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Not for the Faint of Heart |
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Written by Terry Spraque
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May 15, 2013 at 03:00 AM |
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SLIDE LAKE LOOP, NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART Wednesday, May 15, 2013 The view from the top of this 150-foot high granite mountain was spectacular. Below us, Slide Lake shimmered in the light breeze, sunlight casting blackened shadows of trees and surrounding boulders eerily upon its surface. Through the binoculars, we could make out the miniature forms of two painted turtles as they basked in the rays of the sun. It was wild country at its best and we saw no one the entire day. I last stood in this same spot at Frontenac Provincial Park in 2003, when I was 58 years old. I found the hike challenging, even then. Strange, how the climb over this rocky terrain, considered to be the most rugged in the entire 14,000-acre park, got so much more difficult in just 10 years’ time! Park literature describes the nine kilometer hike as “extremely difficult”. We had no reason to dispute this after crab-walking and bum-rocking our way to the finish line, a hike that took us seven hours. In Frontenac Park terms, nine kilometres is a stroll. Most of the trails are 12 or 15 km in length, nice pleasant walks that can be completed in five or six hours. The trail we were on is only a small inner loop of the much longer 21-kilometre Slide Lake Loop, on the Park’s eastern side, off Old Perth Road. Completing the hike is only one of the day’s challenges. Reaching the trail is another. Like so many other trails in the Park, access is from another nearby trail which means one has to walk several kilometres before they even begin the hike! The Slide Lake Loop is accessible from a couple of other trails both about eight kilometres from the start of the trail. Ten years ago, we opted for the water access, and canoed for an hour and half on Buck Lake from a tiny boat launch along Old Perth Road to reach the trail. On this hike two weeks ago, we parked our car along Old Perth Road and followed a two kilometer section of the Rideau Trail and commenced our hike in a lowland – once farmland between 1853 and 1940, we learned from literature. It all started coming back to me, even the red trilliums, right where I remembered seeing them 10 years earlier. It was a great way to warm up before the trail got really down and serious. It was near perfect weather – scattered clouds to keep temperatures tolerable, and a slight breeze to keep the black flies at bay. The lack of appreciable wind allowed us to savour the wavering trill of toads, and the unmistakable songs from migrant pine, Nashville, and black and white warblers. The haunting flute-like notes from an invisible hermit thrush wafted in on the slight breeze from an adjacent wooded area. Despite a precipitous climb, and slopes so steep it was necessary to lower ourselves in reverse, there was wildlife. We found two lime colored smooth green snakes, one of which was cooperative enough for a close-up photo. A young water snake also crossed our path as did a garter snake. What we didn’t see, we saw evidence of. Deer, incredibly, walk these steep inclines, only scant inches from a sheer drop of a hundred feet or so. Squirrels, chipmunks – all were present in this unforgiving terrain, created more than a billion years ago on what is known as the Frontenac Arch. There were flowers, too – both trillium species, spring beauties, and one of the earliest still blooming, the dandelion-like coltsfoot. Slide Lake is neatly tucked in behind a narrow ridge of granite which separates it from the much larger Buck Lake. In earlier days, pioneers logged on this side of the Park, floating the logs across Slide Lake where they were shifted across the 25-metre rocky ridge. To get the logs into Buck Lake, Slide Lake had to be raised to float the logs closer to the ridge where wooden rollers anchored securely into the rock were used to coax the logs over the edge; hence, the name of Slide Lake. Some didn’t make it and these inadequately tethered logs sank where they remain to this day. Once in Buck Lake, the logs were boomed and floated to a sawmill on Mississauga Creek to be sawn. In sharp contrast, the terrain where we came in from Perth Road and, subsequently concluded our hike, was once farmland, relatively flat. After all these years, it had refused Nature’s attempts to naturalize it into forest. Meadow grasses still grow where ploughs once turned over the sod for crops as recently as 1940. In that time, an almost one kilometer long lake, large enough to show up on Google Earth, was a farmer’s field until abandoned in 1940 after which natural succession had taken over and produced a small forest. Beavers moved in about 20 years ago, and flooded it to become the now treeless lake that it is today. If planning to do this hike, take lots of water (we ran out with another three kilometres to go), good hiking boots, a walking stick or walking poles, and pack some Ibuprofen. You’ll likely need it! |
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Monday Evening Guided Hike Report & Photos |
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Written by Terry Spraque
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May 13, 2013 at 07:52 PM |
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MONDAY EVENING GUIDED HIKE REPORT and PHOTOS A PICTORIAL REPORT ON OUR MONDAY EVENING HIKES
Monday, May 13, 2013 Prince Edward Point National Wildlife Area 
This is one of the birding trails in the Point Traverse Woods at Prince Edward Point 
In keeping with the theme, Assistant Cheryl Chapman brought along some bird bones and an oriole's nest to discuss as participants in the hike were arriving 
As the sun begins to set, hike leader Terry Sprague describes the plans for the evening. 
