September 24, 2014 ~ Fredericksburg, VA to Bowie, MD
I woke at 4 in the morning, but the Starbucks 1/2 mile down the street was open 24 hours. Lucky me. I hung out there until the sun rose and then some before traveling north on old US 1 to Elizabeth Hartwell Mason Neck NWR...another refuge illustrating what one determined person can accomplish:
Mason Neck is just north of Quantico along the Potomac and, since I've read Vince Flynn novels, I felt I was probably on camera somewhere which was actually reassuring as the refuge was wooded and deserted for the most part. But definitely not swampy.
I walked the paved ("mobility accessible") Great Marsh Trail through gorgeous mature hardwoods to an overlook where I spent an hour, mostly watching the Great birds - Blue Herons (one of which flew in and perched just above me so I got to inspect its reddish thighs, long legs, knobby knees and impressive black feet) and White Egrets which stood in one place preening or resting, and then flew about croaking before setting into a new spot. I saw a Bald Eagle, a Belted Kingfisher, an Eastern Phoebe and Grey Catbird and a Sharp-Shinned or Cooper's in the distance. It was nature-quiet with only large yellow/brown Chestnut Oak acorns dropping and a light breeze shushing in the canopy. The woods here were remarkably lovely even on this day with no sunlight.
Mason Neck is part of the Potomac River NWR Complex, which also includes Occoquan NWR (across a little bay from Mason Neck) and Featherstone NWR (not open to the public).
I had an hour of indecision: start moving west or try to connect with a college roommate who lives in the area, and while I was dithering in my mind, I was also on BirdsEye checking out area hot spots. I saw that a Connecticut Warbler had been seen yesterday at the Visitor Center at Rock Creek, a 2-mile long, 1/2-mile wide park administered by the National Park Service right in DC, with dense foliage, steep hills, massive hardwoods and paths and roads and horse stables, a space big and wild enough to support populations of coyotes and grey and red fox. I did eventually get there (no thanks to Siri who directed me in confusing circles through and around downtown Washington, around Dupont Circle, through neighborhoods, passing by the Lincoln Memorial, the Kennedy Center, the Tidal Basin...basically having me go in circles and constantly "re-routing" in her monotonal dispassionate way). I finally pulled over in a bus stop and figured out exactly where I was, where Rock Creek was and how I could get there. I really really love driving in a big unfamiliar city with no good paper map and an impersonal voice directing me willy-nilly, all the while trying to stay in the proper lanes, avoid encounters with other vehicle or pedestrians or not find myself headed toward major limited access routes or beltways or tollways.
All part of the grand adventure and still not as bad as getting on and off Long Island.
At the Visitor Center, two different employees told me precisely where to go to see birds, but I saw more at the garden there, including three warbler species, a juvenile rumpled and very vocal Carolina Wren, robins, catbirds, chickadees, cardinals, jays....
The special spot directions were: "Go to the Maintenance area and walk along the fence and you'll come to an open area, but don't stray too far since there's quite a drop-off; it's steep in there....often birders come after work, or if you're here at 7 in the morning, there will be 10 birders..."
So I went there after a couple of wrong turns and talked the only other birder present, a gentleman who looked like a relative...like he could have been my Dad's brother, and I the immediate thought that my brother would look like this guy in 20 years. He hadn't seen any "neotropicals" in an hour of watching, but I could see this would be a prime viewing venue. I saw three modest metal stools with "Birding Stool" written on the seats. The gentleman had birded all over the US....northern Ohio, Arizona, the Atlantic coast, etc. He noticed my Calvin College jacket and knew Calvin was in Michigan although said he gets it mixed up with Hope and Albion, etc. He indicated he taught (or had been a teacher). I didn't see the Connecticut Warbler, but he told me I might find one at Cromwell Park in Baltimore where the local birders give "very specific" directions as to where they see specific birds. I thought about going there, perhaps tomorrow if the roommate deal doesn't work out.
For the next 30 minutes I listened and watched for the flutter of leaves or movement in the trees indicating bird presence but never got a decent look at anything.
It was now late afternoon, so I emailed my roommate and headed for a Walmart somewhere to the east, wending my way through city traffic until I crossed the Anascostia River in Bladensburg and saw a couple of crew boats on the water. I am reading The Boys in the Boat so pulled off in time to see the kids carrying their boats overhead. Now I wished I had gone to the big venue for rowing on this river at the Anacostia Community Boathouse. And I learned that sculling involves two oars per person with 1, 2 or 4 people in a boat, while rowing (sweep rowing) involves one oar per person with teams of 2, 4 or 8 people per boat. And that coxswain is pronounced cox-n.
I moved from one Walmart parking lot (sketchy and prohibited parking) to another farther east at Bowie, had delicious salmon at a restaurant across the street and read for awhile. I woke to rain and felt totally cozy in my wee house.
My roommate had responded, so I'll meet her for lunch tomorrow.
