Fire and Rain

 Visit # 1311, Saturday 12 June 21, 6:20-9:25AM, 5.4 miles, 11.3lbs. of litter.

Temps in the low 60's, cloudy with showers possible in the morning.

There was a unique, "Ring of Fire" partial solar eclipse on Thursday. Viewing time was roughly 5:25-6:30AM. But your author likes his sleep, and wasn't going to get up that early and travel to a viewing point to see it, although it would have been a cool idea.

But I have friends crazy enough to do so.

My pal Elmer RODE HIS BICYCLE FROM WETHERSFIELD to arrive at Castle Craig in time to view the eclipse. I have crazy friends. By my slide rule calculations, he had to leave his house BEFORE 5AM. Crazy!

I'll let Elmer tell the story.

"So I rode up to the castle this morning to get an elevated vantage point to view the “ring of fire” eclipse. I figured I’d be the only one. Nope! As I rode up ...(this) Guy had an equitorial mounted camera and a laptop. Slick setup. Said my hellos and waited. ... 

Just then one of his friends pulled up... Come to find out we all grew up in Meriden but also all moved out. Camera guy lives in Wallingford and his buddy in Middlefield. 

There was another young guy at the top of the castle too. He hiked up from the lake. I climbed up and chatted with him for awhile and a couple and their dog come strolling up the parking lot. They also hiked up. "

(Photo courtesy of Elmer)

(Photo courtesy of Elmer)

(Photo NOT courtesy of Elmer!)

I woke up at a more rational hour on Thursday, and after work I rode my mountain bike in Hubbard Park. The grass around the Halfway House was getting high and I wanted to do some photography of my own.

I sent the photo to the Meriden Parks Department suggesting they mow the area if they can. Otherwise it starts to look abandoned.

On the ride back to the park, I noticed the bolts securing the bollard to the ground at Hubbard Park Drive are almost completely removed. I initially reported this in January 2020, suspecting this bollard might take a trip to a scrap dealer if not addressed. Well, now it's getting closer to its departure time if not corrected.

The bollard is necessary to keep motorcycles and the like out of the road when the gate is closed (I've seen motorcyclists unsuccessfully try to squeeze their bikes through that point).

I notified the parks department of this as well. On Saturday when I started my hike, the bollard was gone. No telling whether the parks department removed it or if it was redeemed for beer money.

Hopefully it is in safe hands and can be reinstalled in a more secure manner.

My travels on Saturday would lead me to a couple small trees which needed removal, and I brought lightweight tools to do the job.

Rounding the north end of Merimere Reservoir, I found #8 in the recurring series of cat graffiti.

I took a couple minutes with my sandpaper and removed it, only to reveal a dyslexic's idea of a swastika.

At the sharp corner in the road as it climbs to the peaks, was the first tree which needed attention, as it obscures the sign.

A few minutes of sawing and trimming...

I had just finished when a light rain started. Fortunately, the tree canopy on the road shielded me from much of the rain, and the sound of the rain on the leaves was quite relaxing.

At West Peak I reached the other trees needing removal.

I started cutting the trees with my bow saw then wondered whether I could just pull them over and uproot them, saving some time. Doh!

I cleaned up the parking lot,  then moved on. Just beyond the photo above was the last tree of the day. I forgot to take an After photo but rest assured, the trail is now clear.

Returning to the park, I dropped off my bag of trash for the week. 

I planned to finish around this time so I could join a walking tour on the history of Hubbard Park by Justin Piccirillo and the Meriden Historical Society. The rain ended in time, and the event was well attended. Justin more than held our interest with his anecdotes as we walked around the park, and members of the group added their own details as well.  I'm glad the rain abated and I did not miss it.