The Point Traverse Woods is renowned for it variety of migrating warblers as up to 20 species use this location as a refueling station, before they continue their flight to the boreal forests where they will nest. 
The Point Traverse Woods contains a plethora of colourful wildflowers, including Field Chickweed 
..........and Blue Phlox, along with Columbine, Early Buttercup and Dutchman's-breeches  But, back to the business at hand - birding! Here, we are looking at a Nashville Warbler. 
As we approach the eastern cliff edge, Terry points out Timber Island, and Swetman Island, and in the far distance, the lighthouse on Main Duck Island, some 19 kilometres away 
At the Prince Edward Point Bird Observatory, Bander In Charge Stéphane Menu, describes the banding and bird monitoring program that takes place every spring and fall 
Stéphane Menu takes a question from one of the participants on the hike 
Lonely and seemingly forgotten, the 1881 Prince Edward Point lighthouse is only a shadow of its former self 
The lighthouse displayed a red light from 1881 to 1941 and became known as "The Red Onion". In 1959, the light was replaced by a skeleton tower and the lantern room removed. In 1975, The Kingston Field Naturalists rented the building, renovated the interior, and used it as a field station.
All photos by Louisa Ielo of Pleasant Bay To read about our photographer click HERE |
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Last Updated ( May 14, 2013 at 09:59 PM )
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Written by Terry Spraque
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May 12, 2013 at 01:54 PM |
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A S K T H E N A T U R A L I S T One of the joys of Nature is dicovering and learning new things. Occasionally, something comes along that we just can't explain. And that's what this page is all about. I certainly don't profess to know all the answers, and this page is all about sharing. So, if you can shed some additional light on the topics below, by all means send us your thoughts.
May 12, 2013 Thank you once again for being a resource for me as I interact with the natural world. I am a regular reader of your column Outdoor Rambles in the Napanee Beaver. In the 10 years I have lived here this is the second time I’ve seen these strange rusty-orange gelatinous masses on a Juniper in my yard. They certainly seem fungal in appearance and texture. They are odourless and generally appear seemingly overnight, particularly after a very damp spell or following a heavy rain. We got 31 mm last night. As the humidity drops the masses shrink as they desiccate, which makes perfect sense in my book. There are also a few areas of orange on a couple of branches but they are beyond my reach both visually and physically. They seem to be a thin deposit of a similar material but are smooth in appearance. I took a couple of pictures of them as well if you are interested. I would love to know what these growths are (the largest one is approx. 5 cm in diameter) so that I can research them properly. I thank you in advance for your kindness and patience in helping me with my flora and fauna which share my greenspace here at the edge of Napanee. I truly appreciate the time you take to peruse my photos and answer my questions. - Linda Isherwood, Napanee Answer: You are correct – it is a fungus. Gymnosporangium juniperi-virginianae. Or, in simpler terms, Cedar-apple Rust. Red Cedars (junipers) will carry what appear to be small, knobby gall-like formations on the branches. During a rainy period like we had recently, these galls explode into the gelatinous formations that you describe. Once they shrivel and dry, the spores are carried to a neighbouring apple tree, or related species (pear, cherry, etc.) and continues its cycle there when it manifests itself as small lesions on the leaves around summer. Spores from the leaves are eventually carried back to the red cedar in the wind, where they germinate to form the knobby brown growths that remain dormant until the next rain comes. However, these new little galls won’t become active until next spring. They are quite fascinating and never fail to generate a question or two on my guided hikes.
