Lyme backyard wildlife – September

Bears and bobcats, oh my!

I found two of my older cameras and placed them in strategic locations in our backyard: down by the river, and on the trunk of a productive apple tree. Both of these locations attract a variety of critters –including a resident possum who loves fresh apples. This month, though, I was surprised to see both a bobcat and a black bear passing through in broad daylight! Click on the photo to see the video.

poster frame for the video; click to visit the video.

Lyme hills

Two hikes today.

Today was a quintessentially gorgeous September day in New Hampshire – early morning valley fog, then cool air with warm sunshine and calm winds. My long to-do list precluded any serious hiking, so I headed out on two short hikes before and after breakfast.

Early morning fog between the Lyme Pinnacle and Smarts Mountain.
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Apple season

Time for applesauce!

Fall has arrived, more or less – and that means it is apple season! We planted two apple trees in the backyard – one with McIntosh, one with Cortland apples. The Cortlands are heading for a bumper crop, and the deadfall have already been extremely attractive to all the local wildlife.

We spent a few minutes today, shaking the tree to encourage a few more apples to fall… and netted over 12 pounds of cored apples!

Cooked with some cranberries from the freezer, then spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and brown sugar, they soon became 5 quarts of cran-applesauce. Wow! We are set for the winter.

Backyard wildlife

One location, nine days, six types of critter!

I found a new location for my wildlife camera that is creating a feast of images: the backyard apple tree. The apples are ripe, falling from the tree, and feeding the entire neighborhood! Check out this two-minute video review of the local deer, fox, woodchuck, turkey, possum, and porcupine.

The woodchuck stands to watch and listen – keeping one eye on my camera.