Otter Creek Basin Bash

I don't have any pictures of this event, since this is the first year of the Otter Creek Basin Bash, but there's no doubt it's a keeper. From a 9am bird walk with Mike Winslow to a 9pm "lighting of the falls and water spray display" by the Vergennes Fire Department, the June 13th schedule is full of activities apropos to our city's finest natural treasure.





Narrated nature/history paddling tours will be offered at 10, 11, and noon by Brooks To Bays for $5 (kids under 13 are free); if you don't catch one of those you can at least paddle around in a canoe or kayak for free, courtesy of the Middlebury Mountaineer. There will be displays and demonstrations by local experts on fly fishing, fly tying, knives and leather goods, small boats, blacksmithing, decoys, and ice cutting. Dead Creek Wildlife Fish and Game will offer fun activities, and local artist Grandma Phyllis will paint children's hands (do this before the kids get their paws on Mister Ed's burgers and dogs, or the treats sold by Northlands Job Corps students). Throw in live performances by Pete and Karen Sutherland (from 11:30-12:30) and LC Jazz (during a street dance from 7:30-9:00pm); a junior fishing derby; a talk on Vergennes' water-driven history by local author and historian Nina Bacon; a skit presented by Cecile Gebo and Jane Vincent, local descendants of the first lady steamboat captain; and - my personal favorite - tours of the beautiful historic Pump House by Ivor Hughes, and you have yourself a thoroughly unique and quintessential Vermont event.

You can find more information on the Otter Creek Basin Bash here.

UVM Morgan Horse Farm, Weybridge

Although their site isn't yet open for the season, the nice people at UVM's Morgan Horse Farm in Weybridge are very welcoming toward off-season visitors. A pleasant sign greeted us at the main entrance, encouraging us to walk on the property and watch them work the horses. A nice woman with an upswept bun and mud boots came out of a riding barn to greet us and let us know that up the driveway we'd find a one-week-old and a two-week-old foal. Taking a few minutes from what is surely a very busy workload, she explained why one beautiful and feisty-looking horse was gnawing on a wooden fence rail and whinnying a lot, while another very expensive-looking horse was stepping so high as it passed us pulling a sulky. "Morgans are encouraged to exhibit lots of spirit. That's one thing they look for in the shows."

We wandered up the drive to see the foals, gangly and striking in their own newborn right. One danced and played around his mom, using up all his reserves, and then suddenly fell to the ground looking completely exhausted, just like children do.

We had been trying to meet up with people gathering for a hike on the Trail Around Middlebury, but we missed the boat after I got confused at the detour around the bridge on Morgan Horse Farm Road and made us late. Nicely, the surprise horse viewing and the kindness of the farm staff more than made up for the lost hike. I guess we were all due for a strong display of spirit.

Blue Birds at Dead Creek

We went looking for bluebirds but all we found were blue birds. Tree swallows, to be exact.

We were at Dead Creek in Addison enjoying a short, easy walk through some woods to a fence line bordering an open field. We counted 20 birds swirling around the bluebird nesting boxes that were erected some years ago. A nondescript brown bird (a house sparrow?) was trying to steal a box; the tree swallows would have none of it. We cheered each time the would-be thief was chased away, convinced we could hear baby birds cheeping from inside the boxes.

I was sure these were bluebirds until my friend Meghan explained they were tree swallows. I should have known, because we'd had bluebirds at our old house before tree swallows took over their boxes. But it had been a few years since we lived with those swallows, watching them perch on the utility wires near our patio and enjoying how they swoop and dive, and I guess in the meantime I forgot who was who.

These birds entertained us for almost an hour, then we ate lunch overlooking the Dead Creek and started back to the parking lot. Along the ten-minute walk back to our car, we spotted a nest of garter snakes and stopped to watch. One by one they raised their heads as menacingly as they could, which was enough to keep us from getting closer even though of course they aren't venomous. A little further along the trail we stopped to watch a turtle basking on a sunny rock, and after a few minutes we became aware of two frogs chilling in the mud alongside us.

