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June 30, 2005 - A walk on the wild sideI 2 • The News- Review • June 30, 2005 A walk on the wild side Seeing the sights at Goldsmith's Inlet County Park BARUARA AND I HAvE taken you to many places, some near, some far. To- day we'd like to take you to one of the least -known county parks, Goldsmith's Y' d Inlet County Park, on the Sound. It could almost be called a mini -park,, for it is so very small Situated around the inlet in Peconic, it holds a treasure chest of plants and animals So let's get started. We'll spray our pant legs and shoes with tick repellent just in case there might be one of those nasty crit- ters around. We'll take Mill Lane (off Route 48�" " in Peconic) north, and when the road splits we'll take the one to the right. This is the begin- FOCUS vie 'A Soun view Avenue, d - O N or what, as kids, we used to call NATURE the beginning Y of "Humpty by Paul Dumpty Road," Stoutenburgh because of all the up- and -down hills it followed. In about a quarter of a mile you'll see a pull -off on your left and the familiar county sign. There's little room for parking, but enough for a few cars We take camera and binoculars and a light backpack with water and a snack or two, and we're off Barbara soon picks out the low ground cover called Canada lily. It's just starting to blossom with its tiny, creamy white flowers Above it are the ever- spread- ing leaves of the sarsaparilla plant that later will have its blossoms beneath its leafy canopy As we walk on, the trail tells us of years ago when a cut was made for a road. Today the sides have fluffed off and are covered by moss The road eventually leads to three or four sum- mer cottages on the Sound. An along we see the common huckleberry, and an occasional high -bush blueberry shows itself. Then, as we near the open- ing to the pond, we see six- to eight - foot -tan shadbushes This is our first L shrub. It now has its berries, which taste very much like blueberries. The trouble is, some sort of fungus has gotten to the berries, mak- ing them inedible. Years ago, when we were working with young people at Peconic Dunes, there was a shad just outside the mess hall door with the most delicious tasting berries you can imagine. We would pick them and put them on our cereal each morning. We're now out in the open, walk- ing across the marsh to a little bridge that spans a four - foot -wide inlet to an upper pond. We stop and watch tiny fish in small schools swimming by. We wonder what they will be when they mature. No matter, without this quiet, unspoiled marsh there wouldn't be any little fish to grow into bigger fish. No Catch Paul Stoutenburgh every week in TIMES /REVIEW NEWSPAPERS. News'- RevleW photo by Paul SloutenburRh Left: The common toad Is getting more difficult to find as man takes over its habitat, but toads are good survivors. Given a chance, you might find one in your garden, or you might have a better chance of seeing one of these mottled creatures In a dry, hot area like the trail we just took. Right: Prickly pear cactus Is often found in hot, dry places right here on our North Fork. If you want to see more of these lovely, waxy blossoms of the cactus family, go to orient Beach State Park and walk west. wonder they call these wetlands nurs- ery areas We also see fiddler crabs that tell us of a healthy marsh. Out in the open pond is a tan, white great egret stalking the water's edge. Then we disturb a snowy egret that's almost under our feet. It's called the golden slipper bird because of its yel- low feet. There must be good hunting here, otherwise they wouldn't be work- ing the marsh edge. Out in the middle is a cormorant, standing on a rock catching the warmth of the sun to dry its outstretched wings He, too, tells us there are fish here. We cross the narrow path through the low thatch grass and enter the woods Here the terrain rises and we find the soil sandy. What we're walk- ing on is an extension of the road that I spoke of earlier. It was hewn out of the backside of 30 -foot sand dunes of ancient time. Today the sides have washed down and are covered with leaves and detritus of all kinds One would hardly know that beneath it all was once a dune created by windblown sand. The trees are typical Long Island trees — oak, hickory and occasional maple and beech. It is wen - shaded under the trees as we walk along, and in places moss clings to the sides of our ancient roadway. Here and there ferns and lichens of all sorts are found along the pathway. Up, up the road gradually goes, until we hit its peak and are about 30 feet above the pond, and then we start down. Along the way we see familiar wildflowers, such as the Solomon's seal, not to be confused with the false Solomon's seal with its bundle of flow- ers at its end. The true Solomon's seal has individual flowers spaced along its stem. The two most common wildflow- ers we see are the whorled loosestrife, with its dainty yellow flowers on their thread -like stems The common daisy, we feel, is a bit out of place, for we always associate daisies with open meadows and fields, but they are here in good numbers Hopping off the trail in front of Barbara is a good old com- mon toad, and 10 feet farther along is another. We're glad to see this warty creature that has the most marvelous flytrap you can imagine. When one of its juicy meats comes into view, its mouth opens and a long tongue with a sticky substance on the end shoots out and nails its prey.lhe tongue then retracts. Toads are good fellows to have around. We keep a sharp