The Hurricane Ian Edition

 

Actually, it has been downgraded to "Post-Tropical Cyclone" Ian. At the time I was in Hubbard Park on Sunday morning, Ian was roughly centered in the North Carolina/South Carolina area, but you can see the wind's effect on the surface of Merimere Reservoir.

Visit #1388, Sunday 2 October 22, 7:00-10:40AM, 6.0 miles, 6.5 lbs. of litter.

Temps in the 50s to low 60s, cloudy and very breezy.

The eerie cloud cover and ominous sounding gusty breezes added to the spooky feeling, too early for  Halloween!

And yet again, despite any rainfall we've had, including rain yesterday, the Merimere Reservoir Alligator continues to grow in length.

I was excited to use my pole saw this week because the saw blade was cutting poorly. The tooth profile is very intricate, and I'm not a saw sharpening expert, but with the files I had on hand I decided to give it a try, figuring out which portion of each tooth to sharpen, and what angles to hold. If I failed, new blades were available.

As I walked up the road to continue trimming roadside branches, I found a low hanging branch which must the be the result of Ian's winds. I used my pole saw to illustrate just how low the branch was hanging over the road, even though it's tough to see the branch itself.

I cut the branch  and removed it. My sharpening efforts were a considerable success!

But my success was bittersweet. In my effort to pose the extended pole saw against the branch, it fell to the ground a couple times. I later noticed when I tried to use the saw again that I had broken it. One of the switches which lock the pole extensions had broken and gone missing which made operating the saw difficult.

This is what it SHOULD look like.

Off to the store to buy another one. I don't consider it a complete loss, however. I had already bent one of the extension poles, which made it mildly difficult to extend even after I repaired it. A new saw would eliminate that problem, plus I'll have a spare saw blade. And I will keep the broken saw for spare parts, which it appears I need quite frequently!

I effected temporary repairs to the pole saw which gave me limited reach for today. Nevertheless, I was pleased with today's progress.

Finished with my trimming session for the day, I hiked toward West Peak. Along the way, I found this tree tagged with caution tape.

I initially encountered several trees tagged like this, back in April 2022. I removed the tape only later realizing they may have been tagged for removal, and removing the tape merited a dope slap for yours truly.

You think I would have remembered. No; again, I removed the tape. Let me lean in closer to the screen while you administer Dope Slap #2.

Shortly after passing that tree I turned around and headed toward Castle Craig, where I met Kent and Bruce, who had themselves were performing their weekly trash pickup in Hubbard Park, leaving the castle area nice and tidy.

I found this large plastic belly pan from a car, on the roadside. I took it home for disposal.

Friendly reminder: it's time to stock up on Halloween Candy!

The Big Kahuna

 Big Trees require big solutions.

Visit #1387, Saturday 24 September 22, 1:30-3:50PM, 3.6 miles, 6.0 lbs. of litter.

Temps in the low 70s, sunny and dry.

Last week I reported finding a number of fallen trees or branches across the trails in Hubbard Park. Time to take care of them.

But the largest, a fallen oak, would require I break out the 20" bar for my chainsaw. Overkill and too much drama for most work, but called to duty under BIG circumstances.

I hiked over the I-691 walkbridge and met my first challenge. Small Kahuna stuff.

Felling this reminded me of chopping carrots. I don't know why.

The Big Kahuna was barely a hundred feet away, on the Blue Trail to West Peak.

Just before I began to dig into this tangled beast, a passing hiker chanced by and offered to help. His help came in handy and was a time saver. The tree was under compression in more than one direction, pinching my chainsaw bar and generally being stubborn.

But being stubborn is still no match for the Big Kahuna. Whether that's me or the chainsaw, you'll have to decide.

Jeff followed me up the Blue Trail to the next fallen tree. Incidentally, Jeff told me he's dropped twenty pounds since he began hiking in Hubbard Park, much like the woman I met last week.

Jeff and I cleaned up this little mess.

At this point Jeff and I parted ways, but not before Jeff told me he had recently seen a mountain biker CARRYING A HANDGUN while riding in Hubbard Park. By Jeff's description I know who it is. Not exactly a comforting sight, I would think.

I hiked down to Merimere Reservoir and found a newly fallen birch tree at a trail intersection.

I tidied this up without the Big Kahuna making a sound.

But the Big Kahuna would not remain silent for long. At the other end of this trail was a fallen hemlock which needed more than muscle power to remove.

Now, to put that 20" bar back into the box and give it a rest, until next time.

Credit Where Credit Is Due

 

It was another roadside-trimming day. And what a beautiful day it was.

Visit #1386, Sunday 18 September 22, 7:00-11:00AM, 5.7 miles, 16.6 lbs. of litter.

