The history in our woods

Stone wall that crosses the trail in
Willard Brook State Forest

A walk through the New England woods wouldn't be complete without coming across the ubiquitous stone walls that dot the landscape. Many forget that once upon a time, this land was cleared for agriculture. Pictured here is a stone wall that crosses the Blue Trail of Willard Brook State Park which parallels Route 119. In fact the developers of the trail obviously removed some stones from the wall to allow the trail to pass through it. At some time in the past someone moved all these rocks into place as they attempted to clear the land in order to cultivate it. I imagine just small plots of vegetables, but this land may have been great for grazing of cattle or sheep with the brook being a prime source for watering. Otherwise it is very hilly and enormous boulders, left by the ancient glacier that once covered this land, dot it. Eventually the call to move West for easier farming or to the work in the city mills resulted in abandoned farms. Now the woods have reclaimed the land leaving us with only markers of the hard labor of those who worked the land before us.

Evidence of Glacial History in Massachusetts

Willard Brook

My husband and I went for a walk in Willard Brook State Forest on Columbus Day. Here you can plainly see the evidence of the glacial past of this region of Massachusetts. These huge boulders and smaller rocks are examples of glacial till deposits which can range in size from clay deposits to huge boulders. We walked along the trail that follows the brook which eventually will join the Squannacook River. We have hiked here several times over the years and always find it a pleasant place to be. If you are a "geocacher" you will have some success here as well. For once I was the one to spot the cache! All in all, we spent a lovely couple of hours out of the house and away from all the chores.


Evidence of Glacial deposits

The strength of a tree to grow
up and over a rock.

Townsend Harbor

A harbor which has no opening to the ocean, how can that be? Well if you go read William Pate's History of the Townsend Harbor you can follow the path that Pate took to answer that very question. It all comes down to word usage. The Townsend Harbor is the result of a dam across the Squannacook River built to power the mill that was established there. Today it is the Spaulding Cooperage Antiques, a quaint spot to rummage through the past.

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Changing of the seasons

Summer

Fall

 Yesterday morning, I wrote a to-do list for myself as a way to focus my energies during the day ahead. Many of my chores involved cleaning up the garden. I brought in the sprinklers and the hoses. I cut down the dead flower stalks and took them out to the mulch pile. I pruned a few bushes. Lastly, I planted the mums I'd bought and switched over my front door step display. Here are my results. Unfortuantely the day wasn't nearly as fine as the "summer" day shown, but that's the seasons for you.