eye out for Tp8 poison ivy with its three shiny leaves Inter in the season it are will have clusters of grayish fe1l berries resembling bayberries Make sure you don't confuse to the two when you cut your 8 bayberry For years there was an active osprey platform here at the inlet, but one year it went down and the osprey has never returned. Someone has put up a plat- form in hopes of enticing one back, but so far Goldsmith's Inlet goes without an osprey. An interesting tidbit about that osprey is the time I got a distress call from a concerned neighbor saying there was an osprey hanging from the nest and could I help. In no time my son and I had gotten a ladder up to the nest and he had cut loose the mono- filament fish line that the osprey had somehow gotten entangled with. It just goes to show how a thoughtless act can create havoc with wildlife of all sorts. The osprey was returned to its nest and, we think, lived happily ever after. Another special memory of ospreys here is when Barbara and I were try- ing to find the first osprey to return one year. It had been a cold and rainy spring and the birds hadn't shown up as yet.'Ihe rain had turned into snow and we were just about to quit looking when we passed by Goldsmith's Inlet, now the county park. We'd decided to give it one more try, so we got out and, with our binoculars, scanned the trees and, to and behold, there was an osprey with the snow gently falling all around. We had found the first one back that year. Let's get back to our walk. Our path goes down and out into a low, bushy area of high tide bush, wild cherry and beach plum and, most beautiful of all, wild roses They're everywhere. One section, rather than being pink, ds is white. How they can grow in this hot sandy area is beyond good me. As we walk through this Wn super - heated area our eyes 118Y8 catch the blossom of the prick- ly pear cactus, its waxy yellow petals just asking to have their Photograph taken. Another common plant of the dry areas is the ground- hugging Hudsonia, a yellow flowering plant that is found world- wide in and areas such as we were wanting through. It was so hot we decided to take a five - minute break to dig out the water from our backpack. How refreshing it was Then we headed toward the Sound in a zigzag path, and there it was in front of us To the east was noth- ing but sand and beach. To the west was the inlet with its misguided stone jetty. And we could see the remnants of bricks and cement slabs that told us this was the area where cottages once stood. The county condemned them and turned the area into a park. And so we've come to the end of the trail. It was a pleasant, shaded walk until we got into the hot, sandy areas along the beach. Either way, walk the whole trail to the Sound or just walk through the shaded area of the woods of this unique and beautiful place. The Suffolk Times • June 30, 2005 the wild si eeang the sights at oldsmith's Inlet County Par, Suffolk Times photo by Paul Stoutenburgh ° Suffolk Times photo by Barbara Stoulenburgh Left: The common toad is getting more difficult to find as man takes over its habitat, but toads are good survivors. Given a chance, you might find one in your garden, or you might have a better chance of seeing one of these mottled creatures in a dry, hot area like the trail we just took. Right: Prickly pear cactus is often found in hot, dry places right here on our North Fork. If you want to see more of these lovely, waxy blossoms of the cactus family, go to Orient Beach State Park and walk west. 13ARBARA AND I HAVE taken you to many places, some near, some far. To- day we'd like to take you to one of the least -known county parks, Goldsmith's Inlet County Park, on the Sound. It could almost be called a mini -park, LQLiLis so very small. Situated around the inlet in Peconic, it holds a treasure chest of plants and animals. So let's ge started. We'll spray our pant legs and shoes with tick repellent just in case there might be one of those nasty crit- ters around. We'll take Mill Lane (off Route 48 in Peconic) north, and when the road splits we'll take the one to the right. This is the begin- ning of Sound- Focus view Avenue, O N or what, as kids, we used to call NATURE the beginning of "Humpty by Paul Dumpty Road," Stoutenburgh because of all - -- the up- and -down hills it followed. In about a quarter of a mile you'll see a pull-off on your left and the familiar county sign. There's little room for parking, but enough for a few cars. We take camera and binoculars and a light backpack with water and a snack or two, and we're off. Barbara soon picks out the low ground cover called Canada lily. It's just starting to blossom with its tiny, creamy white flowers. Above it are the ever- spread- ing leaves of the sarsaparilla plant that later will have its blossoms beneath its leafy canopy. As we walk on, the trail tells us of years ago when a cut was made for a road. Today the sides have fluffed off and are covered by moss. The road eventually leads to three or four sum- mer cottages on the Sound. All along we see the common huckleberry, and an occasional high -bush blueberry shows itself. Then, as we near the open- ing to the pond, we see six- to eight - foot -tall shadbushes. This is our first spring - flowering shrub. It now has its berries, which taste very much like blueberries. The trouble is, some sort ol fungus has gotten to the berries, mak- ing them inedible. Years ago, when we were working with young people at Peconic Dunes, there was a shad just outside the mess hall door with the most delicious