But it was the bluebirds that inspired Rerun and Clown to make the trip again, this time with our camera.

If you're interested in birding on any level, consider participating in Audubon Vermont's "Birdathon" , held each year in May. To learn more about bluebirds, Bluebirdia is a nice resource.

Toddler Open Gym

One of the biggest hits in our area is the Ferrisburgh Toddler Open Gym, an hour and a half of kids and parents visiting in the Ferrisburgh Central School gymnasium once a week throughout the school year.

A variety of toys are provided for all to use, which everyone helps pick up at the end of each session. (Kids especially seem to enjoy helping parents Velcro the tumbling mats back onto the gym wall.) You can also bring toys from home, if your kids don't mind potentially sharing with other inquisitive toddlers. Half the gym is reserved for running and ball play and biking, and many children bring their tricycles and bicycles - a real treat in the middle of winter. The other half is filled with younger children and babies lounging on blankets laid out on the floor and poking at jingly toys and blocks. Quality coffee and baked goods are available for reasonable sums, and on any given Friday you can find parents strewn around picnic tables sipping hot beverages and chatting. Always a popular event, the atmosphere occasionally feels downright electric from the sheer numbers of people gathered. But it isn't a stressful place to be, only lively. This might in part be due to the calm demeanor of Open Gym organizers, who are really good at spotting newcomers and approaching them to make them feel welcome.

Open Gym runs from 9:30-11:00 am on Fridays following the school schedule. This year Open Gym ends April 17, earlier than in prior years. Not wanting to leave participants hanging, Open Gym organizers are planning other various activities to take the place of Open Gym for the summer. Come this week or next to sign up to be on the email list.

Catch and Release Worming

This spring as in prior years, we like to catch and release worms on rainy mornings.

This may not sound that exciting at first, but it brings hours of entertainment to our kids. Rerun and Jungle Clown carefully pick them off the sidewalk on the way to Clown's school, keeping their eyes peeled so as not to step on any. They drop each specimen gently into a tin can, closely monitoring their squirming pile for signs of discomfort or unease. Then Rerun and I release the worms into one of the kid's garden beds, watching for them to disappear into the loose soil.

Throughout the summer, when we happen upon worms in the garden, we can wonder which ones were native and which ones were transplants.

Letterboxing

My friend Jessa just introduced us to letterboxing, a scavenger hunt-type of activity you can do for free wherever you are. All you have to do is go to letterboxing.org, find letterbox sites in your area, and go looking. Letterboxes may be hidden inside or outside, as long as they're in public settings. You follow clues, such as "Turn right and go 65 paces" or "Cross the bridge and turn left at the huge oak tree", to find each letterbox, inside of which you'll find a log book, a stamp pad, and a rubber stamp. (That is, unless someone has vandalized the letterbox, which also can occur.) You use your own stamp to mark the log book, and then you mark your own log book with the stamp found inside the letterbox.

We all had a great time pacing and looking (alright; Jessa and I had the most fun with the pacing and looking, since the kids got distracted by some sticks they found) and when we found the box the kids got a kick out of opening it and stamping everything. We didn't yet have log books made up for ourselves, so we stamped paper "maps" that Jessa's child had drawn.

When I got home I looked at the letterboxing website and was surprised to see how many letterbox sites there are in northern Vermont. Rerun and Jungle Clown wanted to create a letterbox of their own, so we spent the morning putting one together and getting the appropriate permission from our city manager to hide it at a local park. It was fun and easy, and Jungle Clown is excited to tell his friends about it so they can search for it. We're all looking forward to tracking down more letterboxes. It's just possible that I might even be more excited than the kids.

You can find more information on the history of letterboxing in this online article from the Heart of New England online magazine.

