Totally Turtle. April 15th, 2024

Ah, Patriot's Day, a Massachusetts-only bullshit holiday. But we were both off and the day was going to be warm and sunny and we knew where we wanted to go... to our favorite Plymouth County spot to look for turtles. I'm not going to lie... we found them.

This place is our best Spotted Turtle hike. They are all over, especially on the first stretch.

A gorgeous Water Snake was crossing the same path.

But what about them Spotted Turtles?

We weren't without the occasional Painted Turtle, either!

But what about them Spotted Turtles?

Another Water Snake, this one the survivor of a dog startling.

But what about them Spotted Turtles?

Some more Painters enjoying the sun and muck.

But what about them... sorry. But they really were everywhere!

We finally eased our way away from the Spotted Turtle bog and onto the main trail. We scored a couple of Water Snakes with different ideas. One was exploring and one was sunning.

A happy pair of Painters.

We both saw what we thought was a glistening pile of fresh horse poop. But instead, it was our First of Year Snapper. A teenager! We removed the leech.

That's a happy Andrea.

Some more Painted Turtles for your pleasure.

There is often an Osprey guarding a nest on this path but the nest was vacant and the parent was watching, but not scolding us, from a perch across the river. #22 bird on the year.

Back to some more Painted Glory.

At the big pond, we could see our First of Year Plymouth Red-bellies in the distance.

Tired of turtles? Painters? Touch!Their smiles charm me to no end. This guy loves his mud-pile!

An American Coot (#25) poking around for some lunch.

Not a super-common sight at the big pond, a Spotted sharing a log with a Painter.

One more Nerodia for the roadia.

Next to the parking lot, where the nesting boxes had earlier been covered with Tree Swallows, it was now time for Eastern Bluebirds (#26).

So, even with only five species of reptile (no 'phibs!), we still call that a wonderful day. A long hike (over 5 miles) and my first sunburn of 2024. Extraordinary. We got out 3 days in a row and had twelve species of reptile and amphibian. No complaints here, mt friend.