New Hampshire Nature Notes
by Eric Orff
The leaves are tumbling down.
Wednesday 10/10/2012
How quickly fall is turning into winter. We have been at peak color here for several days but the beauty of the fall foliage has been dulled by endless cloudy days. Bad luck this year. And how the leaves have been pouring out of the trees the last three days, even without a real gusty wind or downpour of rain. I noticed today on the way home from Concord that many, if not most, of the maples are looking pretty bare. One good rain or wind event is going to rip the remaining leaves from most of the trees, save the oaks. Yes winter is rushing at us from above with soon to be bare gray branches against the dull gray November sky. But hey, it's hunting season. That trumps the coming of winter any day.
Friday I headed north to Jefferson, Randolph, Gorham and Shelburne to take another look at the swath of the Exxon oil pipeline that crosses NH. It runs from Portland Maine across Maine, NH and Vt and part was built, I learned in this trip, during WWII. At least the smaller of the three pipes in the corridor. It punches a 35 mile long path across NH along a corridor that parallels Route 2 basically bisecting the White Mountain National Forest. Here is a sleeping giant draped across the state's north country. This pipeline crosses 79 streams and rivers in NH alone. Now there is a proposal to reverse flow the pipe with far more dangerous and leak prone tar sands from Alberta Canada. Tar sands sink when spilled and are impossible to clean up. It coats the bottom of the stream or river forever. Major NH world class trout rivers like the Connecticut on the west and the Androscoggin on the east are at risk. What an economic loss to the north country a spill in any of the rivers would mean.
I got out lobstering with my friend yesterday after a bit of a break. Not too crowded down in Portsmouth Harbor mid October. Many boats have been pulled from their moorings and only another boat passed us by all morning. There was a good wind with some on and off showers to dampen their spirit. Not ours. Pulling up a trap from the dark seas yesterday still brings a passel of excitement wondering what may be inside. This trip of checking the two dozen traps brought only nine keepers to the boat. Six of witch are now in my refrigerator awaiting what will likely be the last family lobster dinner of the year here. Numbers of tiny crabs spilled out of the trap. Dime sized. I did my best to scoop them up and return them to the sea. I don't kill what I don't intend to eat. I must admit I was a bit wet and chilled for the trip home. Note to myself "Must wear my hip boots this late in the season." The colors along the shore just added to the wonderful smell of the sea in the outgoing tide. Life is grand isn't it
