Let The Owl Prowl Begin

Posted on January 12, 2015January 12, 2015 by Dusty Roads

We pulled out of the parking lot onto a posted dirt road. The first 100 yards or so weren’t too bad but once that ran out you understood why you needed a 4 Wheel Drive to navigate. As we bumped and bounced from pot hole to pot hole we all laughed about the damage we must be doing to the suspension on the vans.

We were traveling along a narrow peninsula that runs from Duxbury to Plymouth. At the tip is Gurnet Light marking the entrance to Plymouth Bay. The homes located out here are all private and access is restricted. The length of the peninsula from the Powder Point Bridge to Gurnet Light is about 5 miles.

We hadn’t gone too far when Dave pulled off the road into a little turnout. He told us all to get out of the van while he ran around to the back to take out a spotting scope. Sally’s van was pulled up behind ours and she was busy getting out another scope. Once they were set up Dave told us to take a look. A snowy was sitting on the bank of ice with the water just behind him. Without the scope it was really hard to see the little fella. Dave confessed that he knew it was there because they had seen it that morning when it caught a duck for its breakfast. He’d checked just before he picked us up to be sure it was still there. It was a long way out but the scopes really made it pop out. My best guess photo wasn’t so hot.

Can you tell which snow chunk is the owl? He’s just left of the building in the background.

Here it is a MAXIMUM ..that gray blotch is the owl. He was much clearer in the spotting scope.

We stayed there taking turns with the spotting scopes until some of the less hardy souls began to drift back to the van. Once about half of us had left Dave announced it was time to move on.

Back in the van Dave was chatting about the owl when he spotted 3 little birds setting down in the grass on the dune. While he was concentrating on that I let out a shout..HAWK!. It was diving right toward us! It wanted one of those little birds for lunch. They took off and the hawk swooped right past us, Dave identified it as a Cooper’s Hawk. That was exciting. Almost as good as seeing the Snowy.

A bit further on we stopped and piled out of the van again. This time the spotting scope showed us a flock of snow buntings scratching in the dune sand for seeds.

They paid no attention to us and once again we watched until about half of our group had returned to the van. Still no great photo ops except for the scenery but I was having fun.

Around the Gristmill Pond, Plymouth MA

Posted on January 17, 2012January 17, 2012 by Dusty Roads

Brewster Gardens, Plymouth MA

Posted on April 9, 2011April 9, 2011 by Dusty Roads

I’m back folks and wanted to tell you a little more about this wonderful little park in Plymouth.

When you come for your visit to Plymouth I would expect that you would visit the Mayflower II and Plymouth Rock.

That done you need to take a short walk down the street where you will find the entrance to Brewster Gardens.

There is a paved nature trail that follows the Town Brook through the Gardens. Town Brook provided the water supply for the Pilgrims and the first garden plots were planted in this area. It was probably one of the major reasons the Pilgrims decided to settle in this area, as the brook provided a good supply of fresh water.

The lower end of the Gardens is decorated with some sculptures.

One is of the Pilgrim Maiden by Henry Hudson Kitson and the other is a more modern sculpture made of stainless steel honoring Plymouth’s immigrant settlers from 1700 to 2000.

I did a quick internet search but did not find a great deal of history on either sculpture. I can say they are quite different but equally captivating. They add a great deal to the attractiveness of the gardens. The Pilgrim Maiden stands in a fountain although the fountain had not yet been activated for the season when I was there. Way too early in the spring for that.

Crossing the little bridge will take you on the nature trail which will cross under Main St and Pleasant St. Along the way there are park benches where you can sit and enjoy the scenery.

The Herring also use the Town Brook as a herring run to reach their fresh water spawning area.

The walk is not long or strenuous and before you know it you will reach the Jenny Grist Mill. Jenny Mill is America’s first utility and represents the beginning of industry and trade in our country. The original mill was built by John Jenny, a brewery worker. There are tours of the Grist Mill available and tickets are purchased in the lower level in The Mill Stone Creamery and souvenir shop. I am sure there is much more information on this site available when you take a tour. There are tables on a deck facing the mill-wheel for a scenic place to enjoy a fresh dish of ice cream either before or after your tour.

Moving on up the stairs and across the street is Jenny Pond. There is plenty of free parking and the pond is loaded with birds and some say, fish. I can’t vouch for that as I didn’t try my luck. There’s a little bridge that crosses the pond but other than a scenic decoration it didn’t seem to lead anywhere. It might connect to the Pigrim Trail but I didn’t see that at the time of my visit. There is some access as there were vehicles parked there.

