I've said it before, Polo is Awesome

I love going to polo matches. I went on Saturday for the second time in my life. It is so much fun.

First off, I think the average person has the wrong impression of polo. I think most of us think it is only for rich snobs. I was on the phone with one of friends at work.I told her that I was trying to convince Laurie to go to polo with me on Saturday. When I told her that she had a weird judgmental voice. When I got off of the phone with her, I sent a text explaining how fun and how cheap the tickets were.

This was her response- "Lol, you guessed correct. I was definitely judging you. I was like, this rich uppity snob. It must be nice to afford polo."

So let me shatter some myths. The tickets to the end zone which is general admission are $15. I think that is quite reasonable, by all means compare that price to a Boston Red Sox or Patriots game. There are other levels. I think the price of a car load is $100 on one side of the field. You can drive your car right to the edge of the field and tailgate ten feet away.

The price of a ticket for the Aex and Ani Pavillion is $20 a person. You are at the "fifty yard line" and you can get food. We sit in general admission because you can bring your own food and drink. That's right, you can bring your own food and drink (alcohol and non-alcoholic beverages) right to the field. Laurie and I get some pulled pork sandwiches, cornbread, and soda from Becky's BBQ for the match.

Lastly, I suspect the average person is rich who goes to polo. But really who cares? I mean, how can you tell if anyone at a sporting event is a snob or not? How many people do you really interact with at a baseball game or Patriots game once you are in the stadium? Maybe the guy in front of you in the bathroom line or concessions line. The guy whose seat is next to yours. I do know this, a lot of people brought their dogs (yes you can bring your dog) and a lot of people were admiring them, meeting and playing with other people's pets. In short, everyone seemed really friendly.

Oh ya, parking is free also, and it is only a thirty second walk from your car to the field.

So we got our fifteen dollar ticket, parked the car, and carried our food and drink to an open spot. We set up our blanket and lawn chair and got comfortable for the match. There are three chukkers (periods) on each side of halftime. Each is seven minutes long. At the end of each seven minutes the riders switch out horses. Each horse gets ridden once per half. The riders hit the ball with a mallet. The object is to hit the ball through the goal posts.

On the other side of the field you can pitch tents and tailgate
right up to the boards

At halftime the fans are encouraged to go out on the field and stomp down the divots. Imagine being allowed on the field at Fenway during the seventh inning stretch.  So we went on the field doing our part to flatten it out. Of course we had to watch out for the "steaming divots". After the match the players ride by the fans high fiving them as they pass. The announcer words it this way" the riders come by for the sweaty hand thing". It is a thrill for the kids to get their hand slapped, but really the adults like it too. It is a tradition and almost every spectator was at the edge of the field waiting for the riders to slap their hand.  The Newport team won 11-10. We got back into our car and was off of the field and back on Route 138 in less than ten minutes. Ending a really fun afternoon at the Newport Polo Grounds.

The riders doing the "sweaty hand thing" High fiving the fans

You can order tickets online or just get them the day of the match. Matches start at 5 pm on Saturdays. On some weeks it is USA vs an International team. The other week it is the Newport team vs other cities (we say them play Palm Springs) Info can be found at the website. Bring some food a bottle of wine or soda and enjoy the relaxed atmosphere of polo.

https://www.nptpolo.com/

Sometimes it's the Little Things (in this case Leopard Frogs and Marsh Wrens)

Marsh Wren

This morning I went to Great Meadows Wildlife Refuge in Concord. The goal- to see and photograph Marsh Wrens. I had heard them this year at Plum but hadn't seen any. Basically, I was just looking for something to do.

Normally, I write to inspire others to get outside. Not today, unless burning sweat dripping into your eyes is on your bucket list, then ninety degree heat with seventy percent humidity, is not a lot of fun. Still, I got some pretty decent pictures.

