I had intended to ride my bike today for the first time since last summer, but both tires were a bit flat, and no matter how hard I pumped, I couldn’t get the rear tire to inflate. Well okay then: Plan B. Since I didn’t want to drive far, I decided to hike the trails in the Moose Brook Preserve in Hardwick, an East Quabbin Land Trust property in the heart of the Moose Brook Valley, an area of high ecological significance in this region, and a mere ten miles from my home.

Unfortunately, it took longer than I anticipated to get there, as I kept getting lost, and in fact, I made a total of four U-turns until I found myself at Brook Road, which intersects with Prouty Road about a mile or so from Route 32, where Barre Road meets Hardwick Road. I hadn’t found a trail map on the EQLT website, but the directions to hikers were quite explicit, with phrases such as “follow the yellow blazes.” These I scribbled down verbatim, but I never did use them.

Brook Road was blocked with a “Road Closed” sign, so I parked off to the side and started walking up the road, due north by my compass. The day was quite warm and sunny, and my “large mammal” chemical profile was instantly recognizable by hordes of biting insects. I sprayed myself with 100% Deet (yes yes, I know, but I bought it to repel Anopheles), so I didn’t get bitten, but they sure tried hard. The road went on and on, and I walked and walked, with nary a sign of the trail as described. This sure is a pretty place though.

The road is bordered by white pines:

And by mixed hardwoods:

This must be Moose Brook itself. I’m crouching on a plank-and-metal railless bridge over the stream:

Butterflies flitted from flower to flower in this small meadow.  I believe this is an American Copper (Lycaena phlaeas) feeding on white clover:

I found a wetland colonized by beavers (Castor canadensis); you can see their lodge in the center of the photo:

Finally, the trailhead!

I came upon the kiosk after a 25-minute ramble from where I parked, and at that point, I didn’t even have the energy to walk up to the first yellow blaze.  Instead, I turned around and headed back, waving my hat and windmilling my arms to keep the bugs away.  That’s it for me then: no more hiking until the fall when the insects fade away.

Happy Independence Day!