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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDecember 09, 2004 - A weekend at the manorThe Suffolk Times I A weekend at the manor Top Stories Business Obituaries Police Reports Sports News Tips Editorials Columns Letters to the Editor Email us Subscribe Now Classifieds Back Issues Digital Edition Community News Calendar Dining Health Real Estate East End Links Site Help the *ffolh imts* Official Newspaper of Southold Town A weekend at the manor Focus on Nature By Paul Stoutenburgh The Nature Conservancy donated a weekend at the Manor House in Mashomack to the SPAT gala/auction recently- They are working with SPAT as partners to help restore shellfish stocks in the Peconics- With the highest bid, our famity was fortunate enough to be able to take advantage of this once- in- aAdetime opportunity- How lucky can you be? The Mashomack Manor House sits in the middle of The Nature Conservancy's 2,039 -acre preserve on Shelter Island. The Manor House is primarily used for We arrived at noontime and drove a staff meetings. conferences, fund - raising miter -so dirt road into the preserve to events and donor cuttivation for the reach the Manor House- All along the conservancy- way we saw catbrier, that devilish Times/Review photo by Chelsea rambling vine that seems to reach out Stoutenburgh and snag you as you walk by. It does our north shore.- usually they're covered with lichens that chemically nibble away at have one good side to it, though- When it first comes out, you can pick the tender shoots and nibble on them or take them home to be used in a salad. Otherwise, catbrier says. "Keep away or I'll get you." in miifions of years- They, along with other forces, help reduce rock into soil. As we bounced along. a deer ran across the road in front of us_ We could see garlands of bittersweet here and there. with its colorful orange -red berries. This is one The Suffolk Times of the non - native invasive plants we'd like to eliminate. for it often takes over an area, smothering the native growth. Birds enjoy the berries. The problem is, as the berries are digested the seeds are passed through and deposited heater- sketter throughout Staff Roster the countryside. tt becomes an endless job trying to keep this invasive vine in check. Rate Card We were surprised to see a group of 10 to 15 robins feeding on the bittersweet. Whether they're going to spend the winter here or be on their way south. I don't know. We aKvays have a few that stay if they can find enough berries to survive on- The News - Review Here and there we'd see half - buried glacial boulders that were left as the glacier retreated some 10.000 to 12.000 years ago. These "erratics" are often found along Shelter Island our north shore.- usually they're covered with lichens that chemically nibble away at Reporter the surface of the rock- Lichens are infinitely slow workers; their resutts are measured in miifions of years- They, along with other forces, help reduce rock into soil. The North Shore Sun The day was painted in bright sunlight and. as we drove along, we could see The Wine Press backlighted stalks of the wine berry showing off its orange -red bristly stems- The backlighting of these long_ graceful stalks showed us just where the wine berry grew. The road was up and down. It was hard to find a level section of this single-lane dirt road- We passed Miss Annie's Creek with its splendid salt marsh and now - abandoned osprey platform. which still held its huge nest on top_ I had heard from Mike Laspia. the preserve director, that the ospreys had done very well this year, with eight productive nests — much better than last year. Mashomac k is being used more and more by hikers. and on this beautiful sunny day Page I of 2 Thursday Dec, Quick Sear Search l weatt-* Enter city c sy Y r , L i t . i h":// ww% 2. timesreview .com/ST /community/2920683 74066' )04.php 12/9/2004 I he Sultolk "Firnes I A weekend at the manor we save many. There are six trains hum one - eighth of a mile (barrier free - Braille trail) to 11 miles, all dearly marked. As we drove along we passed an area where they had practiced controlled burning, which means they iiteraly set a section on fire and let it bum. Of course, an this is under strict control. The idea is to try to duplicate the natural foes such as those from lightning that would bum out old unproductive areas, making room for new growth. Finally we got to the Manor House, which is a beautiful, big, weathered- shingle late - Victorian mansion with 10 bedrooms, spacious meeting rooms, a huge kitchen and, in general, the look of elegance. Soon after, our family started to arrive. With much chatter and rooms checked out we all sat down to steaming bowls of dam chowder. After lunch we decided to take a brisk walk down to Bass Creels to the south. We were having a big change in temperature that brought a sharp, crisp wind out of the northwest_ Ws surprising how weather can change so abruptly, but we didn't care. All bundled UP, we vrere actually stimulated by the sudden dump in the weather. After our walk, we headed back just as the stn began to set, and what a beautiful sunset it was. Cameras clicked to try to catch the moment of the day. Back at the Manor House, it was a time of relwdng, wilt h a cracking fire in the fireplace, games of Hearts in one room, poker in another and a dead serious game of chess in front of the fire. Then. at 7 o'ckxk, all 12 of us headed out to the Old CountryInnforadelightfuldinner. How the chatter and laughter flowed. How good it was to have all the faanrly together (it was a special time for celebration — our 54th wedding anniijersary). Then it was back on the bumpy road to the Manor House and to bed. The next morning Barbara looked out the window and exploded witty, 'Look! Bluebirds!" 1 coaldn't believe ti, but, sure enough. there they were, nine or 10 of them. They were feeding on something in the grass- Every once in a while theyd drop down, hop about a bil, and then fly away to a nearby bush or tree, only to repeat the act of feeding. It was when one would fly down that the bright blue they are so known for da uled your eyes. Mad a beauti -fu1 bird. For the next half hour we foliawed them around, mu binoautam revealing their true beauty_ As the excitement wore off, we began to notice other birds nearby. We saw our first juncos. As they flew we could see the We bit of white in their tail feathers. Then my glasses picked up two cedar waxwings and, off to the left at the top of a tree in the early sun, were six starlings slitting there waging for the morningsuntowarmthemup_ We could hear the twittering of goldfinches. Gone were their bright black-and-yellow summer coats. There were chickadees, titmice, a bully blue jay that took the findings of a nuthatch and stole away, and a single downy woodpecker exploring his find. We were in our glory. The weather so far was perfect, but the forecast for the next day didn't sound so good That didn't matter much to us, for we had had a chance to spend some time together while exploring the grounds and trails of Mashomadc We packed our bags and headed home. For those of you who Eke to hike, try the trails at Mashomadc We know you will enjoythemasmuchaswedid_ 2004 Times - Review Newspapers Page 2 of 2 http://- tvmv2. timesreview .cOm/ST /community/2920683 74066304.php 12/9/2004