Salaman-day!

 

Red Backed Salamander

   I had another fantastic day herping. I had a nice day planned doing some fishing and some herping. I tried but didn't catch any fish. I did see a large blitz but it was way off shore and did not come in while I was there. The herping more than made up for it.

   I found my first salamanders of the year today. I lifted a rock off of the beaten path and low and behold there they were. I took  a couple of photos and put them back where I found them. They were Red Backed Salamanders which is the most common species in the Northeast. Despite one having a very distinct red back and the other being all dark grey they are the same species. 

   After I looked at them I ran into my friend Linda. She had a slow day birding so I told her about the salamanders and showed them to her. She told me she had a salamander under one of the pots in her garden and described it to me. It was a Spotted Salamander. I told her I had never seen one so if it was there when she got home to please let me know and I'd go to her house.

 

Spotted Salamander

   She called me twenty minutes later that it was there. As promised, I drove up to her house. It was a little guy about four inches. It was covered in dirt and not the most photogenic amphibian you will ever see but he was there! I took a bunch of photos and put the flower pot gently over him again.  

And, ho-hum, I found the Eastern Milk Snake again today.

  Below are more photos. Spotted Salaamder has spots. The Red backed do not. The one that looks like a snake is a snake. There is also a Praying Mantis and a frog below. 

The darker Red Bellied Salamander

Praying Mantis

A Lizard Adventure in Boston

 

The biggest lizards we saw were about eight inches long.

    Today I went to Boston to look for lizards. As crazy as this sounds a species called the Italian 
Wall Lizard lives in a park in Boston. As the name suggests, they are from Italy. While they are introduced, they are not invasive because they aren't hurting anything. There aren't any native lizards to displace, eat, or outcompete. Our  mission today was to find them.

   Thanks to a kid I met in Uxbridge while I was fly-fishing for invasive Green Sunfish after herping, while he was fishing for carp, I got info about where to look for these Italian Wall Lizards. Yes, I purposely made that last sentence complicated just to see if you were following along. When I met Michael, we talked for a couple hours about snakes, fish, and adventures. We exchanged info. Since then we have kept in touch. I helped him with Copperheads and he told me about these lizards. Unlike birders, herpers rarely share info. The big fear is that sharing info can lead to a snake or frog getting killed or captured for a pet. So it is rare to trust someone enough to share information. 

   I met Charles today on the train. He came up from Newport and I met him when I boarded the train in Attleboro inbound for Boston. We had a mile walk when we got off of the train. It was still a little chilly after a fifty four degree night. Almost immediately we ran across someone with a big camera. Being that Charles is not shy, he went up to the guy and asked if he was a naturalist. The guy is a regular and was looking for hawks. He knew the park well and told us the general direction to look for lizards sunning themselves. 

   Sure enough while walking up the path I spotted a lizard sunning itself on a rock. The view was through chicken wire. Still, the view was great even if the photos weren't going to be. Following that lizard, one was right along the walkway. It was on some rocks and we both got some great photos. After that, the fun was on. The sun was warming up the rocks and pavement and the lizards were everywhere. There were also some compost piles and we saw a bunch in there. 

 

A lizard that lost its tail but lived to tell the tale.

    After thirty photos or so, I realized my camera battery was dying. I decided to save the battery in case something great came along. This was not a hard decision because my other goal was to catch one and get a photo of one in my hands. I failed. They are so fast. I probably tried fifteen or more times and only once felt a tail. Every other lizard bolted. So needless to say, I didn't even come close to getting a lizard in my hand photo. 

   All in all, we probably saw forty lizards or more. We were hoping to see one. We took a lot of photos of the one behind the chicken wire and were thrilled to have seen it. After seeing the second one out in the open knowing we had "great" photos we were already satisfied. Once it warmed up and all the lizards were sunning and feeding we were kids at the candy store. I hadn't taken the train to Boston in a decade. Seeing this European lizard and hearing Charles's stories from his pirate days made today an amazing adventure! 

More photos below...

A lizard eating what I believe is a cricket

Eastern Milk Snake!