There were a lot of leopard frogs in the grass. I haven't seen too many since I was a kid, so it is was nice to see them. There were also a lot of Marsh Wrens calling. One came out of the cattails for a few seconds. Pictures -

Leopard Frog

There were a lot of this species of water lily

I mean, a real lot

Milkweed

Cardinal flower

A turkey and her poult were on the trail

Back up plan B,C,D

Of the few Saltmarsh Sparrows I have ever seen, this is by far
the best photograph I have gotten.  

I wanted to go to New Hampshire this weekend. However, the weather predicted powerful thunderstorms in the mountains. Over the next couple of days there was also predicted to be only sporadic sunshine. Not exactly the report to inspire an out of shape middle aged man to climb a mountain. I try not to hike if there is cloud cover, because fifty feet of grey air is not the view I am looking for. I made my decision last night about 5 pm to stay home. But what to do on my Friday and Saturday off days?

Well, I planned on going to the Cape to do some striper fishing. There has been a good bite the last couple of weeks for those willing to be there at first light. So I attempted to get up very early to be there by 5 am. However, I've worked my ass off the last couple weeks and when I woke I decided I needed more sleep than I needed to (attempt) to catch stripers.

So this left me with two other summer ideas. The first was to go snorkeling at Prudence Island. I like going there at low tide and swim around the rocks. Problem was, low tide was at 3 pm today. So it didn't exactly fit with the ferry schedule. Also it was so hot and humid, I really didn't want to peddle my bike all over the island to get to my favorite cove. If these all sound like excuses, you are probably right.

I also thought that our area was supposed to get afternoon thunderstorms. This ruled out my last option of birding at Charlestown Breachway. Being on the mudflats with absolutely no cover surrounded by water is the worst possible place to be in a thunderstorm. However, I checked the hourly forecast and there was between a 0-10% chance of afternoon precipitation. So I put my kayak on my car and headed south. I got stuck in traffic in multiple spots (there was a three car pile up on I-295 that backed up traffic for two miles). I almost turned around at multiple points because of the traffic. Once I got past a certain point I figured I may as well keep going. I also knew I may as well stay down there for a while because the beach traffic coming home was thick.

Semipalmated Sandpiper

I finally made it down about 4:15 and put the kayak in. A short paddle got me on the mudflats. There were a lot of shorebirds. I didn't see any rare species, but many of the more common ones. I was surprised to see at least 14 Piping Plovers. The best birds I saw was Saltmarsh Sparrow and Seaside Sparrow. I watched the Saltmarsh Sparrows for some time hoping to get a good picture of them. I got one that I am happy with.

I also played in the mud and found a few littlenecks. I was having so much fun I lost track of time. I had planned on going p to Narragansett if there weren't many birds. I never checked the time and before I knew it, it was 8 pm, and the sun was starting to set (it was cloudy so it felt late anyway). I paddled back to the car and came home. All in all, It was a fun afternoon. I'm glad I had a Plan D.

Cropped picture of a Seaside Sparrow. A little out of focus
but the first one I have ever photographed.

A Midsummer Night's Dream

Tonight I went to the Contemporary Theater in Wakefield to watch a free presentation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. The play was outside of the theater on a little stage. The stage was surrounded by a flower garden which actually made the set more believable. The play was free, but there was a fishbowl for donations. The play was well worth donating a couple of dollars

I am not going to bore you with the plot. Either you like Will's plays or you don't. As for me, I can tolerate most of the ones I've seen but really enjoy the humor of this comedy. 

Helena being courted by Demetrius

The play lasted about two hours. The cast was very good and ranged from five years old playing the Fairy Queen's maidens to about fifty. The "young lovers" were teens to twenty somethings. I think the highlight of the show were the two girls who played Helena and Hermia. 

One thing to note, some of the male characters were played by female players. The roles of Lysander and Nick Bottom were both played by girls. This wasn't too confusing for me because I knew the characters and the plot. It confused the hell out of Laurie and I had to explain a lot during the intermission. The girl that played Nick Bottom however, was awesome. Her performance was completely over the top just as Nick Bottom was. She was laugh out loud funny. Puck was also played by a girl, and was just as amusing. 

The stage is really an outdoor patio. There weren't any props or anything resembling a set. None the less, you got a sense of where everyone was in relation to "the woods" or where the weddings took place. I thought it was really well done. 

