Hello Nature Lovers!

[urbpan]

I'm happy to announce a date and time for the first Urban Nature Walk! We will meet at 10 a.m. on Sunday, November 16th in Kenmore Square (exact meeting place to be determined later), and follow the Muddy River upstream.

If this day and time are inconvenient, please keep in mind that this will be an ongoing project with many different days and times involved. We are planning walks that will take place at night time, earlier in the morning, as well as on other days of the week. If you are still interested in participating, and other days or times are better for you, please email to let me know, so that future plans will be more inclusive. And, again, for those of you in other cities than Boston (New York, Las Vegas, and Portland, Oregon come immediately to mind), rest assured that I want to do Urban Nature Walks with you in your home city when it becomes possible.

It probably goes without saying, but it is really beautiful in New England right now. As I look through the fading green leaves and ripening blue berries of the English ivy clinging to my window screen (it has been so mild that our storm windows aren't down yet) I see a fiery orange European beech across the street. Even rainy days are gorgeous, with the falling and fallen leaves wet and shining.

In two weeks most of the leaves will have fallen. Migrating birds, especially ducks, will be on the Muddy River. Many plants will be hollow amber ghosts, with their dry fruits rattling in the breeze. Bring field guides, binoculars, cameras and whatever other tools that will enhance your experience and allow you to better understand and appreciate what we may find out there.

I'm going to visit the library to research the history of the Muddy River. I know that it was a sewer that emptied into the Charles before Olmstead made it a part of the Emerald Necklace, but I want to know more.

Comments

[writerdog.livejournal.com]

How involved are you in the Muddy River Restoration Project -- www.muddyriverproject.org ?

muddy river restoration

[urbpan.livejournal.com]

I'm not at all involved. I'm eager to see what happens. I'll be happy on the one hand to see the invasive species controlled (phragmites, japanese knotweed) but I'll be sad during the project. There will be considerable disruption of my routine as they dredge and build. But they are doing it in stages, so I trust that while they are working on one area, other areas can still be enjoyed. Of course, it's being done through city parks/public works departments, so I cynically think that it will take longer than they say, be more expensive than they say, and cause more disruptions than they say.

I have seen many interesting animals in the muddy, including several species of migrating duck, spotted sandpipers, great blue and black-crowned-night herons, big ol' snapping turtles and once, a three foot long northern water snake! There are giant carp, too, but they should probably be eliminated.

The biggest problem, in my mind, is that you can't follow the river without crossing several major highways, which slows down cycling, dogwalking and makes being a pedestrian a general headache. I don't think that will change.