eel appeal LbNA #60775
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Add Location| Owner: | Adoptable |
|---|---|
| Plant date: | Dec 22, 2014 |
| Location: | Upper Mill Brook Reservation |
| City: | wayland |
| County: | Middlesex |
| State: | Massachusetts |
| Boxes: | 1 |
| Planted by: | eel appeal  |
|---|---|
| Found by: | Arf! |
| Last found: | Jun 14, 2012 |
| Status: | FFFFF |
| Last edited: | Dec 22, 2014 |
Clues: (just under 2 miles)
1. From the Wayland center (intersection of rt 20 and 27/126), take rt 27/126 north, take the 126 fork to right, go north for about a mile on 126 until you see the Peace Lutheran Church on the right (right after the temple). Turn into parking lot and park all the way to the back. You will see a fenced in playground. The trail head is to the right/back of the playground.
2. Follow the trail marked w/ a blue rectangle straight across a car path until you come to a pond. The trail will fork. Take the trail to the left, keeping the pond on your right. Be quiet at this point because we have seen many beavers and muskrats in the pond. Also as you get to rear side of the pond, we have scared up quite a few deer. You will see a trail off to the left, but keep going straight. Behind the pond, stay to the left and cross over the little footbridge.
3. You will see a trail marked “O” straight ahead which will lead you through an area of young white pine seedlings growing up under the large pine canopy above. At the top of a small hill, the trail will Tee at a large rock I call “the sitting rock” . It has a perfect bench for sitting and viewing the swamp ponds below. Take the path to the right of the rock onto a trail marked “K”.
4. You will come to a 4 way intersection about 200 ft down the trail. Take the left . This trail has the blue rectangle markers and will lead you along the edge of the swamp pond which has mallard and wood ducks, swans, beavers and more. Continue up a slight incline through a stone wall. On your left notice the 3’ burl knot growing out the side of a large oak down by the pond edge. As you make your way along this trail you will see stone walls that suddenly stop and start again. Notice that a ditch will start where the wall ends.. Early 1800 farmers used boundary ditches when they ran out of enough rocks for a wall.
5. Down a slight incline to the edge of the pond the trail will split at a point marked “E”. Take the trail to the right, marked with the blue rectangle. Through this area you can see vernal pools and kettle holes left from glacial activity. A kettle hole is a depression formed when huge blocks of glacial ice buried under sediment melts and collapses the over lying ground. Side note – the wet woodland is a great environment for growing mushrooms in the spring and fall. If you are picking, be careful. There are many of the deadly poisonous variety known as amanita virosa - “destroying angel” .
6. The trail will fork again and keep to the left along the edge of the swamp pond. As you come up a hill you will get a good view of the large beaver hut out in the center of the pond. Usually scare up ducks at this point too. About another ¼ mile the trail will split again. Take the trail to the right which will take you up onto a ridge with one of the “Three Ponds” on your left. At the top of the ridge you will see a large white pine that split off the main trunk and is cut up beside the trail.
7. Continue along the ridge trail about another 1000 ft and look on your right for fallen, cut off old oak tree trunks right beside the trail. If you look inside one you will see a rock. Remove the rock and Eel Appeal letterbox is behind it. If you start to slope down off the ridge, you missed the logs. Sign/ stamp and replace then continue on the path. You will come to the second of “three ponds” which is a natural cranberry bog ringed with high bush blueberry. The early settlers harvested these berries as well as lumbering and cutting ice out of the swamp pond.
8 Continue on the trail and stay on the trails leading to the right which will eventually loop back around to the swamp pond trail that you were just on. Trace it back the way you came in.
9. When you get back to the forked(Y)take the trail to the right marked E which takes you out between the swamp ponds and is great for wildlife viewing. Sometimes during wet periods and recent beaver activity, the foot bridge can be flooded. Just brave it out and walk across it. Take this trail all the way out to the point until you hit water. Look up and see the nesting great blue herons. Head back to main trail and turn right onto the trail you came in on.
1. From the Wayland center (intersection of rt 20 and 27/126), take rt 27/126 north, take the 126 fork to right, go north for about a mile on 126 until you see the Peace Lutheran Church on the right (right after the temple). Turn into parking lot and park all the way to the back. You will see a fenced in playground. The trail head is to the right/back of the playground.
2. Follow the trail marked w/ a blue rectangle straight across a car path until you come to a pond. The trail will fork. Take the trail to the left, keeping the pond on your right. Be quiet at this point because we have seen many beavers and muskrats in the pond. Also as you get to rear side of the pond, we have scared up quite a few deer. You will see a trail off to the left, but keep going straight. Behind the pond, stay to the left and cross over the little footbridge.
3. You will see a trail marked “O” straight ahead which will lead you through an area of young white pine seedlings growing up under the large pine canopy above. At the top of a small hill, the trail will Tee at a large rock I call “the sitting rock” . It has a perfect bench for sitting and viewing the swamp ponds below. Take the path to the right of the rock onto a trail marked “K”.
4. You will come to a 4 way intersection about 200 ft down the trail. Take the left . This trail has the blue rectangle markers and will lead you along the edge of the swamp pond which has mallard and wood ducks, swans, beavers and more. Continue up a slight incline through a stone wall. On your left notice the 3’ burl knot growing out the side of a large oak down by the pond edge. As you make your way along this trail you will see stone walls that suddenly stop and start again. Notice that a ditch will start where the wall ends.. Early 1800 farmers used boundary ditches when they ran out of enough rocks for a wall.
5. Down a slight incline to the edge of the pond the trail will split at a point marked “E”. Take the trail to the right, marked with the blue rectangle. Through this area you can see vernal pools and kettle holes left from glacial activity. A kettle hole is a depression formed when huge blocks of glacial ice buried under sediment melts and collapses the over lying ground. Side note – the wet woodland is a great environment for growing mushrooms in the spring and fall. If you are picking, be careful. There are many of the deadly poisonous variety known as amanita virosa - “destroying angel” .
6. The trail will fork again and keep to the left along the edge of the swamp pond. As you come up a hill you will get a good view of the large beaver hut out in the center of the pond. Usually scare up ducks at this point too. About another ¼ mile the trail will split again. Take the trail to the right which will take you up onto a ridge with one of the “Three Ponds” on your left. At the top of the ridge you will see a large white pine that split off the main trunk and is cut up beside the trail.
7. Continue along the ridge trail about another 1000 ft and look on your right for fallen, cut off old oak tree trunks right beside the trail. If you look inside one you will see a rock. Remove the rock and Eel Appeal letterbox is behind it. If you start to slope down off the ridge, you missed the logs. Sign/ stamp and replace then continue on the path. You will come to the second of “three ponds” which is a natural cranberry bog ringed with high bush blueberry. The early settlers harvested these berries as well as lumbering and cutting ice out of the swamp pond.
8 Continue on the trail and stay on the trails leading to the right which will eventually loop back around to the swamp pond trail that you were just on. Trace it back the way you came in.
9. When you get back to the forked(Y)take the trail to the right marked E which takes you out between the swamp ponds and is great for wildlife viewing. Sometimes during wet periods and recent beaver activity, the foot bridge can be flooded. Just brave it out and walk across it. Take this trail all the way out to the point until you hit water. Look up and see the nesting great blue herons. Head back to main trail and turn right onto the trail you came in on.