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.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
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.
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.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
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.
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.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
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.
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.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
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.
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.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
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:
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)
Advertise on Hike-NewEngland.com
Reach your audience. HikeNewEngland.com provides a great venue for both tourism and outdoor recreation industries to reach a targeted audience.
Visitors to HikeNewEngland.com include all sorts of outdoors lovers: Hikers, walkers, campers, nature-lovers, wildflower enthusiasts, and snowshoers for starters; but hikers almost always participate in other sports - often paddling, boating, cross-country skiing, downhill skiing, and climbing. So advertising here is a great option for any industry selling gear or clothing for any of these sports.
And hikers are always looking for food, gear, and other recreational opportunities on their route. Often a weekend venture will include a day of hiking followed by another day in the area spent shopping, dining, sightseeing, and taking in whatever other diversions are available.
HikeNewEngland.com's advertising is uniquely positioned to enable you to reach these recreationists that are already planning a visit in your geographical area. You get to choose which hiking pages that you want to place your ads on so you can target hikers in general by putting ads on any page; and hikers specific to your location by advertising on pages representing hikes that are physically near you.
Your ad can include links to your business website but you don't need to be on the web to advertise with us - you can simply include your phone number and address, as you would for a traditional print ad.
Our prices are very reasonable - you get to advertise with us for a full year at a rate that would probably get you only a week's worth of print in a local newspaper.
Visit the site for more information!
Visitors to HikeNewEngland.com include all sorts of outdoors lovers: Hikers, walkers, campers, nature-lovers, wildflower enthusiasts, and snowshoers for starters; but hikers almost always participate in other sports - often paddling, boating, cross-country skiing, downhill skiing, and climbing. So advertising here is a great option for any industry selling gear or clothing for any of these sports.
And hikers are always looking for food, gear, and other recreational opportunities on their route. Often a weekend venture will include a day of hiking followed by another day in the area spent shopping, dining, sightseeing, and taking in whatever other diversions are available.
HikeNewEngland.com's advertising is uniquely positioned to enable you to reach these recreationists that are already planning a visit in your geographical area. You get to choose which hiking pages that you want to place your ads on so you can target hikers in general by putting ads on any page; and hikers specific to your location by advertising on pages representing hikes that are physically near you.
Your ad can include links to your business website but you don't need to be on the web to advertise with us - you can simply include your phone number and address, as you would for a traditional print ad.
Our prices are very reasonable - you get to advertise with us for a full year at a rate that would probably get you only a week's worth of print in a local newspaper.
Visit the site for more information!
About Us
The goal of the website is to provide free information for people hiking, walking, or snowshoeing in New England. We currently offer over 130 trail reports - written both by the Webmaster as well as other outdoor lovers. These guides are usually pretty detailed and include a description of the hike, trail distances, a difficulty rating, and driving directions; often photos or trail maps are also provided.
The home page of HikeNewEngland.com is a long listing of destinations (mountains, ponds, etc.) along with their main related facts. You can hone down what you're looking for by clicking on the column headings to sort the list by destination, region, state, difficulty rating, distance, season, date, or author; or just scan down the list to see what catches your eye. Then just click on the destination name to see the detailed narrative and related information for that trail report.
You can also use our Hike Finder at the top of the Hikes page to select exactly what types of hikes you wish to see. You can specify as few or as many options as you like: keywords, difficulty rating, distance, region, state, or season. And again, once the list of your selected hikes has been displayed, you can then choose how to sort it by clicking on one of the column headers.
Another area of this site is the Book Recommendations section. These are books from my personal collection that I would recommend to anyone interested in hiking, walking, or nature.
And a recent addition is our Articles section which contains articles related to hiking and nature, including some basic safety precautions that are good to follow.
We are not just a free site, we are also a hassle-free site:
The home page of HikeNewEngland.com is a long listing of destinations (mountains, ponds, etc.) along with their main related facts. You can hone down what you're looking for by clicking on the column headings to sort the list by destination, region, state, difficulty rating, distance, season, date, or author; or just scan down the list to see what catches your eye. Then just click on the destination name to see the detailed narrative and related information for that trail report.
You can also use our Hike Finder at the top of the Hikes page to select exactly what types of hikes you wish to see. You can specify as few or as many options as you like: keywords, difficulty rating, distance, region, state, or season. And again, once the list of your selected hikes has been displayed, you can then choose how to sort it by clicking on one of the column headers.
Another area of this site is the Book Recommendations section. These are books from my personal collection that I would recommend to anyone interested in hiking, walking, or nature.
And a recent addition is our Articles section which contains articles related to hiking and nature, including some basic safety precautions that are good to follow.
We are not just a free site, we are also a hassle-free site:
- No registration required
- We do not keep any information about you, and since we don't keep any information about you, we can't share any info about you with others
- Dial-up users will enjoy fast-loading pages - unnecessary graphics, junk, and clutter are kept to a minimum. Photos and maps will take some time to load, but in the meantime, there is plenty of relevant text to read while waiting for images to display.
Happy Trails!
Welcome hikers, walkers, and snowshoers!
This blog is about our website which is geared towards those that love to be outside. Whether you're looking for outdoor fitness and recreation or wishing to find peace and serenity through nature - we have suggestions for you.
Our free trail guide resource offers everything from short, easy, nature walks to challenging mountain climbs above timberline in the alpine zone. The detailed trail reports with hike descriptions, maps, photos, and driving directions serve as a great planning tool. Many of the trail guides are based on hikes in the beautiful White Mountains of New Hampshire.
We offer ideas for all seasons so take those boots or snowshoes out of the closet and go for a hike! Get revitalized and melt away stress; there's always a special peace or joy in being surrounded by nature whether you're all alone on a remote path or on a busy trail exchanging cheerful greetings with like-minded people.
HikeNewEngland.com covers hikes in Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. We'd like to hear about your adventures in these areas so feel free to submit your own trail report.
Our free trail guide resource offers everything from short, easy, nature walks to challenging mountain climbs above timberline in the alpine zone. The detailed trail reports with hike descriptions, maps, photos, and driving directions serve as a great planning tool. Many of the trail guides are based on hikes in the beautiful White Mountains of New Hampshire.
We offer ideas for all seasons so take those boots or snowshoes out of the closet and go for a hike! Get revitalized and melt away stress; there's always a special peace or joy in being surrounded by nature whether you're all alone on a remote path or on a busy trail exchanging cheerful greetings with like-minded people.
HikeNewEngland.com covers hikes in Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. We'd like to hear about your adventures in these areas so feel free to submit your own trail report.
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