include the Rim tour. They said that was absolutely the way to do it (of course ) but then we discussed some of the other tours in the area. They had both been on the Bottom of the Canyon tour but with another tour company. They had heard of Native American Journey’s but didn’t know it well. They said that going with them would give us more of the perspective of the Native Americans. They also said that some areas of places like Monument Valley are closed unless you have a Native American Guide. I had heard that but it was nice to have confirmation. As I was getting ready to leave they handed me 2 wooden train whistles as a gift. I had mentioned my sister was going on the trip with me and they remembered saying, “here’s one for you and one for your sister.” Very good. I am impressed by things like that. Shows they were really listening to what I was saying.

I left the Grand Canyon booth and went to the third floor so I could get a look out over the show floor.

 Then I headed back down to leave. Easier said than done. I walked around and around and couldn’t find the exit. Finally I asked one of the security guards.

By the way, security was tight. We didn’t have to pass through any screening but the guards all had the little wires in their ears and seemed to be a higher level than the normal “rent -a-cop”. Anyway, they gave me directions that could have been from Peter Pan…First Star on the right etc J they told me to go to Hershey and take a right then a left at New York etc…Pretty funny. Finally I saw a small exit sign.

But you still had to get past all the AAA displays by the exit. I skipped the survey and headed out. I’d had enough of crowds and “hawkers” for one day. All together I was in the show for around 3 hours. You could easily spend all day but I had what I came for and was glad to drive off into the sunset.

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AAA Travel Marketplace

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Every year I read about the AAA Travel Marketplace. It’s touted as THE Travel event of the year. According to it’s advertisements you should come prepared to book your trip as there will be deep discounts and show specials.

Like most shows it always falls on a weekend and like most shows, I end up missing it because of my work schedule but this year I decided to take a day off and check it out. There were a couple of reasons for my decision. One was that I am writing this travel blog and I felt I should be able to offer some comments on the show and the second reason was that I wanted information on Alaska Cruises since that’s the goal for 2012.

I went on Friday because it was easier to get a Friday off work than an Saturday or Sunday. That meant that I missed the public appearance of Wally the Red Sox mascot and the rep from the TSA who was going to speak about the controversial airport screening policy., both things I would have liked to see/hear. Oh well…in a perfect world J Let’s face it, we can’t have everything even if we want to and life is all about choices.

The show opened on Friday at 2pm and was at the Gillette Stadium in Foxboro. I headed over to arrive around 3pm. I pulled up to the Fidelity entrance as indicated on my ticket but the doors were locked. While I looked around several other cars pulled up and soon there was quite a crowd milling around. About the time I was pulling out my cell to call AAA someone else got the same idea. He got through first and informed us that that we had to go to the other side of the stadium complex and enter there. We all loaded back into our cars and caravanned around the complex.

When we got to the other side we saw the parking attendants and signs…AAA parking.

Even so close to opening time the lots were filling up fast. Looking at the number of cars and the distance I was from the doors I chose to lock the DSLR in the trunk and just take the point and shoot. I felt it would be easier to carry and less conspicuous in a crowd.

It was a good choice.

One inside I was directed up the escalator to the 2nd floor. As soon as I walked in I was in Canada land. There were booths for Quebec, New Foundland, Nova Scotia, Montréal, Bay of Fundy and on and on. I was cornered briefly by one of the Canadian reps… bonjour, Com on sa va etc then with brochures and bags I continued on past Ireland, Costa Rica, Bahamas. My head was starting to spin!

Then the crowds began to thin out. There was a large area with desks and computers marked “Reservations” . Apparently this was where you could whip out your checkbook or credit card and take advantage of all the show specials. I gave that area a wide berth. I only wanted information.

And then I saw the Cruise booths. There was Princess, Disney, Linblad ( Nat Geo’s cruise line of choice), Holland America, and more. I started asking about Alaska at the first booth and was immediately told they were all booked up. I moved on to the next and was also told to try again another time…no specials here. When I reached the Holland America booth the rep was more gracious. She gave me brochures and explained how they set up their cruises and excursions. She said they run the most trips to Alaska so very seldom sell out early. She also told me to go to the web site and if I had questions just to call and they would help. She said it was not to0 early to reserve a cruise in 2012. She said a small deposit holds the reservation. Then she looked around and said “You can go though AAA travel agents, but they will charge you a fee”. That is the same thing my friend Julie told me too.

With my cruise information collected and enough reading material for at least a month, I just wandered around the rest of the show. I’ll tell you a little about that in my next post.

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Goodspeed Opera House

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When I first arrived at the boat launch in Haddam for the Eagle Cruise I spotted a gorgeous old building right on the river. I took some pictures from the dock and then returned to the car to drive over to the building.

To get there I just had to take a right out of the boat landing and cross a steel bridge and the building was right there on the right.

I had time so I parked and walked back up to the building.

On the front of the building is 1876. There was a large billboard in the window advertising a show. I wasn’t sure if this was current or just on the building for “show”. The building was certainly in excellent condition and quite impressive. It had to be to catch my eye. I am an architectural idiot. Buildings usually don’t catch my attention like that.

Back on the boat the Captain pointed out the building and told us it was the Goodspeed Opera House but that was about all he said. So it fell to me to do a little digging if I wanted to be able to give you any background.

What I found out is that the Goodspeed Opera house is a historic landmark. It was built in 1876 by William Goodspeed who was a merchant and banker. It’s original use was as a store, office and steamship docking point. Right from the beginning it had a theater on it’s top 2 floors.

The architectural style is listed as Second Empire because of the mansard roof.

The first performance in the Opera House was Oct. 24, 1877. William Goodspeed died in in 1926 and the building was used for various purposes after that including being a World War I militia base, a general store and a storage facility for the Highway department.

The building began to fall into disrepair until a non-,profit organization, Goodspeed Musicals, restored it in 1959. The building was rededicated in 1963 and has continued since then to be a home for musical performances.

I have listed a couple of links that you can check out for more information including a list of performances and ticket prices.

　

　

　

 

http://historicbuildingsct.com/?p=1540

　

 

http://www.goodspeed.org/

Gillette Castle and State Park

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As we cruised south on the Connecticut River our guides pointed out a huge stone building on a bluff overlooking the river. With no trees to block the view it was hard to miss and certainly does look like a Medieval castle.

I had noticed signs on the way to the boat landing referring to Gillette Castle and Gillette Castle State Park but I had never heard of it before so had no idea what it might be.

According to our guides, Gillette Castle State Park is located in Haddam, Ct. The Castle was built by “William Gillette as a private residence. It is said he came to visit and was so taken with the views that he bought 184 acres and built this huge stone house.

William Gillette was an American and made his money as an actor, most notably playing Sherlock Holmes on stage.

Gillette loved showing off his estate and even had a railroad track with a working steam engine so he could show his visitors around the grounds.

　

In 1882 Gillette married Helen Nichols of Detroit. They were blissfully happy. She died in 1888 from peritonitis caused by a ruptured appendix. According to our guides, Helen , on her death bed, begged him not to remarry and he honored that request. He was grief-stricken for years and in the Spring of 1890 was struck down by tuberculosis. By the time of his death he was almost penniless but he still had his home.

When Gillette died , he had no wife or children to inherit, his will precluded possession of the castle by any (and I love this) “blithering sap-head who has no conception of where he is or with what surrounded”.

Connecticut’s government took possession of the property in 1943 and renamed the home Gillette’s Castle and the land around it Gillette State Park.

The Castle is open during the summer and can be toured while the grounds are open all year. Even if the Castle is closed you can stand on the veranda and look out over the Connecticut River, enjoying the same views that so enamored William Gillette.

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