Site Discussions

I saw a possum on the ground near the bird feeder. After a while it started to walk away then turned around and entered my shed, where I saw it disappear through a space in the floor. This was sighted around noon.

March 4th, I saw a catamount today. It was about 30 to 40 lbs I would guess,completely black and the tail was almost as long as the cat. I have seen them a number of times before, but never black and in the winter, it was a joyful sight.

It’s wonderful, just to dig in dirt. The very activity invites curiosity and openness. The other day I was at a nursery school and one kid found a bone (probably from a chicken) in the sand box; the place erupted.
I like to imagine what Katherine is thinking when she penetrates the muck.

Great article. I have tapped both silver maple and box elder for years. The syrup is a divine vanilla cream, very light colored and sweet.
Never a problem.
This year, it will be red maples since I moved.
Be well.

The need for a period of dormancy is not limited to “certain plants.” This biped mammal couldn’t function without it!

I have a nice picture of a paw print that is close to the size of my hand. I followed the tracks and I have pics of how far apart they are from the ones before. At least 6 foot distance strides. I am on the border near Bennington near the Hoosick River.

Your point is well taken, Mark. And no, I wasn’t trying to downplay or trivialize. Just having a little fun with the hyperbole. I’m simultaneously concerned about climate change and weary of how every weather event these days brings out the pundits and their tea leaves. Couldn’t resist poking that a little. Anyway, enjoy that snow.

This fungi is absolutely VILE when made as a tea. When thinly sliced it looks like chicken and when fried is shockingly repellant. The only way to get this into you is either make capsules or alcoholic tincture.

Brian Mitchell’s coyote article discribes graphically what is taking place at my back door.
I live off the grid at the end of an old logging trail. During mating season in the deep of winter I often observe coyote traveling across the frozen lake to and fro the reed islands, or positioned patiently by one of the many musk rat holes in the ice, hoping for dinner. At night their yip, yips and howls in sterio are music to my ears. Once the pups are born in early spring the excited high squeels of the young ones ad yet another note to the concert. My three dogs respond by vocally defending their own territory. Never a dull moment!

Love it. Seen all the Proenekke films and skimmed his dairies, and I was immediately reminded of him through your narration.

Informative articles; most people think they’re inundated with coyotes when there are just usually a small group. Too bad these amazing predators are so unfairly maligned. Killing them in unlimited numbers in “contests” and extraordinarily long hunting/trapping seasons seems so short-sighted.

Great! I particularly like thinking of a Marlon Brando coyote…

I always enjoy your blog, and I particularly liked this one about the old school winter. Yes, indeed, and thankfully for us snowmobilers, we are having a good old fashioned winter with plenty of snow, at least since the start of February. January was so-so, and we were despairing that we were going to have (yet another) winter without much snow and the ability to snowmobile in the Oxford Hills. In the wake of the several recent snow storms, we now have a significant amount of snow on the ground around here (knee deep as you point out!), and the riding has been exceptional in this area. I wanted to mention that I felt the tone of your blog seems to suggest that you are downplaying or trivializing climate change, as evidenced by this current record cold weather. I hope that is not the case. Climate change is something we all need to be aware of and do our best to try to mitigate. Otherwise there may be no northern woods for our grandchildren and their children and grandchildren to enjoy as much as we do. Conservation is the at the heart of our efforts to preserve our wonderful forests, and climate change puts that in jeopardy. So I hope that you would remind your readers that climate change should be taken seriously and that we should do everything possible to mitigate it and help prevent a potentially devastating effect in the future on the forests we love so much.

Thanks for your comment, Jason. I’d urge you not to see it as a “tax break,” though, because that phrase is misleading. Through Current Use your land is being taxed for what it is—working forestland—and not for what it could theoretically become (a building lot). You’re not getting a break on anything; it’s simple fairness. A 1,000-square-foot home in a residential neighborhood is taxed as a 1,000-square-foot home, not on its value as a theoretical 10,000-square-foot hotel. A poor, smart, college student who moonlights as a waitress is taxed on her income as a waitress, not on what she’ll theoretically make when she’s a lawyer someday.

Nice article - I agree, it helps to have a broader understanding of the program beyond the tax break. This program is helping me to keep our family woodlot in the family and undeveloped - and its forcing me to take an active, responsible role in managing the forest. I do worry about how the program is funded and I do feel some guilt about taking advantage of a tax break that truth-be-told I actually don’t need at the moment. For me, though, the main thing is to slow down development in Vermont and this is a great means to that end.

Thanks!

What a nice piece to read on a cold Winter morning…blended nicely with emotion and biological information.

Thanks for spelling this out. I’ve heard all the cons without hearing about the pros; and seen the effects without understanding the causes.

Thanks Andrew,
We made the correction!

Beth I am certain what you saw was a Coywolf. I have been working at the airport for 27 years and have spotted them frequently. Just saw 2 of them two nights ago.

Good article!
I’m not sure Vermont farmers were moving 100-ton stones, but readers might be interested to know that we are working on transporting and erecting a 54-ton stone, named Sophia, in New Paltz, NY. Sophia is 32’5” long. We are limiting ourselves to equipment which could have been used by neolithic people 5000 years ago: wood, rope and stone. In September, we lifted one side of Sophia with 39 people, 3 each on 13 wooden levers. In September of 2014, we plan on moving her along the ground. Please email me at robandjaki [at] yahoo.com if you would like to receive email updates on the Sophia Project.
Rob Roy