Glacier Pools PreserveWe bought this land in 1978 and have been its stewards since then. We want other people now and in the future to be able to enjoy the land as we have.
Sunday April 22 is Earth Day and the Linn Conservancy is organizing a walking tour of Glacier Pools Preserve starting at 1:00. We’ll take a look at early spring life in the pools, which should have many clusters of salamander and frog eggs from breeding over the next weeks. Expect to walk on unpaved trails up and down gradual hills for about one mile (or more if you like.)
We are starting a project to improve the value of the forested parts of the preserve. By “value” I mean as habitat and beauty, not timber revenue. The best trees will get a little more sunlight to grow better. The potential animal habitat trees will be preserved, and there will not be activity around the pools. The income from this project will be held by the Linn Conservancy to support future maintenance of the trails and meadows. A haul road has been cut across the Wagon Road Trail, which is still open. The crossing will be easier when the road gets gravel. It leads to a clearing which will let the loggers skid to waiting trucks. There is a beautiful view, so maybe someday this will be a place to picnic. In the process of this operation we can lay out a few long trails with help from their machines.
Well, the weather is spectacular; the leaves a little less bright than the best but always wonderful.
The Laurel bloom is beginning and it looks like it’s
The colony of ladyslippers is entering bloom, as is the single wild native azalea I protected last year.
Peter and I went out the night before last and he taught me how to find peepers:
Well, after a false spring, a second winter, and another spring we finally got it right and on Wednesday night got to see lots of males, their spermatophores, and hoards of wood frog males swimming around hoping for mates.
The pools refroze over the weekend and are still almost completely locked in. Tomorrow is a better bet, though still several days earlier than last year. I’ll be at the kiosk tonight in case someone comes, but advise tomorrow. And if they don’t move tomorrow, then later in the week or even the following week. It depends on the weather, the soil temp, the calendar, and their inner physiologic drives.
Monday and Tuesday evenings are possibly going to be warmer and rainy. If so, the salamander mating behavior may start. It’s still a little early in the season but…. I’ll post again in the afternoon to confirm local conditions and we would meet at 8:00 at the kiosk.
I’ve been watching the pools for signs of life.