A camera shy moose trots along the Finnerty Pond trail on Saturday afternoon
Two spring hikes, two wonderful wildlife encounters – one great way to start off a new season.
The woods come to life during the spring. Every turn in the trail might bring a glimpse of a scurrying animal enjoying warm weather and a sudden abundance of food. It’s a striking contrast to winter hiking, with its blessing of solitude, stark white landscapes and frozen beauty.
The change comes suddenly, carried on a warm breeze. Iced over trails become muddy paths or even gushing waterways. Budding plants push their way through the fallen leaves, trees seem to stretch their limbs and animals, sometimes boldly, make an entrance.
While most hikers are used to – and revel in – meeting scampering squirrels, woodchucks, foxes, wild turkeys and other birds and even deer, on the trail, it’s altogether a different thing to cross paths, literally, with a moose.
This past weekend, I encountered my first moose in the wild while hiking near Finnerty Pond in October Mountain State Forest. I walked along the stone covered path in a light rain fell; a fine mist hung in the woods. The trail is a rocky one, and I was thinking how difficult it was to take in the scenery while keeping an eye on the footing. My head jerked up when I heard branches breaking on the trail about 20 feet ahead. A moose was crossing the trail and we startled each other.
The moose recovered from the start quickly, trotted about thirty feet into the woods and stopped to look at me. As I scrambled for my camera, which was in a small backpack, the moose slowly disappeared into the trees. I dug out my camera just in time to get a shot of empty woods.
I considered trailing the moose, which didn’t seem all that threatening, and I stood there trying to remember what I’d read about meeting moose in the wild. Were they docile or dangerous? The main advice I recalled reading is that – although the beast was not likely to charge – it was probably not wise to approach a moose.
I began to walk up the trail again, savoring my first moose sighting. Then, I heard what sounded like a dog barking. Great, I thought, the dog’s going to chase the moose, which is going to come barreling through the woods toward me in a minute. Just in case, I picked up a big stick, which was purely a comfort item, since there’s no way it would have stopped the thing.
A minute later, I realized that there was no dog. The sound I was hearing was, I believe, the moose grunting nearby. In the distance, I heard another series of grunts. I think there were two moose in the area.
I hiked on toward Finnerty Pond, toting my trusty stick. Eventually, I turned around and headed back the way I’d come. I didn’t expect it, but when I got to the area where I’d seen the moose, there it was, standing on the side of the trail. Neither of us was startled this time; the moose simply looked at me for a moment, then walked away, pausing occasionally to look back at me.
Again, I scrambled for my camera, but the moose had disappeared into the woods again (not to make excuses, but my excuse is that it was raining, and I had to keep my camera zipped up inside my rain coat). I scanned the woods, but saw nothing, until the moose emerged on the trail ahead of me, now walking along the path toward where I was parked.
I scampered up the trail, but never saw it again.
Moose sightings are becoming more and more common in Massachusetts. Not too many years ago, they were extremely rare. In fact, moose were all but absent from the state for nearly two hundred years, before beginning a gradual comeback over the last several decades.
According to MassWildlife, there are 500-700 moose living in the state. They are not particularly dangerous, with the biggest hazard being auto/moose collusions, which can be tragic to both the animal and the driver.
While most Bay State moose reside in northern Worcester County, according to MassWildlife, several have been spotted in Berkshire County in recent years. One moose delighted campers and visitors a few years ago by summering in Clarksburg State Park.
What to do if you’re lucky enough to see a moose in the wild? “Stay a respectful distance away and enjoy this magnificent animal,†the MassWildlife website says. “In most cases, the moose will move off. During the breeding season in fall, or the calving season in spring, be especially cautious because bulls can be unpredictable and cows can be very protective of their calves. Keep dogs under control.â€
A week earlier, I enjoyed a great view of a bald eagle, also the first one I’d seen in the wild. These majestic birds, which also had all but disappeared a few decades ago, have made a heartening comeback, with eagles throughout the state.
I was kayaking on Buckley-Dunton Lake, my first such outing of the year. I paddled across the sprawling mountain lake, dodging a few remaining ice flows. Suddenly, I heard the sound of angry crows, and thought I’d irritated them by paddling close to the shore. But I saw that they were harassing a large bird, and the group flew loudly over my head.
An eagle landed atop a dead tree very close to me, ignoring the crows, which eventually flew off, still complaining. I got out my binoculars, and enjoyed looking at the bird for about a half hour.
After a great season of snowshoeing, my early spring hikes have been outstanding. I have a moose and an eagle to thank for it.
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Dalton Considers Digitization of Records
By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
DALTON, Mass. — The town is exploring digitizing its records to improve documents organization and accessibility, while reducing the need for physical storage space.
Digitization and storage is an issue that the town encounters, more often than they would like, and has become increasingly apparent through the ongoing work of the Stormwater Management Commission, Chair Thomas Irwin told the Select Board in April.
"[The commission has] repeatedly struggled to determine what documents exist, access past commission records, and identify a secure searchable location for records we continue to generate," he said.
Currently, the town's Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) documents are primarily stored on a Google documents account managed on a Berkshire Regional Planning Commission computer and, to a lesser extent, the stormwater management webpage, Irwin said.
"For obvious reasons, this is concerning. As Dalton moves toward full MS4 compliance, both the number and the size of these records will increase," he said.
He estimated that the stormwater commission alone will initially store at least 50 documents, but the issue extends farther than this department.
"Recently, the Planning Board spent many hours searching for the east of the pond drawing and the 1992 land court decision related to Crane and Company, Petricca Industries Inc., and the Town of Dalton," Irwin said.
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