Follow the Trail with Bill Reid,
The Last Green Valley's Chief Ranger
Tiny black-capped chickadee has big personality
To watch the antics of a black-capped chickadee is to witness a diminutive bird with the spirit and determination of a much larger animal. A frequent visitor to winter bird feeders, this tiny bird with beautiful black and white plumage is a favorite of many…
Feed songbirds in winter, not mammals
Old man winter rode the polar vortex across the country into New England – bringing single digits at dawn – twice these last two weeks. Despite the deep cold, so far this year The Last Green Valley has been spared major blizzards, Winter conditions create…
Spring approaches, but plenty to do in February
″Winter is a guest that stays beyond its welcome, and I am not complaining merely of cold and thaw, thaw and cold. I dislike the loneliness of winter, the flowerlessness of the ground. I miss the birds.” – Donald Culross Peattie, “An Almanac for Moderns”…
Pique young interest in astronomy with Sunday night’s lunar eclipse
Sunday is an interesting night in The Last Green Valley National Heritage Corridor. You will have a chance to witness a spectacular astrological event and it’s a great way for the whole family – especially children — to get interested in the night sky and…
Share adventures with our future nature stewards
“If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder, he [or she] needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering the joy, excitement, and mystery of the world we live in.” Rachael Carson, “The Sense of Wonder”…
Dedicate yourself to make a difference in nature
“The Solstice past, the year tends toward Spring. But you would never know it. The old saying, ‘days lengthen, cold strengthens’ is proved in January.” – Hal Borland, “Beyond Your Doorstep: A Handbook to the Country” Last week I introduced ideas for making a difference…
Dedicate yourself to making a difference in nature
“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” Jane Goodall Jane Goodhall has been one of my heroes…
Painted turtle has interesting way of surviving winter
Winter arrived Friday and Monday is Christmas Eve. While we’ll be snug in our beds, anxiously waiting for Santa to arrive, the season of ice and snow can be quite different for wild animals, especially our region’s reptiles and amphibians. I had not really thought…
Healthy, fresh food still found at winter farmers markets
In the past 10 years, The Last Green Valley National Heritage Corridor has seen a dramatic increase in the number of farmers markets, as well as a greater number of vendors and variety of products available. From any town within the National Heritage Corridor, a…
Majestic white pine green all winter
Winter is the time of the pine here in The Last Green Valley National Heritage Corridor. Pines and other conifers make up only 12 percent of the tree species in the region and for most of the year, deciduous oak, hickory, maple and birch trees…
December is no reason to stay inside
The morning of Nov. 16 we awoke to several inches of snow on the ground. By Thanksgiving week, green grass was visible again with the storm’s remainder slowly melting in piles at roadside edges and parking lots. Accumulated snow in November is a rare occurrence,…
A night with saw-whet owl an enlightening experience
I snapped on my headlamp as we approached a small grove of pine and hemlock trees. We had parked our cars along the edge of a hillside field and trudged about 100 yards toward the dark woods. A sliver of moon sat on the horizon,…