Fall Festivals for Outdoor Family Fun!

Navigating the Corn Maze at Sauchuk Farm.

The days are getting shorter, the nights are growing longer, and most mornings there is a chill in the air. It’s a long-held tradition in the fall to acknowledge the change of seasons and celebrate the harvest. Between now and Halloween there are a number of local fests and feasts, offering all sorts of activities for young and old. Think: hayrides, corn mazes, visits to the pumpkin patch, plus lots of locally grown food, craft beer, and freshly pressed apple cider. Read on, and mark your calendar!

Weir River Farm Fall Festival– Saturday, September 21st from 10am-3pm at Weir River Farm, Turkey Hill Lane, Hingham. Hosted by The Trustees, this annual event celebrates the harvest on one of the last working farms in town. Enjoy old-fashioned fun by visiting farm animals, riding a Pom Pom Pony, climbing aboard a tractor, and painting your own pumpkin. Hear live music from Milk & Bones, take a Clydesdale wagon ride, learn how to press apple cider, and participate in the potato spoon relay. Plus food trucks, face painting, farm tattoos, and craft brews from Zelus Beer. Visit http://www.thetrustees.org/things-to-do/south-of-boston/event-47099.html

Sunday Fun Dayat Norwell’s Jacobs Pond-- Sunday, September 22^ndfrom 9am-2pm at Jacobs Pond Recreation Area, 81 Jacobs Lane, Norwell. Kayak & canoe tours, guided nature walks, tai chi, local artists, story hour, critter talks, and a geocache treasure hunt, plus face painting, farm visits, concessions, and lots more. Visit https://www.townofnorwell.net/sites/norwellma/files/news/sunday_fun_day_program_for_sept_22_9-5_final.pdf

12^thAnnual Harvest Moon Feast -- Monday, October 7 from 6-9pm at Mill Wharf Restaurant, Scituate Harbor. Support the NSRWA’s Environmental Education programs while sampling dishes prepared by the South Shore’s finest restaurants and caterers. This benefit event includes live jazz by the Lance Van Lenten Quartet, beer and wine tastings, and a cash bar. Visit https://www.nsrwa.org/event/2019-harvest-moon-feast/

Levitate presents Flannel Jam -- This new, end-of-season celebration takes place at the Marshfield Fairgrounds on Saturday, October 12 (2pm). Featuring live music by Trampled by Turtles, Ballroom Thieves, and Liz Cooper & the Stampede, plus Ward Hayden & the Outliers, and Six Fox Whiskey. Enjoy fall-themed food and drink, hot spiked cider, s’mores, hot cider doughnuts made to order, and special craft releases by local breweries. Bring the kids and check out the hay maze and corn pool. Visit https://www.levitateflanneljam.com

Harvest Hoedown -- Columbus Day Weekend, October 12-14, 10am-4pm at C.N. Smith Farm, 325 South Street, East Bridgewater. Family fun including Pick Your Own apples and pumpkins, live music, hayrides, moonwalks, pony rides, plus lots of food from the Farm Kitchen. Visit https://cnsmithfarminc.com/special-events/octoberfest/

Mass Audubon’s 39^thAnnual Farm Day – Saturday, October 19, 10am-4pm at Daniel Webster Wildlife Sanctuary, Winslow Cemetery Road, Marshfield. Mass Audubon’s annual event for families features tractor-drawn hayrides, owl demonstrations, live bluegrass music, artisans such as blacksmiths, weavers and wood-turners, local handmade gifts, children’s games and crafts, face painting, hay mazes, home-baked treats, and hot fresh cider doughnuts. Visit https://www.massaudubon.org/get-outdoors/wildlife-sanctuaries/daniel-webster/news-events/farm-day

7^thAnnual Duxbury Oktoberfest -- Saturday, October 19^th, 4-8pm (ages 21+) at a new, all-weather location -- Camp Wing, Duxbury. Part of the Duxbury Food & Wine Festival, this casual, often boisterous, event features local craft and seasonal beer, plus German wine and traditional Bavarian fare. There will be live music, dancing, and contests for Best Dirndl and Lederhosen, Hefty Stein Holding, and Yodeling.Visit https://www.duxburyfoodandwinefestival.com/oktoberfest/

Nessralla’s Farm Corn Maze -- Saturdays & Sundays, 10am-6pm, through October 27 at 139 Hemlock Lane, Halifax. A 15-acre corn maze, plus hayrides, pony rides, face painting, bouncy house, toddler maze, kiddie train, hay bale pyramid, cornhole, sack races, Jenga, tic-tac-toe, zipline, concessions. The Friday & Saturday night (7-10pm) flashlight maze begins October 4. Don’t miss the Colossal Pumpkin Drop on Columbus Day weekend. Visit http://www.nessrallafarm.com/wordpress/corn-maze

Sauchuk Farm Corn Maze -- Saturdays and Sundays 9am-6pm, through November 2, plus special hours on Columbus Day and October 11, at 200 Center Street, Plympton. A giant corn maze, a small array of concessions, plus lots of child-friendly activities including a Corn Cannon, Duck Races, the Cow Train, Barnyard Ball Zone, Jumping Pillows, a Tug of War, all set in the middle of a corn field. Don’t miss the hayride to the Pick Your Own Pumpkin Patch.Visit https://www.sauchukmaze.com/

by Kezia Bacon

September 2019

Kezia Bacon's articles appear courtesy of the North and South Rivers Watershed Association, a local non-profit organization devoted to protecting our waters. For membership information and a copy of their latest newsletter, contact NSRWA at (781) 659-8168 or visit www.nsrwa.org. You will also find 20+ years of Kezia’s Nature columns there. 

