We hit the restrooms first. While I waited for Andrea, I went around the side of the building and saw a small Garter race under a board. I waited and we flipped over the board together and saw the little fella who looks like he's just had some breakfast. A worm perhaps?
We walked on but it was oppressively hot. There were no animals out. Besides the little Garter, that is, and I'm sure he was staying put under the cool board. Turtle spots were empty. Our secret shaded spots were empty. Finally, we saw one sturdy Painter up basking for a bit.
He was gone when we walked by less than an hour later.
So yeah, we gave it a try but inevitably decided that it was just too hot to see anything. Plus, the biting flies were relentless and I'd had enough. Two bites on my hands, right through bug spray, are still itching. All hail Sweet Fern which held them back for a while.
We saw an American Toad on the way back to the car, so we were pleased with that.
Except the Sweet Fern fell out of my hat when I scrambled to see the toad...
The 4th of July was too hot to go out. Lesson learned. The next day, Sunday the 5th, was supposed to be cooler so we made plans to visit a new (to us) place.
Due to gas prices, I've been hoping to find more nearby places to add to our rotation. I found a spot only about a half hour drive away (in Middlesex County) and made plans to visit on Sunday morning. Unfortunately, we slept in later than planned but still got there by late morning. It's an Audubon place so we got to skip the entrance fee, being members.
Right off the bat, the trail goes to a marshland habitat and Painted Turtles were everywhere! On the sightings board in the visitor's center, some kid had written "so many turtles" and within 15 minutes, I agreed with that count. Our first was a small fella.
Andrea spied our first Bullfrog of the weekend.
But it was Painted Turtles. They were all over; basking, swimming, foraging and eating.
There are a lot of cool plants there as well, as you'll soon see. Like Buttonbush, the Pinhead of the plant world.
At the end of the boardwalk, I got a glimpse of a small Water Snake. Most of one, anyway. It disappeared quickly and was the only snake seen that day.
Off trail, we got a good look out at the water and saw... more Painteds!!
Trail maps in hand, we headed away from the water on some paths that went along the side of some big fields. The trail was nicely shaded by overhanging trees so we got to enjoy the splendor of the open fields in relative coolness. (It was about 83° by now) My guess is that had we arrived sooner, we'd have seen a handful of Garters along this path.
We did see another Chipmunk (there were dozens) that stooped to strike a pose that I, once again, just couldn't resist.
What a camera whore!
Our maps were leading us toward a bridge that went over a brook that I was interested in seeing. Once we got there, guess what was up catching some rays...
The trail back stayed near the brook and, again, it looked super Gartery but we saw no more snakes. Wildflowers and plants were plentiful and beautiful along this path and I concentrated on those.
This is Daisy fleabane with a Syrphid fly on top.
Deptford pinks were plentiful.
There were dozens of fruitful Tatarium honeysuckle bushes.
Back to the boardwalk, we'd hoped to see some more Bullfrogs and Water Snakes. We got the former.
I missed it, but Andrea saw this guy make a giant leap into the air, legs flying, probably trying for some lunch. By the time I saw him, it was all "nothing to see here, folks".
I ended the hike with one last Painter photo. Among the hundreds we saw, this guys face sums up how much I enjoyed the day... with a smile.
It's good to know that this place is pretty close for days when that "I need to see some turtles" feeling strikes, which is quite often. Also, we heard birds singing for the entire time we were there, which was over four miles of hiking. We hope to check out more new-to-us place this summer and hopefully, we'll find more close-by walks that we'll enjoy.
