Carter Pond
The Rock House Reservation is located in West Brookfield, MA right along rt9. The 135 acre park was established by the Trustees in 1993. I grew up in West Brookfield and used to go here when I was a kid with my mom. We would hike up to the house that overlooks the lake and have lunch and watermelon. The house is now a “museum” that has some info about the rock house’s history…
We did the “outer loop” using the Inner loop trail (red), Outer loop trail (orange), Fullam trail (blue), and the Fire Road. I hiked with Miss HuskyHiker, my Brother and his
The Rock Shelter
girlfriend. My Brother and his girl have been out on two more hikes since, so I think I might have got them hooked on the outdoors…
At the Rock House they allow horseback riding and hiking/skiing/snowshoeing only no Mountain Biking and I have never seen any horses or traces of any horses. No Fishing or boating is allowed in the pond either. This park is rich with history and a great place to stop if you ever find yourself in the area…
I headed out early Sunday to beat the heat, 90+ temps in April crazy right? I parked at the base of the Sugarloaf summit road and followed the blue blazed trail. I don’t really know the trails here but figured I could make a nice loop, not so… Read more »
With spring comes ticks… It seems to be worse and worse every year. On an average hike I can pick at least 3-4 ticks off me and if I have the dog with me double that off him. Ticks carry lyme disease and rocky mountain spotted fever. The risk of contacting lyme disease increases after 24-72 hours after the tick attaches. At least with pets you have the availability of Revolution, Advantage, Advantix, and the like. For us two legged folks we are not so lucky… We don’t have any magic topical drops to repel ticks. In this post I will go over some ways to help keep you tick free.
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Deer at the Quabbin
Had to cut todays hike a bit short due to a late start and the park closing at 6:30. The hike from Enfield Lookout is a nice little loop with moderate elevation changes. The hike takes you along the shore of the Quabbin Reservoir (yelow blazes). This loop also offers 3 geocaches to be found if that is yor thing. Many more can be found in the area i you want to make a day of it…
I want to go back and do the full loop (6 miles) soon and I will post more with that trip.
Silver Springs Park
First I want let you know this is not going to be a technical review (go to stevesdigicams if you want that), this is going to be a review that I feel the average shopper can find useful…
I bought this camera because I wanted something I could take hiking, camping, kayaking, and use every day and not have to worry about it. The Stylus SW line is a water proof line of cameras. The 1050 is water proof up to 10 feet and can be used in temperatures below freezing. The 1030sw is good to 33 feet and adds a shock rating to withstand falls from 6 feet. But you will have to spend about a hundred extra bucks for the features.
Silver River State Park
The 1050sw is a 10.1 MP a few of the reviews I read said that the camera might not Read more »
Trail at Lake Fitzgerald
We got some snow here in Western, MA it has been snowing just about non stop sense about 1pm on Friday. Saturday after work I decided to go out for a quick snowshoe. Not wanting to travel far I thought that the Lake Fitzgerald Conservation Area in Northampton, MA would be a good choice. I wasn’t the only one to have this plan it looked like a a couple people had been out on the trails. I passed 2 people snowshoeing and saw some signs of cross country skiers. This area has a lot of little streams and wet spots that are a pain to cross wearing snowshoes. Once the my snowshoes get a little wet they just start to pack on the snow and it just turns to ice. I still had fun and love all this snow we are getting.
Lake Fitzgerald Frozen
Went out for a walk and a cache run at the Fitzgerald Lake Conservation Area this morning. Today was the first snow fall in Western, MA, it was just a dusting but it was lovely. Fitzgerald Lake is a 591 acre area owned by the City of Northampton. On the property you will find a 40 acre man made lake. This area is rich in wildlife making it very popular with birders. Just off the Marian Street Trail you can find a wildlife blind. The lake has some very active beavers. Today is the first time I have not seen a beaver while there, and the only reason for that is that the lake was frozen over. Fishing is allowed but hunting is only allowed in a small area. A lot of the trails here very wet but they have done a great job laying rock and bridges on the trails to help keep you out of the muck. Non of the trails really loop which I find to be a bummer. On the FLCA home page you can view a trail map.
I found two geocaches today. “Hidden Campsite by the Lake” and “Caching the World“. Campsite by the Lake is a really neat cache that is just what the title says it is. I wonder when this site was last used and by whom… The Caching the World cache is just off the parking area and a super easy find. Would make a great place to relax and read a book in the summer. I still have 2 more caches to find in the area.
I can’t wait for more snow so I can break out the snowshoes. The only downfall of the snow is it makes geocaching so much more difficult…
The fall brings great hiking weather and hunting. Some people fear stepping foot in the woods during hunting season. You have nothing to fear but it doesn’t hurt to take some extra steps to keep safe.
First I want to say, I have yet to meet a hunter that has the “shoot at anything that moves” mentality. Most all hunters are the “don’t shoot till I am 110% sure that I want to kill what I am shooting at” kind. If you still are feeling uneasy about heading out in to the woods try some of these safety tips… Read more »
First off I want to say that I find it odd that the last two hikes I have been on are 4.3 miles. Kinda strange. This hike starts off at the parking lot near the gate of the road that leads to the Holyoke summit house. Read more »
This hike will take you to the summit of two mountains in the Metacomet Ridge. If hiking clockwise the first summit is Bare Mountain. After a steep rocky climb along the M&M trail (white blaze) you will reach the summit of Bare Mountain (1014ft). On the way to the top there is a great example of a talus slope. Read more »
hikes | Husky Hiker - Jim Bradley | 
June 16, 2009 8:34 pm | 
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