Thursday, June 13, 2013

A couple of "Dry" weekends and a small site

Went back to Shirley a couple times and back to Jones Hill north of Blood Hill in Ashby. Almost to no avail - in terms of finding rock pile sites. I was pretty happy to spot an Indigo Bunting. Although I am told painted buntings are rarer, it was only recently I saw a blue one. Can you see it?
The first blooming pink mountain laurel:
A couple of nice features in a stone wall, a few feet apart. Mavor and Dix call these "orthostats":
 
That was Shirley. Then for Jones Hill in Ashby, I recall seeing a few odds and ends on the way up the hill but no significant clusters of rock piles. Starting from Harris Rd, I walked north along the brook till I hit houses. Saw pretty woods:
 
When I got to the top of Jones Hill and headed down the steep southern side, cutting diagonally across the hill, I came across a single stack of rocks next to a spring:
See how this is right next to where water comes out of the ground?
Then a small cluster of piles just below a stone wall:
 
 
I assume there were other sites on that slope that I did not see, since I spotted a couple even though there was heavy undergrowth and I only followed a single diagonal line down a big hillside. Those were the best rock piles I saw in a couple weeks of hunting. But it is OK; another weekend is almost here and I've got my eye on a couple spots in southern Sudbury.

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