Six Places to See the Bald Eagles

A bald eagle in flight on the North River near Damon's Point. Photo by Keri Buccafusca.

Have you heard about the bald eagles that are nesting on the North River? Have you seen them?

For the past century, to observe a bald eagle in the wild would be a rare occurrence. To see one on the South Shore -- inconceivable! But thanks to repopulation efforts, the once endangered species is now making a comeback across Massachusetts.

The bald eagle is widely recognized as a symbol of the United States. In fact, since 1782, it has been considered our national emblem, appearing on coins, the presidential flag, and the country’s Great Seal. While not technically bald, the eagle’s head is white, standing out distinctly from its bright yellow bill and legs, and the darkly colored feathers of its body.

The bald eagle is one of the largest birds in North America. It weighs 6 to 13 pounds, and measures two to three feet in height, with a wingspan extending an average of six feet across. Its size makes it easy to spot!

A bald eagle in flight on the North River near Damon's Point. Photo by Keri Buccafusca.

Bald eagles make their homes in forested areas, near large bodies of water. Proximity to the ocean, a lake or reservoir, or a marsh or river, is important, as is the relative lack of development in the area. Bald eagles will tolerate human activity, especially near food sources, but they prefer to nest in more isolated spots. Probably the best places to observe them are food related: when they are perched in tall trees on the lookout for their next meal, or when they’re flying over the water in search of fish. In addition to fish such as herring and shad, our local eagles are known to dine on an array of smaller species -- seabirds, crabs, rabbits, reptiles -- both alive and as carrion. Bald eagles are notorious for stealing captured (or killed) prey from other creatures.

Bald eagles build their nests just below the crowns of trees -- up high, and close to the trunk. Their nests are quite large -- five or six feet wide and 2-4 feet deep. That’s big! Sticks are the primary building material, followed by grass, moss and other vegetable matter, which helps not only to fill in the gaps, but to provide a soft lining.

A juvenile bald eagle on the North River in Marshfield. Photo by Keri Buccafusca.

So why isn’t it common for us to see bald eagles here on the South Shore? Very likely, it used to be -- more than 100 years ago. The first negative impact was the destruction of their habitat. As the region became more developed, the eagles fled. Even more influential was the widespread use of the pesticide DDT. Throughout the latter half of the 20^thcentury, bald eagle populations across North America went into a steep decline. Why? Because DDT depleted the calcium in the eagle’s metabolism, which in turn softened the shells of the eggs it laid, making them significantly less viable. The result was catastrophic. Breeding essentially ceased. Fortunately, the use of DDT was banned in 1972. A decade later, Mass Audubon and the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife joined forces to restore the bald eagle population in Massachusetts.

From 1982 to 1988, young bald eagles were brought -- from Michigan, Manitoba and Nova Scotia -- to a protected area at the Quabbin Reservoir in Central Massachusetts, where they were nurtured and eventually released into the wild. These efforts proved successful. In 1989, the first offspring from those eagles hatched, fledged, and matured. Slowly but surely the bald eagle population in Massachusetts began to grow. By 2012, there were 38 breeding pairs, with nests reported not only at the Quabbin, but also along the Connecticut and Merrimack Rivers, at Arcadia Wildlife Sanctuary in Easthampton, and at some of Plymouth’s ponds. Nationwide, bald eagles are now considered “threatened” which is considered one level safer than “endangered.”

Until recently, one would never expect to see a bald eagle within the watershed of the North and South Rivers. But today it’s quite common. The early morning hours, when eagles tend to do the bulk of their hunting, seem to be an optimal time for eagle viewing. Odds increase in the winter months. You may spy an eagle in flight, which is a sight to behold! If you happen to spot a nest, please keep a respectful distance.

A bald eagle on the hunt, on the North River near Damon's Point in Marshfield. Photo by Keri Buccafusca.

Bald eagles have been spotted at the sites listed below. Good luck!

• Damons Point, Marshfield. https://www.nsrwa.org/listing/damons-point/

• Route 3A Bridge, Marshfield and Scituate. https://www.nsrwa.org/listing/route-3a-bridge/

• Mass Audubon’s North River Sanctuary, Marshfield https://www.nsrwa.org/listing/north-river-wildlife-sanctuary/

• Couch Beach, https://www.nsrwa.org/listing/couch-beach/

• Driftway Conservation Park, Scituate https://www.nsrwa.org/listing/driftway-conservation-park/

• Also, our North River Pontoon Boat Tours offer the opportunity to see some amazing wildlife, such as bald eagles and osprey. Sign up at this link: https://www.nsrwa.org/events/?customize_changeset_uuid=

Sources:

•https://www.massaudubon.org/learn/nature-wildlife/birds/bald-eagles/eagles-in-massachusetts

•https://www.wbur.org/news/2018/02/16/bald-eagle-population-soaring

•https://959watd.com/blog/2017/04/ma-bald-eagles-thrive-on-south-shore/

• https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Bald_Eagle/overview