There were lots of trees down in Burlington and Bedford. Concord has spots that with fallen trees, but we felt it was slightly better off. Maybe that's because we found that Great Meadows still had heat and power in the rest rooms; which was something we were just starting to envy. The refuge was deserted, allowing us to take those first photos of a virgin landscape, leaving our foot prints behind for whoever followed.



It's too bad the refuge was deserted. Amy spied a mature Bald Eagle across the upper impoundment sitting in a tree. We tried to sneak up on it, but the curve in the path prevented us getting a good shot. As soon as it heard us it flew.

Shortly after the eagle departed a harrier arrived cruising the upper impoundment looking for a meal. He stopped to rest momentarily on the top of the duck box near the poison ivy bench. Several other raptors were seen circling near the waste water treatment plant.



Between the raptors and the cold many of the smaller avian animals were either hunkered down, or hiding in the reeds. We did encounter a couple that were photographic.



Downy Woodpecker

Downy Woodpecker
Several details caught my eye including the seeds on Speckled Alder and Milkweed.


As we finished circumnavigating the lower impoundment my mind was just starting to come to grips with the incongruity of the foliage on the trees combined with snow on the ground. I've been dreading the onset of winter, with more challenging conditions and photographic opportunities. However, if there are going to be eagles and harriers every day, maybe it won't be so bad.