 

   After spending the morning in the house waiting for the tropical storm to materialize we decided not to waste anymore of the day. We didn't have any plans because who makes outdoor plans during a possible hurricane besides my friend Dave? So after a few quick minutes of thinking we decided to go herping in the place I saw ten snakes last week. 

   I knew Rhode Island was going to be spared almost the entire affects of the storm. I hoped it had rained in the morning and the sun would come out to dry things up making hungry snakes come out to feed. When I got down to South County it looked as though it never rained at all. Even more surprisingly, the water was calm. 

   Laurie and I looked along the edges of the grass like Greg and I did earlier in the week but didn't have much success. We each only found one snake. This was a bit of a surprise to me. 

    When herpers lift rocks to see if anything is living under them it is called "flipping". This is sort of a misnomer, at least for me, because after I lift a rock I always put it back exactly as I found it. Today we found nine snakes while flipping. I caught five Decay's Brown Snakes, three Garters and one really special snake.

   My first snake was a Decay's followed by a Garter. Both were babies about five inches long. I caught them both and showed them to Laurie and got some photos. The Brown Snake was a lifer for Laurie. I caught both of them under consecutive rocks. I was pumped to get two different species in a row and also to get them in such a short amount of time. All told, I got four of my eleven snakes in less than five minutes. The other species of snake I caught was a baby Eastern Milk Snake!

 

  I had seen only one Eastern Milk Snake before. It was at the Saratoga National Battlefield in New York. It was up on a hill near a canon of all places. Laurie and I kind of harassed it into the woods so no one would bother/kill it. I did take some photos first. 

   Today's Eastern Milk was much smaller. It was probably a foot long. The adult I had seen was a dull brown. Today's little guy was absolutely gorgeous.  It had a gray and scarlett design. The marking were not linear as I expected. They were varied and curved. When I saw it, I was in shock and yelled out loud to Laurie multiple times that I had a Milk Snake. I was so nervous I would miss it. It turned out that was a moot point because it thought it was hidden and didn't move until I picked it up. Once in my hand it got feisty. It bit me twice but it was so small I couldn't feel it. I brought it over to Laurie and I took a dozen photos.

   I texted Greg to confirm I did indeed have a Milk Snake. He told me he was on his way and asked if I could hold it for him until he got there. I had already let it go but it was still under the rock I put it under. I picked it up and kept it safe for the ten minutes until he got there. He took some photos then we let it go. Greg walked with us for a few minutes but he had to leave. Laurie and I found a few more snakes but none of them were as cool as the Eastern Milk Snake.

Photo by Greg Nemes

Photo by Greg Nemes

The underside is a 
beautiful black and
white checkerboard

Another Greg photo
The underside is amazing

Photo by Greg Nemes

Another underside photo. I couldn't get over the markings.

One of many Decay's 
Brown Snakes

A Garter in a cool
pose

Ten Snake Day with my friend Greg!

 

   Greg Nemes is a great herper probably the best in Rhode Island. Of all of my birder friends he was the one that spent as much time looking down for snakes as well as up for birds. I met Greg because of birding. I ran across him quite often chasing the same birds or just at birding hotspots. Because of him, I got my first Rhode Island Screech Owl and saw a show of Common Nighthawks in Lincoln. We weren't very close but always said hi to each other when we ran into each other. Unfortunately, Greg moved to the Los Angeles area a couple of years ago.

   When I got into serious herping I sent Greg a message asking for any advice such as best time of day or season to find snakes. Greg sent me an email back the length of a short story. It was full of general info such as best time and place but also so much more. He gave me specifics on each species, their range, and even some locations. The email was far more than I could have ever expected. A few months later I ran across a Milk Snake when I was on a weekend getaway in New York. I wasn't sure what it was so I sent him the photo and he identified it. 

    We have kept in touch. I've asked some advice when I had specific questions. When I've had a great day or seen a cool species I've told him the story or sent him the info. He has sent me some photos and info on snakes he has seen in California and on international vacations. We spend a lot more time keeping in contact than we did when he lived in New England. We have become solid friends. Greg had a vacation planned for this week back to Rhode Island. He told me he was coming to visit and we should plan on going herping together. Obviously, I jumped at the chance. 