I have absolutely no complaints about the play and give it five stars, especially considering the cost. My only complaint was with kids. The stage is outdoors and the cast did not wear microphones. Everyone needed to be quiet to hear the actors. A couple of parents thought it was a good idea to bring their 3-5 year old kids. There is no way kids that young can sit still for two hours so they talked through it and made noises. It was pretty annoying. 

Oberon putting a spell on Titania

Mom, I wish you could have been there

Mom never saw a grizz. But because of her parenting,
her oldest son has seen seven.

Tomorrow will mark the 27th year since the passing of my mother. She had just turned 45 and died on her birthday. Since I will be 45 years old in less than a year, that age puts a little fear in me. Some years I am so busy at work or life on my parents birthdays or death anniversaries that the day passes and I realize it a couple days later. We have all said "What is today's date? when writing a check or doing paperwork. Other years, I realize it for a few days leading up. Truthfully, I'd much rather have the date pass,, but obviously, that did not happen this year.

 When I was a kid, I am not ashamed to say my mom was my best friend. Almost every night we would drive around the farms at dusk looking for animals. Truthfully, we didn't see much. We were always on the lookout for deer, skunks, or anything crossing the road. When we would see an animal, because it was fairly rare, both of us would get an adrenaline rush.

One time while on vacation in New Hampshire she was walking in front of me on a covered bridge. She saw an animal swimming (otter, muskrat or beaver, I suspect). She got so excited she yelled for me to see it. Needless to say the animal dove underwater never to be seen again.

There is no question that my love of wildlife, fishing, and the outdoors comes from her. I feel that she gave me a basic foundation that I have built off of. She gave me the the opportunity to spend time outdoors. I went full throttle and have seized the chance to make outdoor memories every chance I can. So Mom, here is a letter to you-

Mom,

I've wrote before how I wish I could have taught you to catch species of fish that you really never did. Although you taught me how to fish drowning worms on the bottom, there is so much more. I would have loved to have taught you to catch stripers using lures. It would have been awesome seeing you reel in a keeper with your little rod. Who knows, maybe I could have finally taught you to cast a spinning rod the right way.

However, today I want to tell you about some of the wildlife I've seen. Why? because I wish you could have been there to see it too.

The day before DJ and I went into Yellowstone I was acutely aware that I was about to go to the number one place on my bucket list. I knew the next morning there would be no place in the entire world I would rather be. Not the Serengeti, not Rome or Paris, but Yellowstone. We entered through the Northeast Gate. After entering the park you drive through Lamar Valley. It is a huge valley with mountains on either side but they must be five to ten miles apart.  My euphoria about the park had to be put aside. Within a few miles we saw a herd of pronghorn. We saw at least three grizzlies. While watching the bears, DJ saw a wolf. We had an eagle fly by.  There were buffalo in the valley. When we left the valley we went to the remnants of a Petrified tree. What do we see from the parking lot? A black bear eating berries. This all happened in the first 90 minutes of being in Yellowstone and we had another 6 days to be there. You would have loved it.

Along the main road at Grand Teton the Snake River forms a sharp bend. The area is known as the Oxbow. It is a known wildlife spot. DJ and I went there before dusk. There were multiple beavers swimming.There were white pelicans swimming about.  However what we did not expect to see were a herd of elk on the hill and the black bear in front of us. It was one of the best hours of my life.I wish you could have been there.

Mom, we stayed at a campground at Rocky Mountain that had such a problem with pine beetles they cut every tree down. It looked like a wasteland. However the animals loved it. When we woke up one morning we had a herd of elk walk around the campground. They like eating the ashes from campfires because of the minerals. We also had plenty of mule deer AND a mother moose and her baby came through. It was awesome. I wish you could have seen it.

There are so many places I've been and so many animals  I've seen, I wish I could have shared some of those memories with you. The road leading to the campground in the Badlands has buffalo, prairie dogs, burrowing owls, mule deer, and pronghorn. It also has dozens of bighorn sheep living near it. This includes a bachelor group of males with huge horns it is awe inspiring. I was standing ten feet away from a giant ram with horns completely curled snapping pictures.