Temps in the low 60s rising to the low 80s today, sunny.

As I started walking around Merimere Reservoir early Sunday morning I come upon this:

Where it came from and what it is, is a mystery. Too heavy to put in my trash bag, I stuck it in my backpack instead. It would not end the day alone.

Whatever rain we had last week did not succeed in hiding the Merimere Reservoir alligator.

As I started uphill, I noticed the traffic sign warning of the sharp curve ahead was beginning to be obscured by brush. I put a halt to that by trimming back the brush.

I wonder if I should send a bill for my work to the Meriden Police Department after all; their name is on the sign!

It was while trimming that a woman passed by, said good morning, then during a brief chat she told me her story:

She used to regularly walk up to Castle Craig and as a result, lost a whopping 90lbs.! Five months ago she had foot surgery which derailed her routine. Today was her first day back on track. She lives by the motto printed on the back of her sweatshirt; "Live Full, Die Empty". She gets credit for her attitude, and her dedication.

Finished with trimming, I hiked up toward West Peak. Enroute I found company in my backpack for the blue plastic ring already inside.

I guess this air inflator stopped inflating.

I followed today's route because earlier this week I was informed of a couple newly fallen trees on the Blue Trail leading down from West Peak. I wanted to eyeball these trees to see what it would take to remove them.

Both are definitely big.

To add to the workload, as I exited the trail I found yet something else which needs cutting.

So next week will be a Power Tool Weekend®, Big Guns Edition! Stay tuned.

A Friend, With Benefits

 Despite last Sunday's torrential rain which delivered upwards of five inches of rain, its impact on the drought was minimal. The Merimere Reservoir alligator would agree. It was still dry enough on Saturday that I was able to walk through the two spillways at the north end of the reservoir and pick up litter.

Visit #1385, Saturday 10 September 22, 6:40-9:00AM, 4.8 miles, 2.8 lbs. of litter.

Temps in the 50s to start, rising to the upper 60s by hike's end, mostly sunny.

I brought my friend  Mr. Chainsaw this week to remove a fallen tree I discovered a couple weeks ago. I found much more use for it than I expected.

I parked outside the north end of Hubbard Park and hiked in under cool temps.

Reaching the trail, I soon met this group of leaning trees and with the chainsaw handy, decided to remove them before they hung even lower.

I soon reached the fallen tree which prompted my Power Tool Weekend®.

The rest of this trail was clear. Its notable feature are the long ago abandoned vehicles.

At the trailhead I followed the road from West Peak toward East Peak and picked up another trail I hadn't been on in many months.

Good thing I did; I found a couple fallen trees in need of some chain sawin'.

Having my chainsaw along for the ride today was pleasingly productive. Next week will be a Polesaw Weekend®!

Kindred Spirits

 I chose the best "weather day" of the Labor Day weekend to hike in Hubbard Park. Monday is not too promising.

Visit #1384, Saturday 3 September 22, 6:25-10:30AM, 5.2 miles, 5.6 lbs. of litter.

Early morning temps in the 50s, warming to the 70s, sunny.

In a familiar scene indicative of the changing seasons, I noticed the fog clinging to the surface of Mirror Lake when I arrived early Saturday morning. While it was cooly pleasant when I arrived, it warmed up such that my jeans weren't quite called for.

As I hiked around Merimere Reservoir, I checked on the progress of the alligator. If current conditions persist, pretty soon there will be a land bridge from the shore to the alligator.

As you can see from the alligator photo, it was another week trimming the roadside trees.

Conditions were perfect except for those sticky jeans!

Last week while entering Hubbard Park I watched an older woman picking up litter around the duck house at Mirror Lake. It was nice to see. Later that day while walking up the road around Merimere Reservoir, some walkers complimented me on my trash pickup and mentioned they know someone else who does the same in Hubbard Park.

And this morning as I was trimming my way up toward East/West Peak, I met these two true gentlemen.

Kent and Bruce are from the Cheshire area. They love the park so much, and after recently seeing a local not-to-be-named football team littering while in the park, were sparked to action. I believe they said it was their fourth time cleaning up in Hubbard Park. They passed by me on their way up the road, and I was still trimming as they returned from Castle Craig with their bounty. Both were jazzed by the performance of their "grabbers", and Bruce was especially proud of his bag holder, which he fabricated by cutting off most of a Home Depot project bucket. These guys HAD to be engineers! Well it doesn't matter what they do for a living; what they're doing in Hubbard Park is just great.

I finished my roadside trimming for the day and made my way back toward the park. Crossing the walkbridge over I-691 I spotted some new graffiti and took the time to remove it with some sandpaper and elbow grease.

I hope you'll take the time to enjoy the remainder of the Labor Day weekend, weather be damned!