Happy Mother’s Day!

Last weekend we hiked around Quincy Bog in Rumney, NH. This little gem of a place is always fun because there is so much wildlife – birds, turtles, and snakes that were checked off when we visited this time. We’ve been here before a couple of years ago – on a Father’s Day trip. You can read about it here: Bog Blog.

Quincy Bog is easy to find off Route 25 in Plymouth. There are signs to help you navigate through the residential areas and you’ll quickly find yourself at the Nature Center and bog trail. There are some great presentations scheduled for the summer too. We decided to park at the alternate parking lot, just a short distance from the main parking area and Nature Center. We hiked down the trail and followed the bog loop counter-clockwise.

The bog bridges were in better shape a couple of years ago and Andrew quickly surmised that the untreated softwood planks were harvested from a nearby lot and are now starting to breakdown. Several areas were flooded from high spring waters and some of the bog bridges were under water, broken, or in need of repair. Hopefully the managers of the place will think seriously about trail projects this summer because this will only get worse in the coming years. And with this being a great place to bring kids – there is likely to be wet children – like ours, who jumped on a floating bridge only to find it sank immediately bringing him into the water with it! There were some brief tears and wet feet for the rest of the walk, and Alden tested and instructed safe passage over the bridges as we journied on.

On the up side, the wildlife did not disappoint. We heard and saw Canada geese, flying mallards, flocks of grackles, flocks of red-wing black birds, a sunning snake, and SO MANY TURTLES! Just about every log in the bog had a few painted turtles. It wasn’t the warmest or sunniest day, but the turtles were still basking in the warm air.