Tag Archives: spring on cape cod

Looking for spring in all the right places

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It’s been a while since I’ve even looked at my website , mostly because the rules changed about making our sites secure. Anyway, that is now fixed so let’s talk about spring.

Spring on Cape Cod is as ephemeral as the wildflowers associated with her—here one minute, gone the next. As always, I head out hopeful, even on the coldest of days.

Our beaches have taken a lot of hits this past year and erosion is intense and extreme almost everywhere.

Yesterday I went looking for ospreys and piping plovers and found both. I only had my phone with me so pictures aren’t great. Here’s a little video of one of the plovers I saw.

I’m going to leave this here for now as I figure out how to get this back up and running.

Thanks for stopping by! I’ll be back.

Saturday musings

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What a strange week it has been! Cold, warm, misty, drizzly, and windy. Very, very windy. But, oh, that light! If you can’t find spring anywhere in our gray and damp Cape Cod landscape, just enjoy the light.


For me, it’s been a week of busy days. Planning for summer and fall programs already, getting settled in my new job at the Cape Cod Maritime Museum and writing, lots of writing.

My April Vacation programs are now listed online and open for registration.

Many of you know I’m finishing up my dummy for a picture book. I am hoping that will go out to a few publishers next week. I am also finishing a draft of a middle grade novel and hope to work on a final draft over the summer so I can send it out early in the fall to agents.


In the meantime I am writing my weekly columns, which I still love all these years later. I am also writing features and reviews for the Barnstable Patriot almost every week. This week I am adding the links to some of those below.

My Nature’s Way column for this week can be found at http://orleans.wickedlocal.com/entertainmentlife/20170324/natures-ways-day-by-day

My Weekly Nature Watch column is here http://www.capenews.net/columns/weekly-nature-watch-it-s-springtime-at-last/article_ab1e1d2c-48d3-5473-9662-7ebb4d8f3199.html

There’s a fabulous new show at the Cahoon Museum of American Art http://www.barnstablepatriot.com/news/20170323/landmark-exhibit-opens-at-cahoon-museum-in-cotuit

Nancy Rubin Stuart will be reading from her latest manuscript at the Hyannis Public Library next Wednesday http://www.barnstablepatriot.com/news/20170323/author-seeks-feedback-from-readers-in-hyannis-library-talk

The Cape Cod Synagogue will be hosting a Kosher Deli Dinner and Dance http://www.barnstablepatriot.com/news/20170323/cape-cod-synagogue-in-hyannis-hosts-annual-kosher-deli-dinner

I went looking for spring in the  Cape Cod woods…

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But what I found was more winter…

I  started my day at the Lowell Holly Conservation Area in Mashpee. This is usually a delightful place to walk but it had many icy and snowy areas along the trails that were tricky to navigate.

There were many lovely vistas however

  

You find lots of white pine, beech and of course, American holly here. I also found a nice little stand of Princess pine and tea berry .

Carpet moss is nice and green but the lake is still mostly frozen.

Later, at the Jehu Pond Conservation Area I saw lots of trailing arbutus leaves so mayflowers will be blooming soon!

I saw my first pine warbler of the season and courting hairy woodpeckers but the woods were pretty quiet.

One thing that becomes obvious as the snow melts is how tough winter was for birds and other wildlife. I found signs and remains of multiple birds and even those of a hawk .

But I also found this– a little reminder of the hope that is spring!

Spring has sprung!

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It is finally warm around here! It’s still pretty windy and I’m not ready to give up my gloves quite yet but I have traded my winter jacket in for a heavy fleece jacket. That’s some progress, right?

012The sun play peek-a-boo with me today but it was still beautiful in the soft light.

017I am still working on this series of little watercolors and here is today’s piece. My mother always said once you had sand in your shoes you’d never leave the beach….

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