A mile hike from Roaring Brook Campground in Baxter State Park, ME will bring you to a pond that moose feed at every morning and evening. One day DJ and I spent five hours watching a soap opera play out. A bull moose was courting a female that wanted no part of the action. She had a baby with her. When the mother and calf left the water, they walked by the rock we were standing on. My heart was racing, it was a little scary but exhilarating. I  could have reached out and pet them. They were that close. The water falling off of them was literally landing on my feet. You would have passed out. If you would have been there with us, you probably wouldn't have stood your ground and let the moose pass. You probably would have tried to scare them away from coming straight at us. So maybe it's best you missed out on that one.

And Mom, it is not just big adventures that I wish you didn't miss out on. There are plenty of places close to home. I see more deer in a year now than I did in the seventeen years that we were alive together. There is close to a one hundred percent chance of seeing deer at Sachuest NWR. There are so many deer there and they are not afraid of people. They will hang out right at the parking area letting spectators take all the pics they want.

 Ospreys are so common now, that by April 15 I just chalk them up as another species. There are so many wild turkeys, the only time I get excited seeing them is if I'm five feet away getting pictures. Even that has become pointless. I've gotten so many wallhanger photos of turkeys, I really don't need anymore

You would have loved Plum Island in the spring. We wouldn't be going there looking for cardinals. A bad day there is seeing less than ten species of warblers. My target species this year was the beautiful Black Throated Blue Warbler. You would have loved seeing all of the colorful birds. You probably would have been pretty impressed that I know all of their names. I worked hard to become a pretty good birder.

Which leads me to a question. Why did you never get yourself a nice camera? Honestly, I'm kind of mad at you for that. I know how unselfish you were and you put your kids first, but a good camera is an investment in memories. I could have gone with a few less presents on Christmas if it meant a good camera. You wouldn't even have to buy it for yourself. It could have been a family camera. One year DJ and I got a backpacking tent from Santa that was neither mine nor his, just a useful gift for both of us. This is a tough one to let go.

Red Knot
One of the highlights of my year

I wish you could have taken the walk out to Napatree Point in June, I'm not sure you were ever healthy enough to trudge a mile and a quarter over the sand. However seeing all those shorebirds is so worth it. I was as excited to see the Red Knots this spring as you were on the covered bridge. However, I didn't yell and scare them away.

Mom, I've seen dozens of moose to the one that you saw in Skowhegan. I've seen wonders that I couldn't have even dreamed of. It is not bragging. I love going to wild places. I actively search out places with lots of animals and I go on vacations to those places. I realized while on vacation with DJ in South Dakota that although I love big views I like seeing the animals more. It was Lois Crisler who said "Wilderness without wildlife is just scenery".

I do not get the adrenaline rush every time I see an animal like I used to. When I do, it much more intense and less fleeting. Although they say adrenaline is a quick shot and burns off in a few seconds, I'm sure I had it running through my veins for ninety minutes when Laurie and I were walking out of our overnight in Wind Cave's prairie. We had buffalo all around us the whole way. Every corner we rounded had a two thousand pound bull that we had to avoid. It was intense and probably the most alive I have ever felt.

 I got an adrenaline rush when I saw Finback Whales feeding in the rip off of Race Point last April. I got it when I saw the Red Knots, Scarlet Tanager and Snowy Owl. It doesn't  happen often anymore but when it happens, I know I'm enjoying the moment.

If their is difference in our love of nature it is my wanderlust. While we were both always sad when vacations ended, we always went up to Maine every year. And I loved it. I loved the memories our family made up there. But now I have wanderlust calling so loud at me that I can hear it in my sleep. I want to see so many places. I want to explore places I never heard of as a kid. My bucket list of hikes is pages long. There is no way I could possibly see everything that I want to, but I'm sure as hell going to give it a try.

