February 1, 2004
Bruce Trail: 4th Line Hockley Valley
Meeting Report & Photos by Nathan Burnett
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The hike today
started out with a beautiful blue sky and a slight chill in the
air which the sun managed to control. We received a blanket of
fresh powder snow last night and so most of the nocturnal tracks
we were hoping to encounter were hidden beneath the fresh
blanket. That still didn't stop the chipmunks and gray squirrels
however. There was many signs of them around as they scurry
around looking for food that they cached in the months previous.
There were also cottontail tracks leading to and from popular
feeding and drinking spots as well as comfortable and secure
dens and rest areas. |
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Further down the
trail I noticed a lot of deer trails. With there trademark deep
and narrow pathways. The dew claws were also very noticeable
which was really cool. Often times Deer spread their toes for
balance and to attempt to stay on top of the snow (snowshoes)
such as the case here. However, The surface area of each little
foot does little to prevent them from sinking right to the
frozen earth below. |
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Next, I noticed a
really neat hornets nest towering very high above the ground in
what looked to be a Sugar Maple tree. I saw all kinda of signs
of porcupine underneath an Eastern Hemlock (A favourite winter
tree for porcupines). Sure enough high at the top of the tree
was a porcupine eating the small Hemlock twigs. I was surprised
at the limited amount of bird activity today. Throughout the
hike I only spotted and heard Black-Capped chickadees and a few
crows. For such a beautiful day I thought surely it would bring
much more disturbances. |
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After heading up and around past the creek and back up to
the road I concluded my hike and the loop back at the head of the Peter
Beecham Trail. Today was a lot of fun and it was a great day for a hike.
I welcome any newcomers and I hope to see you out on our next hike!
Deep In The Depths Of Winter,
Nathan Burnett |
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