Sugar On Snow in its Natural Habitat

Speaking of maple syrup (yet again, but who can blame me; it IS the season), Shelburne Farms isn't the only place that manages to combine walking with maple syrup. Audubon Vermont also hits on these two favorites with their annual Sugar On Snow parties held at the Green Mountain Audubon Center in Huntington. The dates are March 28 and 29 and April 5 from noon to 4 pm. You don't have to do any walking to speak of, since there is a parking lot near the sugar house, but if you're able, take the kids up the hill to the lookout for a picnic, or along the Huntington River for some spring splashing. Green Mountain Audubon is one of the best places in Vermont for family outings, educational activities, and nature walks. Donations are welcome but there is no admission fee. (There is a charge for food at the Sugar on Snow Parties.) There is seemingly always something going on at this site, but it's never hectic and they keep the programming real. Check out their Calendar of Events for details on these and other happenings.

Shelburne Farms In March

In its off-season, Shelburne Farms can see more visitors in a day than many Vermont attractions get per day during their busy season. Last Saturday was one such day at Shelburne Farms.

With a well-earned reputation for fun and educational events of the highest quality, the place is a magnet for visitors. You know each time you go there you'll see something interesting, even if it's "just" the magnificent buildings on site. The website states the farmyard opens on May 9, so I'm not sure visiting the animals is exactly encouraged just now. But if not, chalk one up for word of mouth, because plenty of families were there to commune with the sheep and chickens anyway. Some folks had wandered up the long drive out of curiosity - dress clothing and high heels and all - after parking at the Welcome Center and Farm Store (open year-round). Others, judging by their sensible shoes, were there to take advantage of the eight miles of scenic walking trails (also open year-round, and free during the off-season) and had driven up the drive to park in the fields closer to the trail head. Everyone was there to see what they could see. And what they saw in the farmyard were chickens.

See Shelburne Farms' Calendar of Events, and note the free Maple Open House Weekend happening March 28 and 29.

Bike In An Off-Season State Park

You've likely seen other parents letting their kids do something potentially dangerous, and for a brief instant (or even longer) wondered how in the world they can feel comfortable with it. But the exposure gets you thinking in a new way, "Huh, if they let their child do that, maybe it isn't so scary after all." And the next thing you know, you're letting your child do it too.

Or sometimes, you weigh the pros and cons and decide your comfort level is somewhere else entirely. You're just not ready for your kid to jump on the furniture, or pick their nose, or ride four wheelers, or whatever the scary thing might be. Or you may initiate some in-between steps toward that goal.

Biking along a roadway with my three- and five-year-old children is something that scares me. I'm still not comfortable walking next to my children while they bike around the block on the sidewalk. Jungle Clown wants to go go go, while Rerun still asks to be pushed on all but the downhills, and every time we near a driveway I'm on edge. I know other parents with greater comfort levels and I admire them; it works well for them and they have inspired me to take baby steps in that direction, but still, something won't let me go there just yet.

Enter the Vermont State Park System in the off-season. One of the aforementioned, biking phenom friends told me they used to go to a nearby state park when it was closed, to take advantage of the paved walkways and absence of cars in order to teach their children how to ride bikes in a more controlled environment. I loved the idea right away.

Of course, you can go to state parks while they're open (please do!), but if you know Vermont State Parks, you know they tend to be pretty hopping places with lots of cars from Memorial Day weekend until October. This time of year, there's also no snow, it's fairly warm, and we're all itching to spend lots of time outside. And while a nearby, weekly Open Gym offers a perfect indoor space for those like Rerun who are still learning to peddle, Jungle Clown wants to zip around as fast as he can. A state park offers a big, safe, outdoor, open space where the kids can go as fast or slow, steep or flat as they like, for as far as they want. And now my whole outlook on biking with my kids has changed.

Thank goodness for friends, and for state parks.

Be a Salamander Escort

What I know about salamanders wouldn't cover the back of a cereal box, but when I read in the paper that Otter Creek Audubon is looking for Salamander Escorts, I dared hope I'd be qualified anyway. I bragged to my husband, "After all, I once stopped traffic on busy Route 7 by the old 7 and 17 store so some anxious-looking geese could cross safely, and that was successful"! He looked at me funny and pointed out that salamander escorts most likely pick the amphibians up and carry them across the road, rather than stopping traffic.

Hmmm, yes, that's probably true.