April 30, 2013 Hi Terry, I think I sent you a time line with a video clip of a robin that keeps flying into our window, he starts at 5:30 a.m. and goes on for hours, every morning for a week now. If you don't get the clip I can try and share it again, please let me know and why is he doing this. - Steve Plaskos Answer: As to why it's doing this, the robin is interpreting its reflection as a rival bird in its territory. Often they get so obsessed with fighting with its own image that they actually go into a mental state and occasionally bash themselves to death, and die either of exhaustion or by bleeding to death. Not much you can do but sometimes if you can cover the window temporarily, that might work,. but robins in an active mood will simply move to another window, and lo and behold, guess what it sees?
April 26, 2013 Can you tell me what causes the oil like rainbow colouring at the edge of a creek. I have horses that use the water from a dug well close to this and the sump pumped water also has the appearance when in their livestock tank - Robyn Answer: More times than not it is from natural sources. Some bacteria (Leptothrix discophora) that live in waterlogged places get their energy from iron and manganese, and as these harmless bacteria grow and decompose, the iron may appear oily or form red or orange films, fluffs, and coatings. If you are concerned that it might be some sort of oily substances, you can tell the difference by taking a stick or your finger and poking it into the substance. If the sheen swirls back together quickly, it is petroleum based; if the sheen separates and does not flow back together, it is from natural sources. We see this sheen a lot along the shore of West Lake at Sandbanks Park and visitors get somewhat concerned, but it is most always from natural causes.
 June 26, 2011
At the recent Ontario Horticultural Association meeting in Peterborough, Rose Paliwoda showed you her photo of the bird holes with sticks in some of them at about 20 feet high in a hemlock tree on her lakeside property. Here is a copy of the photo which she has asked me to send to you for your comments back to me which I will pass on to her. Thanks for any info you can provide. Pauline Pooard ANSWER: There is plenty of anecdotal evidence of birds in the world using tools to assist them in obtaining food. We will likely never know which species was responsible for leaving these tools behind, but likely the sticks were used to pry out insects that had been attracted to the tree sap oozing out of the sapsucker holes. The Darwin finches are legendary for this practice on the Galapagos Islands, but evidence is slowly coming forward of birds in this area using tools too, primarily crows. However, it certainly appears that smaller birds have learned this handy characteristic too, as evidenced by your photo. We already know that green herons have been seen tossing pieces of lint or leaf matter into creeks and waiting for a small fish to appear, and if it has no luck in one location, it will retrieve the debris and try another spot farther downstream. Perhaps smaller birds have acquired this ability and Rose is the first person to have taken note of it.
October 12, 2008 I have noticed a mourning dove on our deck/feeder lately that has a terrible looking growth that seems to be coming from inside its beak and protruding outside of the beak. The top appears deformed and very crooked. This poor bird tries to pick up seeds to eat, but cannot. Any suggestions? Thanks. Al. Answer: I thought it might be a trichomonas infection, but Sue Meech from the Sandy Pines Wildlife Centre in Napanee had this to say: It is avian pox, a retrovirus. I have seen several doves with it this year, but never seen it before in doves. I am also getting call from people with feeders noticing diseased birds. We have also had it in Robins and crows. Each species has its own version of the virus. It is highly contagious but is species specific. The bird will die slowly of starvation. If caught it should be euthanized as there is no cure for it. You are correct in that sometimes there can also be a co-existing trichomonas infection. Pox sores are usually on featherless areas, beak and feet but can occur anywhere and are often internal. I wonder if it was the unusually wet summer that precipitated this outbreak. I have had cases from Gananoque to Ottawa and Pickering to Peterborough, so the outbreak is very widespread.