I am told that Jenny Mill and Pond are part of the Pilgrim Trail.

The Pilgrim Trail is a 10 mile circular trail through Plymouth. the Trail starts and finishes at the information center at exit 5 on route 3. I’m told there is ample parking, rest rooms and information on attractions. I will have to check this out and let you know what I find out for sure.

It seems that the more I learn about the area, the more doors that open up to me to explore. You can be sure that I will keep posting about my adventures whether they are local to me or on a distant vacation. Be back on Monday with more tales from the dusty roads. 🙂

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Is It Finally Spring?

Posted on April 7, 2011April 7, 2011 by Dusty Roads

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It was a beautiful day. I wore a pull over “hoodie” but tossed my winter coat in the car just in case. I didn’t need it.

It looks like the Herring Run for 2011 has come to an end, as fast as it started, it seems to be over. I drove over to the Middleboro Herring Run today and there was not a fish in sight. The gulls were also absent. After all the activity of the last few days it was almost spooky!

I went on to Plymouth to see if I could find the fish ladder there. I was told there was one just a few hundred yards from Plymouth Rock. What I found was a hidden gem in plain sight!

Everybody knows about Plymouth Rock and the Mayflower II and even Plimouth Plantation but nobody ever mentioned the Town Brook and the little park called Brewster Gardens to me.

I parked at a meter on the waterfront not far from Plymouth Rock and started looking for a brook or stream connected to the harbor that fish might use to migrate to their spawning pond. I admired the little decorative benches along the way. I took some pictures of the shadows they cast on the sidewalk. I liked the patterns they made.

Crossing the road there was a park and that is where I found the brook. There were lots of people out and about. They were walking their dogs or feeding the ducks..in spite of a sign saying not to. This, it turns out, is Brewster Gardens.

I checked out some of the statues then crossed the little bridge to a path that followed the brook. As I wandered along I took pictures of the area. It was so lovely and the sky was so blue.

It didn’t seem like a very long walk before I came to the Jenny Grist Mill. This presented a lot of photo ops. The lady in the ice cream and souvenir shop told me to continue on to the top of the hill where I would see a pond. She said there were tons of photo ops there too. She was right.

I walked around the pond getting pictures of ducks and a swan. The swan was on shore and seemed to be doing some form of Swan Tai-chi or yoga. It was quite comical to watch. Once the swan wandered off, I headed back to the car. I wasn’t sure how long I had been but I had only put enough money in for an 1 1/2 hours.

Back at the waterfront I saw a couple more ducks and stopped to get their picture before I returned to the car. That’s when I saw a terrific scene. A flock of ducks was coming into the harbor but they weren’t flying…they were swimming. They looked like a tiny armada. It was the cutest thing. Definitely worth watching.

Once they got a little closer I got a better picture. I believe they are Merganser ducks.

As what almost always happens after I stumble onto something, I will do a little research on the park and it’s statues and the Grist Mill and fill you in on my findings.

This and That

Posted on March 21, 2011March 21, 2011 by Dusty Roads

Good Monday Morning!

I don’t have much to offer today. Getting excited about the upcoming Sedona trip in May. This is the last phase before we leave. The planning is done. Now it’s just the booking process. I always have mixed feelings about the booking process. First, it’s exciting because it’s no longer just a plan. Now I’m committed. On the other hand I hate, really hate watching my bank balance shrink. Of course, I do get over that part quickly. I’ll be posting our progress each day securing reservations so you, my readers will be a part of the process too!

Other than that I’m heading to work today. I picked up a few hours of OT. It will help toward the costs of the trip.

Saturday night was the “Full Worm Moon”. Nice name huh? Anyway, it’s been called a supermoon because it was closer to the earth than it’s been in 8 years and it was something like 14% brighter. I went out to try to get a picture. I envisioned a beautiful portrait of the Man in The Moon like you see on the news when they talk about it. Nope, my skills just weren’t up to it. I’d love to blame the camera but I think it was the person holding the camera (me).

I took one series of pictures in the parking lot of my office. Then I took another series in the park in Plymouth right on the harbor. I went there twice. Boy it was cold. But I can tell you, they light Plymouth Rock with colored lights and The Mayflower is back in out of her winter dry dock.