it's important we in connecticut protect our wildlands

many years ago, i saw my first bear (and many loons) in a natural preserve/state park in simsbury (or was it granby???). i saw my second up a tree in our work parking lot when our office was in avon. i've seen coyotes and wild turkeys (they are PIGS i tell you!) and fox and phesants and hawks and deer and more than i can think of at 5:30 am. i love my state and i love new england.

connecticut state parks

Winter An Ideal Time For Hiking Near Marsh, So Caretakers Offer Walks
By PETER MARTEKA
Courant Staff Writer
January 2 2006
Although Jim Woodworth believes the Great Meadows are beautiful any time of the year, the best place to visit them may be in the middle of a New England winter."You don't have to worry about being attacked by mosquitoes or avoiding poison ivy," said Woodworth, president of the nonprofit Great Meadows Conservation Trust. "These sometimes aren't the best places to visit in the summer unless you are in a boat."The trust, made up mostly of residents from Glastonbury, Rocky Hill and Wethersfield, helps preserve land in a 4,500-acre swath of meadows and flood plains along the Connecticut River - the largest freshwater marsh in the state. This month and next, the group is teaming up with the Connecticut Audubon Society Center at Glastonbury to sponsor a series of walks in Glastonbury, Wethersfield and East Hartford.Judy Harper, director of the center, said the idea for the winter hikes came from Larry Lunden, a West Hartford resident who serves on the center's regional board. Lunden is also the land management chair of the trust."It's a good partnership and good way to get the numbers up," Harper said. "Plus it's good to showcase something area residents probably don't get to see.""Nature Walk in the Connecticut River Flood Plain #1" will be a tour of Glastonbury's historic meadows Jan. 14. The meadows still remain in their relatively pristine state. Lunden will take participants along the meadows and the banks of the river. "This is a good way to promote and show people what is being protected," Lunden said. "These properties would be rather difficult to find on your own. It's also a good way to annually inspect our parcels and talk about what's going on." "There's always a good chance to see eagles this time of year," Woodworth added. "This is a wonderful part of the meadow because there's no roads running through it and it's totally private."...............