Either way, the point is that salamander habitat is fragmented by roadways, and when they travel on warm and wet spring nights from overwintering sites to vernal pools for mating and egg-laying and what-not, they can use a little help.

As an escort, you can expect to shepherd some rare salamanders such as the blue-spotted and four-toed varieties. But you don't need to dangle rare salamanders (just an expression) in front of your young kid to get them interested in volunteering to hang out under the stars and spend quality time with you. And what a great way to demonstrate both respect and caring for the natural world, and commitment to lending a helpful hand when you can.

This is the ninth year of the Escort Program. Data collected by escorts on the types and numbers of amphibians crossing is used by State Herpetologist James Andrews, who oversees The Vermont Reptile and Amphibian Atlas Project, among other things. Escorts are requested between 8:30 pm and 1:00 am for at least one hour - but two if you're up for it - at one of two particularly dicey (if you're a salamander) locations that have been identified in Salisbury and New Haven. Nightly shifts are available from March 23 through April 26. You can get involved by emailing Warren King.

I didn't mean to give short shrift to the other amphibians involved; frogs and toads are also escorted, including wood frogs, spring peepers, and American toads. But I'm sure that no matter what critter appears by the side of the road or what type of assistance they require, you and your family are qualified to help.

Salamander Escort
New Haven and Salisbury
March 23 - April 26
Nightly one- or two-hour shifts between 8:30 pm and 1:00 am
Contact Warren King.

Hike Up Mt. Philo With the Green Mountain Club

If the Green Mountain Club is involved, you know it will be fun.

Their mission statement begins, "The mission of the Green Mountain Club is to make the Vermont Mountains play a larger part in the life of the people...". It's a noble goal and if anyone can do it, it's the GMC. They've been at it since 1910 already.

On Saturday March 21, the Bread Loaf Section hosts an easy to moderate two-mile trip up Mt. Philo. Since we're still in the off-season (the season runs from Memorial Day weekend until October) there is no fee to do this hike. And because we're supposed to stay off hiking trails until Memorial Day in order to prevent trail erosion - by Memorial Day Vermont's infamously muddy spring trails have firmed up - Philo's paved road is a great way to hoof it to a view.

For helpful hiking information and safety guidelines, see the Green Mountain Club's "Take a Hike" page, and see their calendar listings for other scheduled events. They also have a list of suggested trails to use during mud season. And feel free to join the GMC while you're there.

Call Debbie Ramsdell at 425-2027 for more information and to let her know to expect you.

Visiting Vermont Alpacas

One of the most fun, free things I ever did with my children was to take them to visit an alpaca farm.

I didn't realize at the time just how popular alpaca farms had become in Vermont; I only knew there was a farm in Cornwall that encouraged people to visit their herd. So we grabbed a camera and drove to Moonlit Alpacas, unsure what exactly a visit with alpacas would bring.

We were greeted immediately and warmly by a busy farmhand who nonetheless seemed pleased to stop the several things he was doing to beckon us into a hay-scented barn with prize ribbons on the walls. He ran to get someone to show us around, and the farm's manager quickly appeared with a smile and proudly took us on a personal and leisurely tour.

Our first alpaca encounter was with a new mommy and her weeks-old, fuzzball baby. They were making a curious and endearing humming noise to each other, which the manager explained was normal. She said they hum for all sorts of reasons, their hums changing with their emotions.

I didn't expect to be allowed to pet the baby, but then we were. Its whiskers tickled our fingers, and I started thinking that perhaps we might want to purchase an alpaca of our own. Just as I was plotting how to convince my city's zoning regulators to make alpaca rearing a conditional use, the mother's hum understandably became angry and alarming, and we deferentially moved to another patch of alpacas and left her in peace.

We made our way, alpaca to alpaca, through the barn and out into the pasture. There a small herd was nervously shuffling, their humming growing louder and louder like an orchestra warming up. We all stood there, blinking in the sun at each other until the manager broke the ice and began introducing us. Then suddenly they started gathering around us, these sweet-tempered and inquisitive creatures, each with a different pattern and personality and hum. Far in the distance was another herd, punctuated by a similar but larger form - a guard llama, we were told, because llamas are highly protective of alpacas. As I was digesting this information, I noticed that the vast majority of alpacas were keeping their distance still: some of them scuffling, most of them chewing, and apparently all of them humming.

