Follow the Trail with Bill Reid,
The Last Green Valley's Chief Ranger
Nature’s Clean-Up Service: Appreciating the Turkey Vulture
“Vultures are homely, but they clean up all the garbage and that’s good. And they’re elegant in the sky.” — Roger Tory Peterson. Roger Tory Peterson is one of our most revered ornithologists and for decades his “Field Guide to the Birds” has been the…
Our forests are a precious resource
The Last Green Valley National Heritage Corridor is made up of 77% forested land. Connecticut and Massachusetts are some of the most forested states in the county, and in our region we are blessed with large blocks of state forests such as the Pachaug, Nipmuck…
Time to pay tribute to that ‘other bird’
Last week I reported on bald eagles returning to our region in ever increasing numbers. It got me thinking about that other bird so revered here in the United States – the wild turkey. The bald eagle and the wild turkey could not be more…
Bald eagles making a home in the corridor
I’ll never forget the first time I saw a bald eagle in The Last Green Valley. It was during the 2008 Walking Weekends (now called Walktober), and I was paddling at Mansfield Hollow Lake with a group of people led by Betty Robinson. It was…
Taste autumn at local orchards
We’re lucky to live in New England where the seasons announce themselves in ways that tantalize all the senses and remind us how special this place is. Last month, the colors of our forested hillsides bedazzled our eyes and as October creeped toward November the…
Daylight savings time is the true winter predictor
Did you remember to set your clocks back Saturday night for this morning and the end of 2019′s daylight savings time? I stick to the old adage fall back and spring forward to remember how to set the clock for the biannual time change. For…
From Hunters to Blood, there’s nothing quite like a full moon
Did you see the full moon Oct. 13? The sky was clear, and the moon was not obscured behind clouds that evening. The fields and woods around the house were lit up so much the stars were partly obscured by the bright night sky. We…
5 years of adventures, visits and renewing childhood fascinations
It was five years ago this month, on Oct. 5, 2014 to be exact, that my weekly column first appeared in The Bulletin. My former colleague, Charlene Perkins Cutler, had written this column for more than 15 years. When she left TLGV to take the…
Enjoying a Walktober paddle on the beautiful Quinebaug River
Last Sunday, I led a Walktober paddle on the Quinebaug River National Recreation Water Trail with my colleague, Lois Bruinooge, and eight other intrepid kayakers. We paddled the very first section of the Quinebaug water trail from Holland Pond (also known as Siog Pond) in…
Visit the many farm and community festivals close to home
“The Earth’s distances invite the eye. And as the eye reaches, so must the mind stretch to meet these new horizons. I challenge anyone to stand with autumn on a hilltop and fail to see a new expanse not only around him, but in him,…
Exploring The Last Green Valley: Hike to Breakneck Pond like visiting home of old friend
In my capacity as chief ranger of The Last Green Valley National Heritage Corridor, I have maintained a tradition for the past several years of leading a hike or paddle on the first day of each season. We have enjoyed winter solstice snowshoe treks, vernal…
The Air Line Trail State Park: A recreation resource to be explored
Last year my wife and I purchased new bicycles. We purchased multi-use bikes with wider tires than the narrow tires for biking on roads. Our plan was to explore the rail trails throughout New England and The Last Green Valley. Our first stop was the…