   We planned on meeting Tuesday at 9:30 am but because of all the rain we hoped it would dry out some and pushed it until 10 am. We met at the parking lot and started looking for snakes along the edges of trails. Because the grass was still really wet, I thought one snake would be a good day and Greg was hoping for three. My goal was just to see one together. our other big hope was to catch one so we could take a photo together to add to my "photos with friends". 

   Luckily, today was great. We ended up seeing ten snakes together! There were two that only I saw and one that only he saw. The species count was seven Garter Snakes and three Decay's Brown Snakes. We ended up catching three. When I say we, I mean Greg caught three. We had a lot of misses where we both missed, but luckily Greg was successful at catching a couple of snakes. 

   We took photos of the three in our hands and also on the ground. We got our "selfie" with two of the snakes including a tiny Garter and a tiny Brown Snake. After getting the photos of one snake, the pressure was off of the "photos with friends". 

Tiny Decay's Brown Snake

   We missed one Garter that was easily our biggest snake. It was in tall grass but slithered at Black Racer speed to the water. I also missed a "large" Brown Snake that was about a foot long. We were happy to get our little baby snakes though.

   I had a lot of fun herping with Greg today. Seeing ten snakes far exceeded expectations. But as with other outdoor pursuits, it wasn't just the snakes. I really enjoyed the conversation. As usual, I asked a million questions but it was just a fun afternoon anyway. 

Sleepy Hollow, NY

   

Rip Van Winkle
This Sycamore is more than 250 years old. It
is older than the United States and was on 
the property when Washington Irving bought it.

   I will be starting this posts the same way I do with many others...I have wanted to go to (fill in the blank) for years. It has been on my bucket list for a very long time. This is true of this post but for reasons beyond my control, I just never seemed to get to Sleepy Hollow until this weekend. Multiple times we planned on going to Sleepy Hollow and the weather would be rainy all weekend. Another time, we hoped to go last Columbus Day weekend and the campground was full. Luckily, this was the weekend.

   You probably know of Sleepy Hollow because of the Washington Irving short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" about Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman. Irving lived in Sleepy Hollow, NY which is a village of Tarrytown. Another part of Tarrytown in a village named after Irving named Irvington. Irving wrote many tales about the area including a history of the Hudson Valley and more famously Rip Van Winkle.

Probably a more accurate
depiction of Rip Van Winkle

    Irving was a nomad and travelled much of his life. He finally settled down in Sleepy Hollow at the age of fifty two. He bought a nice property along the Hudson and built a house which he named  "Sunnyside". He was a romantic and designed the house with many European style influences. He had the grounds laid out to be parklike with paths weaving around the hills. He built a small pond and a small stream.

   
   We only spent Sunday and Monday in the Hudson Valley. Laurie and I went on two tours, more on those below. We stayed twenty miles north of Tarrytown in a town called Peekskill. Peekskill is where the TV show "The Facts of Life" took place. Incidentally, Ossining is a town between Tarrytown and Peekskill. Don Draper, a character from Mad Men lived in that town. Obviously, many movies have been about Sleepy Hollow so we spent a lot of time in places where television shows were filmed. The place we stayed was called Inn on the Hudson. It wasn't quite on the river but had a commanding view of it. Almost across the street ( you would need to drive) was Peekskill Park where there is a boat ramp and river access. Inn on the Hudson was $107/night. The rooms were clean but one electrical outlet was broken. Photos of each thing we did below the text.

   We left Sunday morning and came back Monday evening. The first thing we did was go to a farmer's market in Irvington. I really wanted to feel "old New York/New England" so the farmer's market was something I was looking forward to. I only bought a crepe for breakfast and some unpasteurized cheese. None the less, I was happy we went.

   Next we went to a tour of Sleepy Hollow Cemetery. Sleepy Hollow has many different types of tours. We chose the one hour "Original Knickerbocker Tour". Our tour guide was a high school history teacher named Tal. He was great. We stopped at Washington Irving's grave along with many others. Tal told us a ton of facts about Irving,  gravestones, and a few of the residents of the cemetery.

