Thursday, August 4

10:00 a.m.

Erickson Fields Preserve, Rockport

Join Coastal Mountains Land Trust, Pen Bay Medical Center and Waldo County General Hospital’s Journey to Health program for a Happy Wanderers Hike at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, August 4th at the Erickson Fields Preserve in Rockport. This will be an out and back hike totaling 3.2 miles from Maine Coast Heritage Trust’s Erikson Fields Preserve to Coastal Mountain’s Blueberry Barn.  Hikers who want to expand their mileage can continue to Beech Hill.

How to get there: Erickson Fields Preserve is located at 164 West Street, Rockport. From the junction of Route 1 and Route 90 in Rockport, follow Route 90 west and drive approximately three tenths of a mile. After passing the Market Basket, several houses and a short stretch of woods, Erickson Fields Preserve is on your left, across from Cross Street.

The Happy Wanderers meet on the first Thursday of each month at the trailhead of a Coastal Mountains Land Trust preserve. The hikes range in location from Rockport to Searsport. Each outing is led by a Coastal Mountains and Journey to Health staff member. We hope you can join us!   Register here  

                                        Full 2022 Happy Wanderers schedule                                     

Arts on the Hill: Darshan Music

Sunday, August 14

5:00 p.m.

Beech Hill Preserve

Coastal Mountains Land Trust’s Arts on the Hill program brings Darshan Music to Beech Hill Preserve as part of this popular summer concert series.  

Carla and Justin form the traditional kirtan duo “Darshan Music”. Their service is to play kirtan, a devotional performance art rooted in the Bhakti traditions of India. Their music is often ecstatic and performed with or without one or more musical instruments, singing, and clapping. Carla (drums) and Justin (harmonium) met singing opposite one another at a performance in 2017 and formed a group soon after. Participants are welcome to sing, clap, or sit quietly, while the emphasis of any performance is calling on Divine. Darshan have played for groups as far afield as Maui, Hawaii.

All performances are free and open to all ages, but please leave your dogs at home.

Mazie Cox and Brinkley Thorne generously help underwrite the Arts on the Hill music series

2022 TRAILS CHALLENGE HAS BEGUN!!

LOG YOUR MILES!!

From July 30th through September 10th, every mile you hike, run, bike, walk, or paddle anywhere in the Mid-coast will be matched by local businesses to support trail stewardship and development. 

1 mile = $1 (Adults)

1 mile = $5 (Kids under 15)

To log your miles and to be entered to win cool prizes from local businesses visit:

https://www.coastalmountains.org/trails

Sponsoring Businesses

Onion Foundation · Cold Mountain Builders · Bangor Savings Bank · Sidecountry Sports ·

Allen Insurance and Financial · RAYR wine & cheese · Viking Lumber · Front Street Shipyard ·

Strout & Payson · Snow Sport & Spine · Trail Runners of Midcoast Maine · Megunticook Market

Prize sponsors: Equinox Guiding Service · Owl & Turtle Bookshop · Loyal Biscuit Co. ·

Bixby Chocolate · The Green Store · Glendarragh Lavender · DoryWoman Rowing.

An Automatic 'A'

by Wesley Hutchins

Stewardship Pendleton Intern

As the Pendleton intern with Coastal Mountains Land Trust, much of my time is spent outdoors. Last week, I was part of a work crew working together to polish up the trail at the Meadow Brook Preserve; trails running through a mixed forest near an expansive wetland makes this place an ecological treasure trove. As I was walking along the trail with the group, I was finding myself distracted as the sounds of many birds filled the air; the chirps of ospreys as they circled this massive nest atop a snag, the whistle of a male white throated sparrow protecting his territory from intruders through the power of song, and the constant chipping of chickadees and goldfinches. While I am always on the lookout for wildlife, especially birds, nothing could have prepared me for the bird that I stumbled upon (almost literally!) that day.

As we moved through the woods clipping branches and moving logs that blocked the trail, a flash of movement near my feet caught my eye. My eyes followed the small, brown shape as it flopped strangely across the ground away from me. It paused, and I recognized it as an ovenbird. A paradoxical bird, this secretive species is one of the most abundant warblers in the northeast and is heard singing often yet is hardly ever seen. It clicked in my mind why this individual had decided to flutter away from me across the ground instead of flying away immediately. This must be a distraction display, an attempt to lure me away from a nest by feigning an injury. Without moving, I scanned the ground around me. After a few seconds, I saw it, the nest that gives the ovenbird its name. It was a small, oven-shaped construction of leaves and twigs, virtually invisible from above, with a small opening in the front. It looked exactly like a miniature pizza oven! I squatted on the ground and looked through the door of the oven. Inside, two tiny chicks sat motionless, hoping to remain as discreet as possible. I was once told by one of my professors that a photo of an ovenbird nest would result in an automatic A in their class. So my next step was obvious. I took a few pictures and sent them to my professor, telling them that I had found the holy grail of northeast birding.