Winter, 2024-25 Season by Tom Estill
On the first day of Winter in Dec. of 2024, I was feeling bad for the birds and decided to purchase and put up 1 bird feeder and 2 suet feeders near the trailhead. Returned two days later to see what kinds of birds had been attracted to the feeders only to find all 3 feeders gone! No sign of them anywhere. Well, I’m not doing that again.
By Christmas Day, snow was about 6” deep, and temperatures were very cold. On Dec. 26th, the only bird I saw on my 2 hr. hike was a crow. Now that I think about it, I believe I’ve seen crows on just about every hike I’ve been on at Pine Hill Park since I first started hiking there in 2013.
On Dec. 27th, I observed tufted titmouse, crow, and white-breasted nuthatch. Many deer tracks could be seen throughout the forest, along with coyote and small rodent tracks. I was so delighted to once again see porcupine tracks leading up to its den in the rock outcrop near the intersection of the power lines and the Carriage Trail. In years past, I’ve set up a Trail Cam at the spot and have recorded porcupines walking in and out of the den. Coyotes have also denned there in the past.
On Dec. 28th, Dave, Shelley and I participated in the annual Audubon Society Bird Count. Our results are as follows: White-breasted nuthatch-16, Crow-24, Robin-1, Black-capped Chickadee-23, Tufted Titmouse-20, Mallard-3, Downy Woodpecker-10, Brown Creeper-3, Cardinal-1, American Goldfinch-137
By the first week of Jan., both ponds were completely frozen over, and there was about 1” of snow on the ground. The only birds seen those first 10 days of Jan. were crows, pileated woodpeckers, white-breasted nuthatches, ravens, and robins.
On Jan. 11th, I collected a sample of creek water and debris underneath the bridge near Rocky Pond just to see what microscopic organisms might be found in that habitat that time of year. In just one drop of water, I observed hundreds of diatoms and Midge Larvae. Midges are those flying insects you see flying about the forest in late winter, commonly mistaken for mosquitoes due to their similarity in appearance.
The first week of Feb., I once again set up my trailcam in an area near the fox den on Middle Giorgetti Trail. But unlike last time, the only animal recorded was a gray squirrel.
On Feb. 9th, I visited the park the day after a major snow storm had passed through the area. Over a foot of snow was on the ground. I was very surprised to see a large flock of Canada Geese in a V formation flying north overhead. Hairy woodpeckers, crows and robins were also seen. Now, about those robins. In all the some 35 years I have spent in VT and NH, I have never seen as many robins in the dead of winter as I have seen this winter. It’s as if they never flew south. They sure were enjoying the various berries around town.
In mid-Feb., I saw a pileated woodpecker, white-breasted nuthatch, large flock of crows and another large flock of robins in the park. I also had the luck to be in the right place at the right time to observe a FISHER walking through the forest near the old Crusher Rd. quarry. At first, because of its light brown color, I thought it was a marten, but upon closer inspection, I realized it was a fisher. I’ve only seen a wild fisher a handful of times in my life and they’ve always been a dark, almost black, color. And that’s what threw me off.
On Feb. 21st, while walking through the forest I heard numerous BANGS, BOOMS, and CRACKS. They’re called Frost Cracks and I hear them every year about this time. They involve the freezing of water in certain cells of the tree, causing the cells to explode with a loud bang. Always fun to hear the sounds on a cold winter day.
Two days later, I was surprised to see numerous cottontail tracks in the snow near the huge boulder at the end of the walkway near the trailhead. Along with the tracks were numerous piles of rabbit droppings. I’ve been seeing more and more of those rabbits in the park as the years have gone by.
On March 3rd, I came across bear tracks in the snow and decided to follow them for awhile. From the Carriage Trail near the intersection which leads to the golf course, I followed the tracks to Rocky Pond where they led across the frozen Rocky Pond outlet-the same place my trailcam had photographed a black bear a few months earlier.
A few days later, winter packed snow was beginning to disappear from the park. On March 8th, numerous flocks of Canada geese were seen flying north. Both ponds were still frozen over, and trails had become treacherous with recent rains turning the compacted snow to ice.
By March 10th, bare patches of snow were beginning to be seen throughout the park.Temps. were in the 40s. It felt like spring. White-breasted nuthatches, red-bellied woodpecker, pileated woodpecker, downy woodpecker, brown, creeper, crow, black-capped chickadee, northern cardinal, tufted titmouse were all seen along with a pair of Eastern bluebirds flying in and out of one of the nest boxes near the trailhead. A red-shouldered hawk was seen near the Rocky Pond outlet where it has been seen in the past, and I saw my first midge flying about.The next day, I saw my first turkey vulture flying overhead and temperatures were in the low 60s! The day after that I saw a red-tailed hawk flying overhead. Both ponds were still frozen over.
By Feb. 19th, both ponds were starting to show open water in a few perimeter spots. In one of those spots on Muddy Pond were seen a few Canadian geese and Common mergansers.
That’s it for this edition. Please stay on the trails and enjoy the wild wonders of Pine Hill Park.