Saturday, June 5, 2010

May 15th- Breakheart Reservation

I'm way behind on this, so here's a quickie!

We bought a house on May 14th. But we couldn't actually enter it yet. So... we went nature walkin' instead! We had to be in Malden at 11AM on Saturday so we planned a walk in that neck o' the woods. Breakheart Reservation in Saugus looked promising, so we gave it a try.

The parking situation blew because it was crowded. Not a good sign. We finally wrangled a space and grabbed a map. We decided to go in the opposite direction from everyone with children. That's just how we roll.

For some bizarre reason, we chose a path that seemed to go straight up. It was breakheart hill itself! It was a grind, but we pressed on and were rewarded with a vista so big that we could see the ocean.
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For some strange reason, there was a rusted out hot-rod on the top of the hill...
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As we descended the hill on the other side, Andrea pointed out some flippin' wood off the path, so we went to investigate. A colorful young garter snake was on the prowl! He was pretty wriggly at first and musked me pretty good, but eventually calmed down and just lay calmly in my hand.
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Ever the top model, he just went back about his business when we released him, stopping for a close-up or two.
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The highlight of the reservation is probably the twin lakes. Both are medium sized and rimmed with lovely forest. Chelonians made their presence known, though very quietly...
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This big ol' Green Frog was sitting in a stream that ran between the two lakes...
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This chipmunk watched me catch him...
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Andrea got another one of her patented spider-web shots! (I can't figure out how she gets these... excellent work!)
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In the second lake, a big, fat Bullfrog guarded the edge.
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But when are seeing froggies there are snake nearby! (To be sung like in the "Lady and the Tramp song "We are Siamese if you Please")
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This lovely Northern Water Snake had lots of red on him and stayed far enough away where I couldn't catch him.
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So, what about salamanders you ask? They were there! Andrea found these two, a Redback and a Leadback, who were so crazy that I couldn't get a good shot, even on "sport" setting!
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This Leadback was sure cute!
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He was also pretty energetic... check it out- he's completely airborne in this shot!
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Andrea found this gal who was bursting with chubbiness... we're pretty sure she was preggers.
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Add in another basking Painted Turtle, and you've got yourself a successful herpin' day!
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The walk was over 5 hours and was a pretty grueling trail at times. We loved it. Despite the parking lot, it wasn't too crowded anywhere. We will be returning at some point.