WWW.FWS.GOV
In the early 1960’s a developer sought out land on Mason Neck to build a planned community and airport. Elizabeth van Laer Speer Hartwell, a local resident, who valued the pristine nature of the peninsula, organized an effort to stop this development. She recognized the potential of the Mason Neck peninsula as a safe haven for the endangered bald eagles along the Potomac River. Armed with enthusiasm and a gift for writing and public speaking, her citizen crusade convinced key Federal, state, and local officials the value of protecting the Neck and the bald eagle for future generations. Elizabeth Hartwell’s steadfast work resulted in the establishment of the Mason Neck National Wildlife Refuge in 1969 earning her the nickname of “The Eagle Lady”. On August 6, 2006, Congress approved a name change for the refuge to the Elizabeth Hartwell Mason Neck National Wildlife Refuge in her honor.
Mason Neck is just north of Quantico along the Potomac and, since I've read Vince Flynn novels, I felt I was probably on camera somewhere which was actually reassuring as the refuge was wooded and deserted for the most part. But definitely not swampy.
 |
| Elizabeth Hartwell Mason Neck NWR - VA |
Mason Neck is part of the Potomac River NWR Complex, which also includes Occoquan NWR (across a little bay from Mason Neck) and Featherstone NWR (not open to the public).
 |
| Great White Egret at Mason Neck NWR - VA |
I had an hour of indecision: start moving west or try to connect with a college roommate who lives in the area, and while I was dithering in my mind, I was also on BirdsEye checking out area hot spots. I saw that a Connecticut Warbler had been seen yesterday at the Visitor Center at Rock Creek, a 2-mile long, 1/2-mile wide park administered by the National Park Service right in DC, with dense foliage, steep hills, massive hardwoods and paths and roads and horse stables, a space big and wild enough to support populations of coyotes and grey and red fox. I did eventually get there (no thanks to Siri who directed me in confusing circles through and around downtown Washington, around Dupont Circle, through neighborhoods, passing by the Lincoln Memorial, the Kennedy Center, the Tidal Basin...basically having me go in circles and constantly "re-routing" in her monotonal dispassionate way). I finally pulled over in a bus stop and figured out exactly where I was, where Rock Creek was and how I could get there. I really really love driving in a big unfamiliar city with no good paper map and an impersonal voice directing me willy-nilly, all the while trying to stay in the proper lanes, avoid encounters with other vehicle or pedestrians or not find myself headed toward major limited access routes or beltways or tollways.
All part of the grand adventure and still not as bad as getting on and off Long Island.
At the Visitor Center, two different employees told me precisely where to go to see birds, but I saw more at the garden there, including three warbler species, a juvenile rumpled and very vocal Carolina Wren, robins, catbirds, chickadees, cardinals, jays....
The special spot directions were: "Go to the Maintenance area and walk along the fence and you'll come to an open area, but don't stray too far since there's quite a drop-off; it's steep in there....often birders come after work, or if you're here at 7 in the morning, there will be 10 birders..."
So I went there after a couple of wrong turns and talked the only other birder present, a gentleman who looked like a relative...like he could have been my Dad's brother, and I the immediate thought that my brother would look like this guy in 20 years. He hadn't seen any "neotropicals" in an hour of watching, but I could see this would be a prime viewing venue. I saw three modest metal stools with "Birding Stool" written on the seats. The gentleman had birded all over the US....northern Ohio, Arizona, the Atlantic coast, etc. He noticed my Calvin College jacket and knew Calvin was in Michigan although said he gets it mixed up with Hope and Albion, etc. He indicated he taught (or had been a teacher). I didn't see the Connecticut Warbler, but he told me I might find one at Cromwell Park in Baltimore where the local birders give "very specific" directions as to where they see specific birds. I thought about going there, perhaps tomorrow if the roommate deal doesn't work out.
For the next 30 minutes I listened and watched for the flutter of leaves or movement in the trees indicating bird presence but never got a decent look at anything.
It was now late afternoon, so I emailed my roommate and headed for a Walmart somewhere to the east, wending my way through city traffic until I crossed the Anascostia River in Bladensburg and saw a couple of crew boats on the water. I am reading The Boys in the Boat so pulled off in time to see the kids carrying their boats overhead. Now I wished I had gone to the big venue for rowing on this river at the Anacostia Community Boathouse. And I learned that sculling involves two oars per person with 1, 2 or 4 people in a boat, while rowing (sweep rowing) involves one oar per person with teams of 2, 4 or 8 people per boat. And that coxswain is pronounced cox-n.
 |
| Anacostia River - MD |
I moved from one Walmart parking lot (sketchy and prohibited parking) to another farther east at Bowie, had delicious salmon at a restaurant across the street and read for awhile. I woke to rain and felt totally cozy in my wee house.
My roommate had responded, so I'll meet her for lunch tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment