Fun to see this group of CCBA Campers out on the MRG this morning. Impressed that they carefully walked the crosswalks to access the entrance at Mascoma/Mechanic/High Streets. (Many bikers are not so careful and it is a challenging intersection.) Kudos to their CCBA Camp Counselor!
Posted in Uncategorized
In spite of the many pollinator gardens along the MRG and the heavenly scent of the blooming milkweed , pollinator sightings have been minimal: Cabbage moths, a few bees and butterflies . . .and right now, long-horned Red Milkweed Beetles. Those can be found on the common milkweed growing at the intersection of High/Mascom/Mechanic streets MRG Pollinator Garden. Their red and black bodies are easily seen on the bright green leaves – no need for camouflage since predators quickly learn the beetles are toxic from the milkweed sap they eat. You may even see them rubbing their mouths on leaves to prevent sap build-up which can actually fuse their mouths if it hardens. Seeing one on a purple coneflower makes me wonder if flowers other than milkweed make better napkins?!
Posted in Pollinator Corridor, Pollinators
It seems early to be celebrating pollinators in June, since there are limited flowers blooming at this time, but maybe it is a way to welcome them back? Daisies, a few lilies, ajuga, creeping charlie, columbine, apple blossoms, bleeding heart, and dandelions have offered their nectar and pollen, and lupines have bloomed as welll. Check the pollen on this bumble bee’s saddlebags! (The “saddlebags” are officially called “corbicula” and are pollen storage sacs.) Have you seen any pollinators yet on the MRG?
Posted in Pollinator Corridor
A Sense of Place
“Attachment to place is connected to a sense of well-being for (our)selves, the community, and the land. As we humans have become more mobile and less rooted, it’s important that we connect to where we live. That sense of place grounds us to the world around us and to each other because we begin to see how, despite differences, we all do care about the place we call home.”
Gabrielle Smith, Upper Valley Teaching Place Collaborative Project Manager
Each year, Vital Communities features a selection of Super Quests that can expand awareness of special places in the Upper Valley, increasing appreciation of this place we call home. The MRG Super Quest is one of those eye-opening experiences, with history, natural beauty, abundant plant and animal life, otherwise hidden from view as we travel RT 4/10 . Even if you already enjoy the MRG, there may be new awarenesses in store in following this guided Super Quest. Be it biking, walking, running, roller blading, cross-country skiing, with camera or plant/tree ID books or apps . . . there are many ways to enjoy the MRG.
Thanks to Becky Owens for this post of an Eastern Painted Turtle laying eggs along the MRG. Becky urges caution, not just on the MRG, (bikers and skaters please stay aware) but also when driving – too many turtles are hit by cars at this time of the year, when Mama turtles are looking for sandy places to lay their eggs..
.U.S. Fish and Wildlife service offers tips on helping turtles cross roads.
Photo by Morgan Hamilton, posted on the Lebanon Photo Gallery LebanonNH.gov/Photos
Posted in Animal Life on the MRG
Just a reminderr that Advance Transit may be useful as a way to get you (and your bike) to the MRG and NRT! Check out Advance Transit’s service map or use their Trip Planner. Free buses from Monday through Friday.
Posted in Uncategorized
“Oh, it’s so overgrown!” said a woman coming back to her car after running on the MRG. She was commenting on one of the pollinator gardens. I wish I had said “Think meadow.”
Were it not for the dandelions, Creeping Charlie, clover, self-seeded violets, wild strawberry flowers, and a few wild mustard plants, there would be very little nectar and pollen for bees in the MRG pollinator gardens this time of year. The pollinator gardens are more like wild meadows than formal gardens. Many pollinators are attracted to goldenrod, milkweed, dandelions, wild mustard; these flowers would likely be weeded out of a formal garden. In order to provide a variety of flowers from Spring through late Fall, it helps to scrap the idea of an orderly garden and seems better to work with the natural world. Yes, as the season progresses, there will be some showy flowers too, but it is satisfying to see that the creeping charlie was there for this tri-colored bumblebee. Think meadow!
Posted in Pollinator Corridor, Pollinators
As more residents and visitors elect to walk and bike around the city, Lebanon is committed to making our streets safe and inviting for non-motorized users. The purpose of the Walk, Bike, Ride Leb (WBRL) Plan is to create a safe, comfortable, and connected walking and bicycling network in the City of Lebanon, including connections to public transportation. The WBRL Plan is founded on a review of existing data and plans, and the incorporation of diverse public input. It identifies the community’s highest priority multimodal improvements. Now near completion, the final draft of the WBRL plan is poised as a key tool to inform how walking and bicycling improvements are factored into City budgets and Capital Improvements Programs, which grant opportunities are pursued, and how new and existing developments can be connected to the walking and bicycling network.
To provide comments on the WBRL Plan, email rebecca.owens@lebanonnh.gov or attend one of the following public meetings where the plan will be considered for endorsement and adoption. Full meeting details will be available at LebanonNH.gov/LIVE.
For those who are unable to walk or bike Lebanon’s rail trails, a ride in a trishaw is a wonderful way to experience the trails .Might you be interested in volunteering as a pilot for the Cycling Without Age program?
Three new pilot orientations will be offered this spring. To get on the waitlist for the orientations, sign up at www.fnrt.org/cwa
Posted in Events, Good News!, Modes of Transport
Posted in Uncategorized
The Mascoma River Greenway 