January 6, 2019: Happy New Year!

With each new year comes hope for new wonderful moments of discovery, in nature, in friends, and in ourselves.  Every year brings moments of exhilaration as well as events that test our fortitude.  2018 brought plenty of the former, a few of the latter, and it's interesting how often the two are connected.  Here are a few moments from the past 12 months that stuck in my memory for one reason or another, and thinking about them whets my appetite for the coming year and what it has in store for us.  

With winter settling in firmly in New Hampshire right now, it's a good time to recall that spring will come.  On April 29th last year the ice retreated from Lake Wicwas, and instantly the world exploded with activity:  ducks, geese, loons, beavers, even tics burst onto the scene as the life-bearing properties of liquid water returned to our world.

Mr. and Mrs. Wood Duck paddle alongside the retreating ice

As the sun rose higher each day the plants soaked up the energy and by June 24th all the glory of nature had painted the landscape, and there was enough food to sustain the largest animals after awakening from their long winter sleep.

With food, warmth, and long days, the breeding season was in full swing, and by July 6th a historic event had occurred at Lake Wicwas:  there were two nesting pairs of loons on the lake for the first time.  One chick hatched from the first nest, followed shortly by one from the second nest.

"Sam"    Photo by Amy Wilson

But just a few days later, we were saddened by the harsh reality of nature.  One of our little loon chicks was taken by a hawk on July 22nd (also, there's a really cool spider on this post).  And then a few weeks later the other chick was also killed, apparently by a rogue loon that didn't want other genes to propagate.  It was a reminder that along with the beauty and wonder of nature, it can also be cold and hard.

"JustinTime"   Photo by Debby Crowley

One of my favorite moments of the year was on September 16th when early in the morning I met up with a raccoon which let me follow it for a long time, seeing it pop in and out of the lake as we walked along watching each other.  

And of course, seeing a bobcat is always a treat, and we got this opportunity on November 25th when one came by looking for a meal of fresh squirrel.  

So 2018 was another engaging year around the lake, and gratifying to know that we have been able to keep enough wild spaces for the animals even as the Lakes Region continues to grow in population and tourism.

But what happened around the lake during the first week of 2019?  Finally some fresh snow provided a chance to see who's been out and about.  Immediately upon setting out on a walk I encountered a set of fresh mink tracks.

Mink Tracks in the snow

I followed them for a while, through the thickets and onto the lake (close to an open spot which I avoided) but I lost the track when it went back onto shore and up a tree.

The end of the trail

Next I found a set of tracks proceeding directly across the lake, the owner of which I'm not certain.  It's clearly a slow moving animal, just plodding along.  

A slow mover

Possibly 'Possum?

The track is indicative of raccoon or porcupine, but there's no reason to expect either of them to be out in the middle of a lake.  Earlier in the week I had seen tracks that I believe were from an opossum, which is another possibility.  There may be others as well, but among these three, I'm putting my bet on the 'possum.  

Other tracks observed included ermine, fox, mouse, otter, and one other large set of tracks, easily identified.

Track of the Homo sapien

There are lots of reasons for these large to mammals to be out enjoying the world, and there were quite a few of you out there exploring this weekend, taking in all the beauty the new year has to offer.

Lake Winnipesaukee and the Belknap Range from the Ossipee Mountains