I never asked you what you hoped for me. Luckily, I never had a dying wish or promise I had to live up to. I suspect there are things I've done you would not be proud of and I don't know if I have lived up to your expectations. I realized a long time ago, that there is no point trying to live up to the expectations of your deceased parents. However, once I got past the stupidity of my early twenties I have tried to live my life in a way that I was a role model for my son. He is still his own man and he is going to make mistakes, but my hope was he had someone to look up to. I think I have accomplished that.

I think all we can hope for our kids is that they are happy. Maybe that is all you wanted for me, maybe you wanted more. I do know this, to this point, I have not lived a good life, I have lived a great life. I have made so many memories. Most of my best have been outdoors while fishing, hiking or wildlife viewing. A large part of that goes to you for taking me to do those things when I was a kid

But Mom, I wish you could have been there.

Farewell Lynyrd Skynyrd

From Google Images

When Lynyrd Skynyrd announced this year's tour, they announced it would be their last. They were calling it quits after this one. I looked at the schedule and saw they were playing the Xfinity Center (Great Woods) on July 20. this caused a conundrum for me because I had planned my first New Hampshire hiking trip for this weekend. About a month ago, one of the bakers from work said he was going to Portugal on vacation from July 12-23. It was expected of me to cover his shifts, so that ended any debate of New Hampshire or Skynyrd.

I still waited until I got a decent weather report before I bought tickets. I didn't want to be miserable in hot sticky humidity like I was in Philly for Dropkick Murphys. It turns out I had nothing to worry about the weather was perfect.

Laurie and I got there as some opening act was in the middle of their set. Laurie got us a soda ($8 but it was refillable, so that wasn't bad). After the opening act were two other classic Southern Rock bands. The first was The Marshall Tucker Band. They only played a few songs but I sad that they didn't play one of their most popular songs "Heard it in a Love Song"

Next up was 38 Special. They played for about an hour.  They played all of theit biggest hits saving the most popular two for last "Hold on Loosely" and "Caught up in You". I was surprised that Donnie Van Zant (brother of Skynyrd's lead singer Johnny Van Zant) was no longer the lead singer. It turns out he wasn't been for five years.

Skynyrd came out at about 9:30.They played all of their hits. I knew almost every song. They had the place rocking especially during What's your Name" and "Give me Three Steps".

Their last two songs were their biggest hits. They rocked Great Woods with "Sweet Home Alabama", then brought it down with "Freebird"

It saddens me that Lynyrd Skynyrd is retiring. Obviously it means they are getting older. But more selfishly, it means I'm getting older too. I've seen them four times including the last time I was drunk in the summer of 2008. Thank you Skynyrd for the music and the memories!

I needed some easy fishing

Over the last couple of weeks, I have gone fishing in the Upper Bay most nights of the week. I know there isn't a lot there but it is a short ride. Usually my friend and I are hoping for two or three fish. Really, we just don't want to get skunked. The few fish that are there are small. However, it gets me out of the house, we have a few laughs, and catch a fish or two.

On Friday, with the new moon, I went to the best place in all of New England to catch a summer keeper. I got there at 5:45 am. By the time I got there, the banks were lined with hundreds of guys. I saw plenty of fish that had been caught. Yet, by that late hour of 6 am, it was over. The fish were just not feeding anymore. I fished hard throughout the day and ended up catching two fish. One was a schoolie but I was rewarded with a keeper of about 32 inches that I released. I put in eleven hours to catch those fish.

While going from one unproductive spot to another, I got a phone call from my friend Dick asking me if I wanted to go out on his boat on Saturday. I jumped on the opportunity to bottom bounce for groundfish. The phone call came at the perfect time. I'd been fishless to that point and it got rather warm out. Knowing I was going to go fishing with a good friend and catch some seabass got my adrenaline flowing and really perked me up.

I was technically on call Saturday morning, but made a couple phone calls to make sure the midpart of the day would be covered in any emergencies. I met Dick at 10 am and we were fishing by 10:30.