I advise people to take down feeders from now until it gets really cold. Scrub and soak in Bleach solution and sun dry.
September 24, 2008
I read your column in the Gazette last week about various symbiotic and transgressive relationships between different insects and had a follow up I wished to share with you regarding the Yellow Jackets that nested in Mother's pear trees. The fruit of the tree the nest was in had yet to fully ripen, but the nearby Bartlett were already ripe and most had been at least half devoured right on the tree. It was while picking the green pears that the nest was disturbed and the hornets subsequently punished my poor Spaniel. As you know I used a commercial foam to kill the wasps after they had gathered in the hive at sundown, and the next day I sprayed a few stragglers and cut the nest down from the tree....not without some remorse. "Live and let live" works best most of the time. I picked the fruit of that tree and to our surprise found the pears were totally free of any worms. We had never applied any pesticides and in other years have to cut what is left of the crop after the worms have had their fill. So, the question is...did the wasps "tend" the pear tree so they could have a better harvest themselves? Would they have eaten other pests like caterpillars or moths that lay eggs on the tree. Was their presence alone enough to deter other insects from coming too close? Have you heard of any similar situations? I know you enjoy separating fact from fiction. John from Allisonville
Answer: I think you may be on to something. I am suggesting that the bees with the nest were probably bald faced hornets, as yellow jackets which build a similar but smaller nest, usually locate in cavities, such as behind eaves, underground, or in one memorable case, at least to me anyhow, in the dry straw atop a manure pile! Bald-faced hornets are the ones that build the huge dome-shaped nest often found in trees. In any event, whatever the species, all hornets/wasps/yellow jackets, seek out insect larvae which they paralyze, and take back to the nest and insert into the egg cells for the bee larvae to feed on once they hatch. This could account for the lack of any insect presence in the pear tree as they likely stripped it clean as soon as any appeared. The hornets likely chose the tree for two reasons - the presence of insects as well as the presence of fruit and flower nectar which they feed on themselves.
May 30, 2008 I've got a question...I have a fear of snakes, and a common garter snake greets me every morning on my front walk. I also don't want to kill anything of God's great creation, so is there anything I can do to discourage it living in my life. ( aside from just getting my wife to capture it and drive it away)?? I'm kinda curious if it's nesting at this time of year?? Steve Answer: Garter snakes breed in the spring and give birth to live young in the summer - usually about 50 to a high of 80, although I recall one giant garter snake we had in captivity at Sandbanks one summer giving birth overnight to 132 young! The terrarium was an absolute seething mass of "snakettes". Every staff member took some home! But to answer your question, there is, of course, no need to fear snakes as we don't have any poisonous species here, and they are not aggressive. Anyway, their bite only hurts for a little while! There is a snake in your yard because there is either food that it likes in abundance (grubs, small frogs, insects, etc.) or it has found a place that it can regard as its own hibernaculum where it may even have a family. Are you comforted yet by these revelations? Snakes are cold blooded, so it is likely on your walk to soak up warmth. Snakes do not respond well to mothballs as a deterrent, waving your arms (their eyes are poor) or yelling (they have no ears!). Unless you drench your yard in powerful toxins to rid the area of its favoured prey and virtually level your yard so there are no enticing crevices, and eliminate rockgardens, walkways and wooden decks where they like to sun themselves, there is really nothing one can do to discourage snakes. Destroying them or live trapping them are not options either for as long as the attractant is there, another will move in. No voids in the natural world. It's the law of Nature. Sorry, but you gotta learn to embrace it......or them !
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Last Updated ( May 12, 2013 at 09:53 PM )
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Wind, Water, Barley & Wine |
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Written by Terry Spraque
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May 10, 2013 at 07:59 AM |
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Wind, Water, Barley & Wine is ready to publish!
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WALLBRIDGE HOUSE PUBLISHING |
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Last Updated ( May 10, 2013 at 07:08 AM )
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