On Tuesday, July 23, a group of volunteers will be be working on the Sunapee Ragged Kearsarge Greenway trail between Proctor Academy and the summit of Ragged. If you’ve hiked that trail you will probably recall one part of it: an extremely steep gravel slide that’s a challenge whether hiking up or down The plan is to replace that section with a switchback trail into the woods and back out. SRKG’s Gerry Gold estimates a 1.5 mile walk up the trail and then 4 hours of work to complete the job. If you are interested in helping with this project, contact Gerry at 526-2857 or GeeCubed@nullyahoo.com.

Another opportunity to help with trail work occurs between Monday, July 22, and Friday, August 2, on the Barlow Trail on Mount Kearsarge. A crew of high school students from Manchester will be camped at the Winslow picnic area and working on the trail both weeks, Monday through Friday. Visitors and helpers are welcome to join them anytime.

Look for a complete schedule of hikes this month sponsored by SRKG here.

I visited the wetlands at Fenvale to look for great blue herons and the good news is that there is one nesting pair. This rookery was once crowded with herons; nearly every snag had a huge nest on top or nestled in a crotch of dead branches. Eventually the area was “fished out” and the herons moved elsewhere.

It seems that they are coming back. Bring binoculars and walk five minutes up the path from the small parking area at the end of River’s Edge Road to have a look. While you are there, be sure to admire the impressive beaver dam.

Donna Baker-Hartwell reports that a pair of loons is once again nesting near the island on Highland Lake. We are all hoping for a successful hatch and urge swimmers and boaters to stay far away from the loons at this time, when they are so vulnerable. I’ve seen a pair of loons on Bradley Lake as well, but am unsure about their progress with a nest or eggs or chicks. Stay tuned for more information, and please give those loons plenty of space.

Ed and Mary Hiller continue to dazzle me with photographs of wildlife taken by a game camera set up in the beautiful woods behind their house. In one week in early June, the camera caught many deer, including a doe and her fawn, a big ole bear, a moose, a coyote, and a fox. Isn’t that a good reason to live in Andover? And isn’t that a good reason to consider protecting your land into the future through a conservation easement?

The Hillers worked with Ausbon Sargent Land Preservation Trust to guarantee that the wildlife currently enjoying their East Andover property will still be there years from now. We are all grateful to the Hillers and many others in Andover who have taken this important step in protecting what we value in our town.

Please flood me with your observations, photographs, and questions concerning our natural world in Andover. Email: AndoverNaturally@nullgmail.com