We fished in much deeper water with swifter currents than my two ounce jigs could manage. Luckily, Dick had plenty of bucktails and I tied on a pink one. To make a long story short we caught quite a few fish. It wasn't lights out fishing, but in the three hours we both caught over a dozen black sea bass each. Dick also caught a couple short fluke. It was just what the doctor ordered.

On one of my drops, as soon as it hit the bottom I reeled up and already had a fish on. I set the hook and my rod doubled over. It turned out to be my largest Black Sea Bass to date. It was over 23 inches. I was beyond pumped.

All in all, I had a great afternoon Saturday. Having a fishing session catching more than a couple fish was much needed. We talked about food, restaurants, and politics. I had a great time.

Later that evening, Laurie and I went to the PawSox game. We specifically went to the July 14 game because they had Jimmy Buffett  themed fireworks. Jimmy's attitude and songs are the biggest musical influence on my life. So none the less, it was AWESOME!!!

Mystic Seaport- Vikings!!!

You may have noticed I haven't written about any daytrips since I got back from vacation. This is because I had done absolutely nothing. I have another bulging disk in my neck and although the pain is nothing like it had been in the past, I'd really like it to heal. Between the neck and the oppressive heat, I didn't do anything on my last set of off days from work other than watch movies. I did not want to waste anymore precious offdays.

I went to Mystic Seaport today. Mystic Seaport is not a working port with goods coming in on barges. It is a living history museum in the same fashion as Old Sturbridge Village and Williamsburg, VA. It is on the Mystic River and it does represent a working seaport from the 1800's.

The reason I went was an exhibition with Vikings artifacts. The artifacts are on loan from Uppsala University, Sweden. This is the first time these artifacts have left Scandinavia. The artifacts are in the building you buy your tickets in. There wasn't a ton of stuff but it was awesome. There were two swords, a shield, and a couple helmets. There were also other things such as a drinking glass, decorations for their horses and beads that were traded to them. It only takes ten minutes to see it all, but that was plenty for me. More text below the three Viking pictures

Two Viking Swords

The Shield was huge. It was at least 4
feet in diameter

Viking Helmet

After I looked at the Vikings artifacts, I went to the planetarium. They have multiple shows a day about the night sky. It was interesting. The guy that ran the planetarium was funny in a very bad joke and pun sort of way. There is an additional cost of four dollars

Later in the day, I went back to the planetarium for a different show about Norse constellations. Just as fun.

In between the two shows I walked around the seaport. I went on the various vessels they have in port. There is a whaling ship named the Charles W. Morgan. There was a cadet training ship also there. It had been sunk and refloated. Apparently 22 souls were lost when it sank. There are other boats including a steamship. Some of them will take you for a ride around the river for a few dollars.

Like Sturbridge Village, there is a town. There is a blacksmith shop, a barrel maker, bank, church, etc... I went into most of the buildings. Some are staffed with living history guides that will answer your questions.  Some are just building with artifacts in them with a plaque to read.

I  bought lunch at the Galley Restaurant. It was the typical museum overprice that you would expect. However, the food was very good. I bought a grilled chicken sandwich with caramelized onions and mayo. There is only one size fountain drink ($2.75) but you can refill all day providing you don't destroy your paper cup. My meal cost me $15 but the fries were good, the sandwich delicious, and I was pretty full. Gladly, I didn't have a family of four to feed. I saw meals of seafood come out, the platters and fish and chip servings were huge.

All in all, it was a fun day. It was hot and humid in Mystic but there was a slight sea breeze. Compared to the steaminess back home it felt downright pleasant. The price is a steep $29 for an adult. Again, I'm glad I wasn't going with a family of four. I knew the cost long before I went today. I told myself even if Mystic Seaport sucks, I went to see the Viking artifacts. I was pleasantly surprised at how many ships they have to check out and how many buildings there were "in port".

Multiple pictures below the link

Any info should be easily obtainable on their website https://www.mysticseaport.org/

This is an exact replica of a lighthouse in Nantucket.
It is the shortest lighthouse on the East Coast
at 26 feet. 

The whaling ship Charles Morgan. She went out on 37
voyages. 

The Joseph Conrad. This is the training ship that
had sunk and was refloated.