This is a chamber from the tomb below

This was a storage tomb. The dead were put in here in the winter when the ground was frozen. 
In the spring they would be removed and buried in their plots. We got to go inside

Washington Irving's grave between the two flags. He was a veteran of the War of 1812

 After our Knickerbocker Tour Laurie and I went around the cemetery looking for historical figures. The cemetery has a lot of famous residents and it would have taken hours to find them all. We just went to the graves of Andrew Carnegie, Walter Chrysler, and William Rockefeller, a partner in Standard Oil with his brother John D

Carnegie's grave is by far the most humble.  

Rockefeller Mausoleum 

Chrysler Mausoleum

   One thing we wanted to do was find real places that Irving woven into his stories. The most famous would be the Sleepy Hollow Bridge that the Headless Horseman rode over to slay old Ichabod Crane. The bridge no longer stands over the river. There is a plaque where the bridge used to be. Now a large asphalt bridge is in it's place. There is a bridge in the cemetery a quarter mile from the original bridge that now has the name Headless Horseman Bridge

The new Headless Horseman Bridge

   Another famous location from the story is the Old Dutch Church. The church was built in 1697! Irving knew about these places because he spent time here as a boy when there was a Yellow Fever epidemic in New York City. 

     After visiting the cemetery we went to the motel. It was hot and showers were needed. We made supper and just watched some television for an hour then went to Peekskill Park. I saw a guy catch a White Sucker and immediately put in in a bucket to take home. 

View from Peekskill Park and a spot on my lens!

Monday morning we got a "bag breakfast from Inn on the Hudson. The breakfast included a small OJ, granola bar, small muffin, and a yogurt. From there we took a few photos of the Hudson River at Peekskill Park.

  We drove down to Irving's home the "Sunnyside" We took the 11 am tour which lasted about an hour. Again, it was great. Our guide told us about the home and of course, Washington Irving. After the tour we were allowed to walk the grounds. There were paths through the woods. We stopped at the small pond. It rained a little and we took shelter in the gazebo. There were apple trees on the property. I may or may not have snagged one and ate it. There was a beautiful garden with the tallest corn I've ever seen. There were beautiful flowers and pumpkins.

View of Irving's house and the Hudson

The ivy growing on Irving's house was planted by him. It is two hundred years old

A close up of the 250 year old Ivy plant

As previously stated, I could not guarantee this apple made it safely through the day

When the railroad came through, part of Irving's land was taken through immanent domain

I have never seen corn this tall

  After the tour, we made a quick stop at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery for a few more photos and came home. 

   There are other things to do in Sleepy Hollow and the Hudson Valley. There are other mansions to our including the Rockefeller Estate. There are  many parks and places to hike. There are events including farmer's markets, concerts, and festivals every weekend. I'm not too interested in mansions and I hike a lot. We really wanted to learn about Irving and the legends of the area. 

   If you go...

    Tarrytown is not quintessential New England (yes I know it is New York). The town is kind of built up. You'll find pizza places, drug stores, and all other stores in town. But it looks like any other strip mall or store fronts. It is after all, a suburb of NYC. Though there are town commons and parks, do not expect the falling of autumn leaves in front of a big white church. The façade is kind of run down.

  I could write a million things to help you plan your trip, but the website https://visitsleepyhollow.com/ has all the info you would need. I spent countless hours over the past two years deciding what to do. The most important page was the calendar of events. If you want to go to the Sunnyside, you have to go to their website, because it does not seem to be on the visitsleepyhollow website.

More photos below

Irving's root cellar 

Woodshed

Washington Irving's Ice House
Ice was carved from ponds over the winter and stored 
in ice houses to keep food from spoiling over the summer

Irving sat here for sure

The most accurate rest room sign I've seen

My crepe from the farmer's market

Luckily for me, I did not sleep twenty years which is a good thing!

When Laurie and I got home we had a tribute
to Jimmy Buffett. I'm sure it will be one of many.