Sunday, May 4, 2014

Sunday morning in Boston

I passed the three hours this morning that Hamilton was in church on Wetmore Road, where there is almost nothing, and Bath Road, where there is a heron rookery in the sycamore trees along the river.


I don't see many bicycles on Wetmore, but the road super has them on notice at every border.
All the land here is owned by the National Park.
I've mentioned, ninety two percent of Boston is owned by folks who don't pay real estate taxes for its upkeep. Real estate taxes are the only taxes a township is permitted to collect.
We collect ten thousand dollars a year for road maintenance from the remaining three hundred properties, to take care of roads that have two million national visitors.


Pachysandra. Someone probably lived here.


Pachysandra and anemone. Someone surely lived here.
There are only two houses left, and the park owns both.
One is a life estate lease to the owner,
The other is the old Black Farm.


It was a large horse farm. The local equestrians wish the park would do something with it. I know they would lease it to someone who could raise the hundreds of thousands of dollars for restoration.


Your tax dollars at work.


Some of us hear the tree.


I wonder if a pileaeted woodpecker is around. I've seen them in other areas.


This tree makes me smile. A loud razzberry from this direction. From the other, I call him Willie Weasel.


Down to Bath Road, the bridge over the river. Another tree with a history.


I wonder if this is dock. It's in the river lowlands.


About two thirds of one sycamore tree with active nests. The babies are hatched, and vociferous. The parents are coming and going, bringing fish up from the river below. I tried for a picture of one in flight, but no luck.


Here's one.


Here's another that has just settled and carefully drawn his wings through the branches and against his body. They are enormous birds; their grace and agility is hard to believe.


And almost home, a shower at the Moose Club. I defied about fifty bikers turning into the drive to take this picture.

21 comments:

  1. Fantastic photos of the birds nests and close up of the birds.

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  2. Good place to pass the time while you waited. I loved all the pictures, but especially the heron. The baby herons here are clucking away and we know soon the nests will be empty until next year's hatching season. You are right, they are big birds but so graceful; I never get tired of looking at them.

    betty

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  3. Hari Om
    that was a productive two hours!! ...that is not dock as we would know it here in UK (or indeed in OZ), this looks much more fleshy and more likely to produce a flower I suspect (dock has not real flower as we know it). Another one to follow up on in a month! YAM xx

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  4. That is the kind of time I like to spend on a Sunday also. :)

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  5. That tree with all those huge nests was fascinating.
    (And I believe your pachysandra is actually vinca. Our pachysandra has white blooms while our vinca has those small blue flowers :)

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  6. great pictures. Love the herons.

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  7. Great way to spend the day wandering around taking pictures.
    Merle...........

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  8. I love old red barns too and the heron photos are fabulous!

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  9. Pileateds make rectangular holes...so your pileated is not guilty!
    Jane x

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  10. Had a nice journey through the gnarly trees. Something about those trees have character and personality. They should start talking and say something.

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  11. I like all your pictures - can't pick a favourite.

    Three hours in church? Wow.

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  12. One of my favorite birds. I have only seen one other rookery in my lifetime. What magnificent photos of them on their nests! Nice post. -- barbara -- FOLKWAYS NOTEBOOK

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  13. I call the blue flower Periwinkle. The rooks or crows - not sure which have made their nests high up in the branches in the wooded area here & very noisy !
    Lovely post thank you Joanne x

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  14. I wonder if heron prefer sycamore as the ones that used to nest in California were in a sycamore, lovely to see them, those in charge of tax use and government don't often know who to make the right decisions, I've often thought the post office should close on Monday, the workers's would have two days off and that would save a bunch of money for the service but what do I know.

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  15. Love the rookery photos... and the red barn.... and the trees... oh, I love them all!

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  16. I would love to have a barn like that. What a great day out you had.

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  17. Gorgeous orchids! Wow. On one ice cube a week? I'll try that.
    You have posted other pretty photos, too.

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  18. love the heron rookery... the only thing you left out was the NOISE!! Do love the look of early spring up north. I don't see that much anymore so the spring buds on a quiet road looks peaceful and lovely.

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  19. Hello, Clubhousegal! Nice to have you.

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