Noanet Woodlands and the Pombobumbo

And finally some sunshine! So happy to wake up sunshine and not too hot weather!  Mr. No was all set to get outside for adventure and fresh air.  We did our H lessons and set out after lunch to a fairly close and free Trustees of Reservation nature trail, Noanet Woodlands in Dover, MA.  Thankfully Mr. No napped in the car so he had tons of energy for our walk. After missing a turn or 2 as usual, it was fairly easy to get to but I have to say our detour brought us by some pretty amazing and huge houses. Thankfully parking was in a town park that had a porta-potty.  I guess we (the adults) really don't travel well, not that we ever let that stop us.  Once we left the potty behind, Mr. No was off and running.

setting off on our adventure

Mr. No is off and running!  H, not so much.

It was a great place for kid's to walk.  There were wide trails with a few places that had slightly scary dropoffs but you were warned ahead of time.  There were also little creeks that crisscrossed the trails in several spots.  I actually got Mr. No to stop and sit for a very quick snapshot.

getting to be so big

There were of course sticks, rocks and pinecones to collect and deposit into my pocket.  He was allotted one pocket or the forest would be bare.  We hunted for bugs and wildlife, listened for birds and sang songs. Mr. No was hunting down bugs left and right and asking what everything was.  I guess we're going to have to get a guide to insects in New England since he's so interested and I know next to nothing about most insects except that I do not want them on me!  There were awesome boulders along the path and H had the brilliant idea to climb up one.  Mr. No wanted to follow him until H got himself a little stuck.  I thought it was hilarious.  Mr. No was far more compassionate and even tried to help H find his way down.

telling Daddy to try over here to get down

Once H half climbed, half tumbled off the rock, we could continue our journey.  Mr. No lead the way because, as he says, there was no time to waste.

Mr. No, adventurer and guide

he was all about holding hands :)

After a little bit of walking, we heard rushing water.  We had made it to the halfway point on the red trail loop and found the remnants of the old mill. There was a little waterfall and a cute pond.  We met a nice dog and her owner at the pond and watched the dog take a swim to snap up some cheese puffs someone had thrown in the water for the birds.

little waterfall

1 of 4 ponds

throwing leaves and pebbles into the pond

dancing  and singing by the pond

Since we didn't find any frogs, H decided we should walk little further to another pond.  This began our misadventures and ended with us getting directions back to the red trail from a couple of 10-12 year olds on mountain bikes.  We did find a pond where we heard wood frogs and got to cross a couple more creeks.  All in all, H's detour turned our leisurely walk into an almost 3 hour hike.

throwing rocks

alligator!

After we passed the 2nd pond and alligator wood, we found more horse jumps in the woods and H had another brilliant idea.  He'd jump it!  I can't believe he made it!

Mr. No the car vrooming after H.

Mr. No was getting tired (as were we) and wanted uppa.  So I gave him a piggy back ride and the a shoulder ride for most of the walk back.  We heard a snake slither off the trail and into the brush. H went to find it and get a picture.  It was just a very cute garter snake.  We also scared a chipmunk and had a strange little squirrel chatter at us on our way back to the car..

our woodland friends

It was an exhausting but fun afternoon. Mr. No had a wonderful time and didn't stop talking the entire ride home about all the animals and bugs and then told us all about his friend the Pombobumbo.

The Pombobumbo

Mr. No found a new animal while we were walking in the woods, a Pombobumbo.  Apparently, they are approximately the length of a the outstretched arms of a tall 3 1/2 year old.  They're cute, red and furry with green eyes and they love you.  They live in the forest but love to swim in the ocean. They only stay a little while at the ocean though and then they go home.  Their diet consists of "bad bugs" like (s)corpions and (s)piders as well as berries and leaves and they drink lots of water.  The best part is that they're warm and cuddly and love to sleep all curled up in a ball on your lap.  According to Mr. No, they are so cute like that! Too bad only little kids can see them because I want a Pombobumbo!

Halibut Point Reservation

We headed out today to enjoy a beautiful but windy spring day.  I have to admit I did have pangs of guilt enjoying myself with so many people affected by the devastating tornadoes yesterday.  But I have an active and 3 year old who knew nothing of what happened and I'd like to keep it that way since Mr. No already has a fear of the wind blowing him and everything he owns away.  I don't know how many times I had to assure him today that nothing was going to blow away in the wind.  As soon as we got out of the car at Halibut Point Reservation in Rockport, MA, he started panicking about Daddy's hat blowing away.  He insisted that Daddy leave his hat in the car.  Now I do have to admit that this is not an irrational fear.  He has witnessed Daddy's hat blowing away twice in his life.  Once it blew off and out over the Quabbin Reservoir...gone before we could even think to reach for it. Another time, the car acted like a wind tunnel and ripped it right off H's head while he was driving and sucked out the window.  Mr. No thought it was hilarious at the time.  Not so much now.  Oh well.  I still find it amusing.

Once Mr. No's wind worries were calmed, we finally headed toward the Reservation.  This was just a place I happened to find online at the Trustees of Reservations so we had no idea what t expect.  I have to say the last Trustees place we went to (Coolidge Reservation) exceed my expectations so I hoped this would be at least half that amazing.  It took Mr. No all of 5 seconds to forget about the wind once we hit the path.  He found a stick (he cannot walk without a stick) and was off and running.

Of course, our first stop after an almost 2 hour drive was the restroom.  Nature walk with a restroom is a plus for any place and a must have for us! That the restrooms were in this building made it amazing!  Still in pull-ups Mr. No was even excited enough to use the restroom! 

Mr. No was ready to go after that! He barely stopped for a cookie before we wandered over to the Quarry. I have to say that none of us were expecting this view when we reach the edge.

 See him holding on to both his stick and Daddy's hat!

Absolutely Beautiful! Seriously the best $2 (on day parking pass) we've ever spent! Though I have to admit that this was one of those times that I was thrilled to have a cautious kid.  This is not a place to take little ones who don't listen.  Mr. No was very nervous anywhere near the edge which was fine with me.  He did stop for a couple photos.  Please note the stick still in his hand.

Mr. No loved playing on this rock which was about 10 feet or less from the edge of the Quarry.  I wouldn't let him get any closer than that.  I'm trusting but not insane.  Then H found a little caterpillar and Mr. No was in love.  It was his little friend and he wanted to take it with him.  It was hard to convince him to leave it behind but there was ocean to see.  This place was little boys dream!  Caterpillars.Sticks.  Birds. Quarry rocks to play with and stack.  The ocean.  Snails and mussels.  And we only walked a small portion of it.

 This was before Mr. No accidentally made the side crumble.  Oops!

Snails!

Mussels in a little tidal pool on the rocks.

If the sky didn't darken and the windy become vicious, we would have stayed longer.  The chill was too much for Mr. No.  He got a piggyback ride most of the way back to the car from me.  He only got down because he lost his stick and you know you can't walk without a stick. When we reached the car he told us, "That place was crazy!  There were caterpillars, snails and all kinds of animals there! How many animals can be here? So many animals!  This place is amazing!". I definitely agree Mr. No!