tasting berries you can imagine. We would pick them and put them on our cereal each morning. We're now out in the open, walk- ing across the marsh to a little bridge that spans a four - foot -wide inlet to an upper pond. We stop and watch tiny fish in small schools swimming by We wonder what they will be when they mature. No matter, without this quiet, unspoiled marsh there wouldn't be any little fish to grow into bigger fish. No wonder they call these—wetlands nurs- ery areas. We also see fiddler crabs that tell us of a healthy marsh. Out in the open pond is a tall, white great egret stalking the water's edge. Then we disturb a snowy egret that's almost under our feet. It's called the golden slipper bird because of its yel- here, otherwise they wouldn't be work- ing the marsh edge. Out in the middle is a cormorant, standing on a rock catching the warmth of the sun to dry its outstretched wings. He, too, tells us there are fish.here. We cross the narrow path through the low thatch grass and enter the woods. Here the terrain rises and we find the soil sandy. What we're walk- ing on is an extension of the road that I spoke of earlier. It was hewn out of the backside of 30 -foot sand dunes of ancient time. Today the sides have washed down and are covered with leaves and detritus of all kinds. One would hardly know that beneath it all was once a dune created by windblown sand. The trees are typical Long Island trees — oak, hickory and occasional maple and beech. It is well- shaded under the trees as we walk along, and in places moss clings to the sides of our ancient roadway. Here and there ferns and lichens of all sorts are found along the pathway. Up, up the road gradually goes, until we hit its peak and are about 30 feet above the pond, and then we start down. Along the way we see familiar wildflowers, such as the Solomon's seal, not to be confused with the false Solomon's seal with its bundle of flow- ers at its end. The true Solomon's seal has individual flowers spaced along its stem. The two most common wildflow- ers we see are the whorled loosestrife, with its dainty yellow flowers on their thread -like stems. The common daisy, we feel, is a bit out of place, for we always associate daisies with open meadows and fields, but they are here in good numbers. Hopping off the trail in front of Barbara is a good old com- mon toad, and 10 feet farther along is another. We're glad to see this warty creature that has the most marvelous flytrap you can imagine. When one of its juicy meals comes into view, its mouth opens and a long tongue with a sticky substance on the end shoots out and nails its prey. The tongue then re- tracts. Toads are good fellows to have around. We keep a sharp eye out for poison ivy with its three shiny leaves. Later in the season it will have clusters of grayish berries resembling bayberries. Make sure you don't confuse the two when you cut your bay- berry For years there was an active osprey platform here at the inlet, but one year it went down and the osprey has never returned. Someone has put up a plat- form in hones of enticine one back, but so far Goldsmith's Inlet goes without an osprey. An interesting tidbit about that osprey is the time I got a distress call from a concerned neighbor saying there was an osprey hanging from the nest and could I help. In no time my son and I had gotten a ladder up to the nest and he had cut loose the mono - filament fish line that the osprey had somehow gotten entangled with. It jus goes to show how a thoughtless act cai create havoc with wildlife of all sorts. The osprey was returned to its nest and, we think, lived happily ever after. Another special memory of ospreys here is when Barbara and I were try" - ing to find the first osprey to return one year. It had been a cold and rainy spring and the birds hadn't shown up as yet. The rain had turned into snow and we were just about to quit looking when we passed by Goldsmith's Inlet, now the county park. We'd decided to give it one more try, so we got out and, with our binoculars, scanned the trees and, to and behold, there was an osprey with the snow gently falling all around. We had found the first-one back that year. Let's get back to our walk. Our pad goes down and out into a low, bushy area of high tide bush, wild cherry anc beach plum and, most beautiful of all, wild roses. They're everywhere. One section, rather than being pink Toads is white. How they can grow it this hot sandy area is beyond are good me. As we walk through this fellows super- heated area our eyes catch the blossom of the prick to have I pear cactus, its waxy yellow around. petals just asking to have their photograph taken. Another common plant of the dry areas is the ground- hugging Hudsonia, a yellow flowering plant that is found world- wide in and areas such as we were walking through. It was so hot we decided to take a five - minute break to dig out the water from our backpack. How refreshing it was. Then we headed toward the Sound in a zigzag path, and there it was in front of us. To the east was note ing but sand and beach. To the west was the inlet with its misguided stone jetty. And we could see the remnants of bricks and cement slabs that told us this was the area where cottages once stood. The county condemned then! and turned the area into a park. And so we've come to the end of the trail. It was a pleasant, shaded wall until we got into the hot, sandy areas along the beach. Either way, walk the whole trail to the Sound or just walk through the shaded area of the woods of this unique and beautiful place.