Tag: naturephotography

Travel

South Sugarloaf Trail- A Quick Hike in Western Massachusetts

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South Sugarloaf Trail located near South Deerfield, Massachusetts boasts views of the Connecticut River, the Pioneer Valley and the Pelham and the Berkshire views. Approximately 1 hour 45 minutes drive from Boston, this hike can definitely be covered in less than a day. Infact it is a terrific hike offering tremendous rewards for modest efforts.

Recently, we began this hike on a rainy day however we got lucky that it stopped raining just in about 10 minutes. Parking at the trailhead is free. Here is a link for the start of trailhead. It is a great short but not too intense hike making it a great place to start for beginners, hiking with kids, family or anyone looking for a quick workout. It does get a little steep in patches but nothing too over the top making it relatively an easy one. We took approximately 30 minutes to get to the top.

The trail is marked with blue markers making it a well guided trail to reach the top. It is a dog friendly trail for all those looking to hike with your dogs as well as biking friendly. Once you are closer to the summit there is a part which leads you to the road but don’t think you are on the wrong path as if you take the road and follow through the blue markings it will take you to the summit.

The best part about this trail is you do not need to hike to reach it. You can simply drive from the base of Mount Sugarloaf all the way to the top if you are not in the mood to hike, or with small kids, or just looking to have a picnic with friends and family but still want to enjoy the sweeping views. If you decide to drive to the top there is an entry fee of $5 for Massachusetts Residents and of $20 for Non-Massachusetts Residents.

At the summit there are various picnic tables to enjoy a picnic with your family or friends and also grills available. A great place to spend a summer or start of Fall day to soak in breathtaking views and fresh air.

There is a 3 level observation deck at the summit offering 360 degree views by climbing up the spirally steps. The observation deck offers miles of natural beauty spread out below you. However, if you do not wish to climb the tower there are various look out points at the edge too to enjoy the beautiful views.

All in all a great short trail to explore with spectacular views. Highly Recommend it!

Travel

Worlds End, Hingham – An Easy and Scenic Trail

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World’s End, a 251 acre park and conservation area overlooks the Hingham Bay and Boston Harbor offers several miles of trails with great views to the water and Boston Skyline. Recently, we decided to explore the trails while maintaining Social Distancing. Worlds End is owned and operated by The Trustees of Reservation and they have done a great job at not only preserving the area but also ensuring that there is no overcrowding during the pandemic.

To restrict overcrowding and ensuring safe access for everyone you are required to reserve your spot by booking in advance your day of visit and time of visit. To comply with the rules we reserved our timed entry passes a day in advance. To be honest, I really appreciated this to ensure safe access during these times. It is open from 8.00 am to sunset every day. Entry for members is free but non-members can buy there tickets here.

World End trail is an easy trail suitable for everyone kids and adults alike. Dogs are also allowed on this trail and must be kept on a leash. The trail is accessible all year round and is great for a stroll with great views, running, picnics, cyclists, bird watching, horseback riding, cross country skiing adventures and photography. The park is cut with carriage style roads which add an old world feel to it. It is a great place for engagement, wedding, new born photo shoot, or even maternity photo shoots. The best part about it is it offers views of the forest, ocean and Boston Skyline all at the same time. Isn’t that a perfect package? I think around Sunset would be a great time to capture these moments.

The trails are clearly marked and there are maps placed occasionally around the trail. There are several spots to relax around in the shade with the sound of nature and may be even a book or your favorite music. It is a perfect spot for boaters, paddlers, kayakers to enjoy the good summer days.

While you can explore it yourself occasionally there are also various activities and events organized by The Trustees of Reservation. Here is a link for the upcoming events at Worlds End you can explore.

All in all a great way to spend a summer day and soak in the great views of the Boston Skyline. Happy Exploring!

