Writer celebrates a milestone

#MiddleburyCT #MiddleburyLandTrust

Photos from some of Janine Sullivan-Wiley’s articles over the past seven years reflect the topics she has covered. She has written about Middlebury Land Trust properties, trails, hikes and activities as well as the many forms of nature we find in Middlebury. (Janine Sullivan-Wiley photo)

By JANINE SULLIVAN-WILEY

February 2023 marks a milestone for this column: seven years, and 85 articles. Stories about land trust properties, trails, fishing, birds, animals, reptiles, plants, ecosystems and so much more. How that time has flown by since I first began writing in this newspaper!

The earliest columns invited readers to guess which Middlebury Land Trust (MLT) property was pictured, and it became clear that many (most?) Middlebury residents had no idea there was so much preserved space open to the public, nor trails to be enjoyed. After the COVID-19 pandemic began, and the need for healthy outdoor activities became so precious, I was doubly glad that so many more residents knew about them.

Writing those columns, and the research needed to do that, have led me to learn so much about the Land Trust properties and trails as well, and that in turn has spurred more interest in the trails and helped nurture a great group of dedicated folks who help maintain those trails and properties on trail work days and in between. Who knew some folks love cutting up trees or are passionate about digging out invasives?

I’ve also loved hearing back from readers about all the things they have in turn discovered. One was a young mother who learned the how, when and where fishing is permitted in MLT ponds and lakes; she’d apparently been trying to find that out. I’ve heard from others how much they enjoy learning about the wildlife we share this community with, including weird facts (such as solidly frozen frogs coming back to life); and myths debunked (fishers make almost no sounds; it’s those red foxes who make the weird cries).

Quite frankly, that is one of the most fun things for me as the writer; all of those columns represent serious research and locating and interviewing experts in all kinds of areas. I discovered the state has an expert herpetologist and DEEP has connections with even more people who are experts in various animals, plants or insects. Middlebury’s own animal control officer, Rusty Bona, is also a font of information and anecdotes. The generosity of spirit and time of all of these have been wonderful.

Reader response has not always been positive: I apparently distressed quite a few folks with the large photo of the Northern water snake that accompanied the article about snakes in the area. I was in turn rather disquieted to discover in my research that copperheads are not rare in these parts. That resulted in a quick change to my own garden design.

Very dear to my heart have been the interviews with people from our town (or formerly living here) who are personal fonts of historical information and fascinating personal stories. Rob Fenn is quite the storyteller, and I amassed piles of pages of notes of his anecdotes, and a deep sense of how different life was in this community through the 1900s.

The trees had not yet re-grown from the agrarian past, and views extended for miles across hills and valleys. Mid-century was a time of farms and milk deliveries, hockey and skating as major winter pastimes, before being replaced by ubiquitous screen-based time.

Lem Sperry, now deceased and one of the generous donors of Sperry Pond and its surrounding land, also spoke of that different time. He and his family had a rustic cabin by the pond (the fireplace still standing is a remnant of that) where they would warm up after skating. Not only were the activities of that time vastly different, so too was the wildlife all around: then there were pheasants, partridge and plenty of muskrats – none of which are seen these days. Back then deer were very rare, and they didn’t have any turkeys, beavers or coyotes – all common now.

DEEP states: wild turkeys were abundant in Connecticut when the first settlers arrived, but a combination of forest clearing and a series of severe winters eliminated them by the early 1800s. Beavers were common in Connecticut when the first colonists arrived, but the lack of trapping regulations extirpated the species by the mid-1800s. Coyotes, on the other hand, were not originally found in Connecticut, but extended their range eastward during the last 100 years and were first reported in Connecticut in the mid-1950s.

I have been asked where I get my ideas for the columns. The answer is often from the readers and folks in this community, who have a question or a deep interest in something and spark my own curiosity (I never gave moss much thought until Alice Hallaran was talking about it one day. Fascinating stuff!) So dear readers, please keep sharing your questions and feedback. You could be the road sign to where the next column will go.

Meanwhile, happy hiking! Contact this writer at jswspotlight@gmail.com. You can visit the Middlebury Land Trust on Facebook or the website at middleburylandtrust.org. Happy hiking!