I could have listened to it all day.

With its unbelievable loft and softness, alpaca wool may well be the coziest material you ever touch, so if you visit an alpaca farm, be sure to shop at the farm's alpaca product store if they have one.

To find an alpaca farm near you, try Googling "alpaca" and your county. To learn more about alpacas and their curious vocalizations, check out the Parris Hill Farm Alpacas website. To learn more about the Vermont alpaca movement (and see a list of some of the cutest farm logos anywhere), you can go to Alpaca Breeders of Vermont. And if you're hankering for a good old-fashioned Vermont alpaca festival, the Green Mountain Alpaca Fall Spectacular will be at the Champlain Valley Exposition October 30-November 1, 2009.

Songs and Stories With Matthew

Musician and storyteller Matthew Witten is a really likable guy.

Even if he weren't, his highly appealing music would be a huge hit for all ages. But to know him or see him perform is to love his music that much more. Among his many other gigs around the Northeast as a solo artist and as part of the local duo Swing Peepers, Witten regales children (and their adults) at the Brownell Library in Essex Junction twice monthly. His next gig there will be Friday, April 3 at 10am. If you haven't heard Matt in any of the many venues he's performed over the last few decades, do yourself a favor and get thee to the Brownell. If you've already heard Matt play, we're likely to see you there.

The Swing Peepers released their third CD, Wiggle Room, this spring. You can find an overview of the CD and the artists - including a review from local newspaper Kids Vermont - here. Or you can go directly to the Swing Peepers CD store.

Setting a Leprechaun Trap

In our house, leprechauns are real, and they want our treasures.

At least, we pretend they are real for St Patrick's Day, and the treasures they seek are bright, shiny baubles. Tinfoil, coins, polished stones; the same things that attract magpies attract leprechauns.

Because no one ever actually sees leprechauns, every year we try to catch one (just to take its picture and set it free, of course). We know they must be small like mice because we lock the doors, but still they sneak into the house through tiny cracks and holes. So on St. Patrick's Eve we clean the house (the better to determine what they steal) and rig some sort of trap, using for bait whatever shiny objects we can collect.

Every year, the leprechauns enter while we sleep and proceed to trash the house, looking for baubles. They wander into our trap to collect the bait, but they are always too fast and they get away. As they bolt, they scatter the loot they've been collecting all night. The kids wake to find the trap sprung and the house destroyed, chairs over-turned and things yanked from the cupboards, with random bits of glittery treasure spread all over.

This year we also plan to set an outdoor trap at a nearby trailhead, with the thought that perhaps there might be more leprechaun traffic at this rocky, mossy, magical-looking spot.

St Patrick's Day is Tuesday, March 17. Happy Trapping! And if you get a picture, I'd love to post it.

Vermont Maple Open House Weekend

On Friday, March 6, Governor Douglas will ceremoniously tap a tree to mark the start of Vermont's 2009 maple sugaring season. Unimpressed sugar maples aside, this annual "Governor's Tree Tapping" is a fun way to support a vital Vermont industry. According to the Vermont Maple Syrup website, this 28th Annual Tree Tapping ceremony will be held at 11:00 am next to Mead Chapel on the Middlebury College campus.

But truly, you do not have to attend the tree tapping event to support maple syrup producers. A better bet is to head straight to one of the production facilities participating in the Open House Weekend March 27-29. Just click on the county you want and you'll get nice descriptions of what to expect at each location. If you haven't seen the process before, you'll have fun hauling sap and staring at a boiler. If you're an old hand, you'll have fun people-watching and eating donuts. Kids love this stuff; it's a great education (and sometimes a short hike) for them, and it's free aside from any maple syrup you might purchase, which you ought to have on hand for those pancakes anyway.

In fact, all you really have to do to support Vermont's maple syrup producers is buy the stuff.