Food, Travel

My Sunflower and Blueberry Picking Experience – A fun Summer Day

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This weekend my husband and I decided to do something different, something that screams summer while exploring the outdoors and maintaining social distancing. We decided to explore the Sunflower Picking and Blueberry Picking at Tangerini’s Farm.

Approximately 30 minutes from Boston located in Millis, Massachussets this beautiful 60+ acres of farm land currently has the option to pick your own Sunflowers, Blueberries and Wild Flowers. We opted to pick our own Sunflowers which are often associated with the carefree days of summer and the plump, juicy and sweet blueberries straight from the farm.

We made our reservations for UPick a day prior and selected our time slot of 3.00 pm for Sunflower Picking and 4.30 pm for Blueberry Picking. Due to the pandemic it is essential to make an online reservation ahead of time. They usually open up bookings one to two days at a time and all the bookings are live. There is free parking available at the farms. Here is a link to the farms where you can check the schedule and make a reservation.

As we walked towards the fields they had placed disposable masks and sanitizers for anyone who needs it just outside the farm stand. As soon as we entered the fields we checked ourselves in with a staff member sitting under a tent at the bottom of the hill. when you are checked in you will be asked to wash your hands with soap and sanitize them too just before you enter the farms. Since we were doing sunflower picking first we were also handed sanitized clippers to select and cut the sunflowers of our choice.

You have the option to pick from one, three and seven stems each while making a reservation. We had selected picking three sunflower stems each.

We headed into the fields to explore the beautiful happy sunflowers – A feast to the eyes! After all how can you not smile when you see something like this. It is indeed a bountiful display of bright cheery yellow something I love. We handpicked our own sunflowers using the clippers provided to take back home to make our own flower arrangement. Remember to carry a bucket of water with you to keep the flowers fresh till you reach home.

There is also an option to do a professional photo shoot at the sunflower fields. Also, there next sunflower fields will be ready on August 1, 2020 in time for the next weekend.

Once we were done with picking our own sunflowers we checked ourselves in again to return the clippers and to pick our own blueberries. They gave us a pint each to collect our blueberries. Currently as the fields were not having UPicks at capacity they are happy to accommodate you a little earlier too if you have a reservation for multiple picks and get done earlier from one a little before time for your next reservation.

We walked in to our assigned rows and started foraging for ripe and plump blueberries. Packed with Vitamin C, antioxidants and potassium blueberries are one of the most popular fruits here as they are also native to North America. The best thing about blueberries is they can be enjoyed in multiple ways such as pancakes, jams, jellies, pies, muffins, salads, cobblers, smoothies, ice creams, tarts, on their own and so much more. The options are unlimited.

We started filling our respective pints by handpicking our own blueberries and we picked up some really big blueberries. A tip to pick the best sweet blueberries is to check that the blueberry is deep blue even near the stem and not red or green near the stem.

Once we were done picking our own blueberries we headed to the Ice Cream Shop and got the Purple Cow (Blackberries, White chocolate and Dark Chocolate) and Watermelon Sherbet icecreams. After all what beats the summer heat better than an Ice cream.

Before we left to go home, we visited the farm stand and also got some amazing farm produce like sweetcorn, lettuce, spring onions (the biggest I have ever seen till date), blackberries, mini carrots, and a few unique soda drinks. All the produce was so fresh.

We were wearing masks the entire time but got extremely lucky as we were alone in the fields for sometime and just for a split second removed the mask and got a couple pictures.

All in all a great way to enjoy the outdoors and a fun experience! And the best thing is it is something that can be enjoyed with the whole family, friends or even by yourself.

Travel

Mount Watatic and Nutting Hill – A Scenic Trail in Massachusetts

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Mount Watatic, a 1832 foot tall monadnock is located on the Massachusetts – New Hampshire border and is definitely one of the most popular hikes in Massachusetts. Mount Watatic is a worthy destination for all hikers as it offers easy, moderate as well as hard trail options to explore. Formerly a ski area, Mount Watatic is now a protected land used for hiking and bird watching with clearly marked trails and offers rewarding views.

Approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes from Boston, this hike can definitely be covered in a day. We explored this trail last Saturday and took the moderate trail going to the summit and the easy trail on our way back. I recommend taking the moderate trail going up and the easy trail on the way back as even though the trail is longer than the easy trail it gains elevation steadily not making it very steep while climbing upwards. However if you prefer taking the easy trail it is great as well.

Here is a link to the start of the trailhead. There is free parking available at the trailhead and if the parking is full there is additional parking available on the opposite side in the lane or along the road which is a short walk from the trail head. This trail gets busy during the summer weekends but nothing so busy that you cannot maintain social distance and explore.

Remember there is a small deviation for the easy trail if you plan to take that otherwise you will be headed in the moderate trail direction. The moderate trail is 2.8 miles gaining elevation of 711 feet and the easy trail is 2.2 miles gaining elevation of 643 feet. If you are looking for a hard trail explore the Wapack Trail.

It is a shaded trail almost throughout leaving aside some open spots making it easy to explore at any time. We ourselves started hiking around noon on a sunny day but found it extremely comfortable. Once we reached the top it was breezy even on a hot summer day making it easy to sit and soak in the beautiful views.

This trail is great for new hikers, or even experienced hikers just starting out for the season or to get a good workout while enjoying the scenic panoramic views. Dogs are also allowed on this trail and must be kept on leash.

On a clear day you can see the Boston skyline from the top of the summit. You can enjoy views of Northern Massachussets and Southern New Hampshire from the summit. It is also a great place to catch the sunrise from the summit with beautiful views. Along the trail we saw many different kinds of wild mushrooms.

All in all a great hike with breathtaking views but not breath taking!

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Travel

My Apple Picking Experience – A Fun Fall Day

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When I think of Fall I think of Apple Picking. The abundance of apples is the welcome sign of the fall. Whether it’s with family, friends or your significant other, it’s easy to spend a full day at the orchard, and it’s the perfect excuse to spend some time outdoors and enjoy the beautiful weather. This weekend my husband and I went apple picking at the Tougas Family Farms in Massachusets and had a fun experience.

We started the experience at 1.30 pm with eating some apple cider donuts and having apple cider both made freshly from the farm picked apples at the Tougas Farms. We then took the private wagon ride to drive around the beautiful orchard gazing at the various apple produce with the wind blowing in the air. We had gone for a private event arranged by my husbands office however you can go there by yourself too.

We then headed to go apple picking which was so much fun. The farm we went to had different types of apples – Honeycrisp, Cortland, Gala, McIntosh and Mutsu and the staff at the farms made us aware of all the differences between them and how they are best enjoyed.

We went around the various rows trying different types of apples and deciding which ones we liked over the others and ended up picking a mix of the apples we liked. We ate like 4 apples just as we were picking out apples.

Some of the apples we tried and picked were :
1)Honeycrisp – Mostly red skin, crisp, tart and sweet. They hold very well in baked goods but also taste delicious when eaten raw.
2)Cortland – Mostly red-skinned but taste much better when baked rather than eaten raw.
3)Gala – Compared to the Honeycrisp or Cortland apples these are smaller in size, red skin but taste better when eaten raw compared to when baked.
4)McIntosh – These apples are tender, sweet and have a red and green skin. They can be used for both baking as well as eaten raw but taste even better when baked.
5)Mutsu – They have green-yellow skin, not very tart and have a creamy texture. They work great with pies.

Once we finished picking the apples we sat in our tent and ate some apple crisps and apple pie and sipped on apple cider. Ohh yeah it was an Apple day after all.

The farm also has various farm animals around whom you can feed, playground for kids, farm stores where you can buy a lot of fresh goodies made out of the fresh fruits grown on the farms such as jams, jellies, fresh fruits, apple cider donuts, apple pie, apple crisps, apple pie ice cream, taffy apple and so much more.

All in all a great fun activity to do for the whole family.