Gray Tree Frog

This evening while working in the office, I heard a little thud so I turned and looked towards the deck window and discovered a tree frog clinging to the glass! I assume he's the gray tree frog that has lately been hanging out on the deck. Yesterday while I was out there, I spotted him sleeping on the base of the metal umbrella stand under the table; it looked like he had deliberately sought out the coolest place he could find.

Tonight he must have jumped from the deck up to the window, probably attracted to all the bugs that were swarming there due to the indoor lights being on. I had always imagined that tree frogs climbed their way up windows, or trees so it was quite a surprise to hear evidence of a jump to the window. So I got a great look at his underside which was interesting. It was neat to see his toes splayed out and his white tummy whereas normally I've only seen him huddled on the deck. Gray tree frogs have striking bright yellow marks in the folds of their hind legs that are only visible when the legs are extended and are elsewhere attractive but not showy.

The Adventurous Acrobatic Squirrel

I just had an amusing encounter with a squirrel who must have been practicing for an acrobatic gig with the circus. I was in my office with a casement window wide open - so this is the kind of window that swings out at a 90-degree angle. I heard something and when I turned to look, there was a squirrel on the outside window "sill". Actually there's not really much of a sill at all but he was crawling at the base of the window opening right against the screen - I thought he was going to push the screen in and join me in the office! The "sill" is a down-sloping, 1.5-inch wide, slippery strip of vinyl. It must have been difficult for him to make the jump from the deck to the sill - too bad I missed that.

Then even funnier is that he continued to crawl out along the base of the open window itself... so these are vinyl windows with only a half-inch base but he's trying to crawl out on it. And not doing very well. I could hear his claws scraping against the vinyl and glass trying to gain purchase. He ended up being upside down holding on to both sides of the window and yet he was still slipping and finally, plop, he fell, LOL. Not that far - the deck is beneath that window luckily for him. Of course I was just getting up to make a mad dash for my camera when he finally fell and gave up the game. Very strange and funny.

Country Living

I arrived home from vacation to be greeted with tons of blooming flowers in my yard - no gardening or landscaping bill involved! I let my yard go wild - no lawn to mow and as a bonus I'm treated to an ever-changing display of nature's bounty.

When I left to go to Acadia National Park (trail reports and photos will be posted soon on HikeNewEngland.com) the yard was greening up some but was rather unremarkable. Upon my return there were striking vibrant-purple lupine blooms in one large cluster. Scattered across the front yard was a delightful mixture of daisies, fleabane (lavender), yellow hawkweed, and frothy-looking bedstraw.

In the backyard was a carpet of fresh light-green ferns accented with bright splotches of color from both yellow hawkweed and orange hawkweed.

Spring Water Flow and Snowmelt

Spring is in the air, snow is melting fast and the rivers and waterfalls are swollen and fast-moving. I went for a short hike yesterday along a river. Before it even came into sight, I could hear its roar as it flowed much higher and swifter than usual. I walked along the shore for about a half-mile which took a long time because every step was fascinating. The water crashed over rocky ledges, creating troughs at the base of the drop. The rapids, eddies, and swirls seemed to move in all directions and there were several sets of short waterfalls.

There is still plenty of snow at higher elevations and it's all melting fast and tumbling down the mountains to give us this seasonal treat to nature's bounty. This is an ideal time to go hiking or walking along rivers or to waterfalls and cascades. Click to see a listing of hiking trail guides for places in New England with waterfalls or cascades.

Remember to be careful while exploring these areas - this is not a good time to be swept away by a river or raging brook. And for any hiking this time of year remember that stream crossings on the trail are likely to be more difficult than usual so take your time and exercise care. If you can't find a safe way across, then enjoy the waterway from where you are or turn back and select another hiking option.

Free tote bags coming soon!

They've been ordered, now we're just waiting on their arrival!

The bags are 14 inches tall, 12 inches wide, with an 8 inch gusset. Each bag holds the equivalent load of 3-4 plastic bags or 2 paper bags. 4 or 5 of our bags will hold the contents of a completely filled grocery cart. Each bag has a bottom stiffener that protects groceries and can be easily removed for quick washing. All bags are machine washable in cold water (line dry). No shrinkage! No fading! The handles are long enough to hang on your shoulder but short enough to swing at your sides. Bags stand up straight on their own for loading or unloading. They fold neatly for storage.

Best of all, they are going to look like this:

Isn't he cute!?!?
Underneath him says http://www.hikenewengland.com/

This logo is on both sides.

Each person who submits a valid trail report to our site will receive one of these Hike-NewEngland.com tote bags... free. (one free bag per trail report)