Happy Spring!

It was still officially winter last Sunday but it wasn’t obvious from the weather which was nearly perfect. Sunday afternoon the temperature was near 70 degrees Fahrenheit with few clouds and a light breeze. It was a day to be out of doors.

When our Sunday morning activities were over we took the opportunity provided by the perfect weather to get out for a hike. We went to the Moose Hill Audubon Sanctuary, in Sharon, Massachusetts. We were joined by our friends Mike and Becca and the younger members of their household, who live in Sharon and had invited us for dinner afterwards.

Our hike took us through the varied terrain of the sanctuary, through upland forest and boggy bottoms, by open fields and past ponds and vernal pools. With three active children (Maura and Becca’s two boys) plus a baby in a stroller, there wasn’t much wildlife to see or hear but it was still a pleasant walk. I tried out trekking poles for the first time in the hope that they would save my knees which have been hurting after long walks. I had received them as a Christmas gift but did no hiking during the winter. They either worked or the walk was not long or rugged enough to cause a problem with my knees. I did find that my arms and shoulders were tired after the hike.

I didn’t see any wildlife except for chickadees and crows, which are everywhere and unafraid of noisy children, but we did hear frogs as we walked by the vernal pools. They were likewise undisturbed by children and loud enough that they could have been heard over a dozen kids. I could only identify the spring peepers but there were also lower notes of another species of frog also breeding in the vernal pools.

The fine weather continues this week. I may go hiking again on my own but even if I don’t I’ll take the opportunity to walk around town. At the very least I will dodge traffic and skirt construction to walk to Maura’s school at dismissal and come back with her in tow. We both enjoy the outdoor exercise and the time together. Suburban sidewalks are not as pleasant a place to walk as wildlife sanctuaries but they are still much better than a stuffy house on the finest days in the early spring.