Tag Archives: nature hikes

A Walk Through Van Dyke Spinney Preserve

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Yesterday evening, Theresa and I decided to take a short walk through the Van Dyke Spinney Preserve, located less than a mile from our home in the Town of Bethlehem, New York.

This 33-acre preserve was accepted by the Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy in 2012 as part of the permitting process for a nearby residential development. What might appear to be a small tract of land on a map provides an impressive diversity of habitats, including forests, wetlands, floodplain communities, and stream corridors.

The preserve features a gently rolling one-mile loop trail that winds through mature woodlands and alongside portions of the Phillipinkill, a tributary of the Vlomans Kill, which eventually flows into the Hudson River. Along the trail, visitors encounter small bridges, seasonal wetlands, towering trees, native wildflowers, and quiet views of the stream as it meanders through the floodplain.

One of the things I appreciate most about Van Dyke Spinney Preserve is how accessible it is. Located at 246 Van Dyke Road in Delmar, New York, the preserve includes a convenient parking area and offers an easy opportunity to spend an hour immersed in nature without traveling far from home.

During our walk, the forest was alive with the soft light of early evening filtering through the canopy. Forget-me-nots bloomed along the trail edges, the Phillipinkill reflected the surrounding greenery like a mirror, and the cool, shaded woods provided a welcome escape from the day’s heat. It was a reminder that meaningful encounters with nature do not require a trip to a national park or a remote wilderness area. Sometimes they can be found just down the road.

Places like Van Dyke Spinney Preserve demonstrate the value of local land conservation. They protect water quality, provide wildlife habitat, preserve natural beauty, and offer nearby residents a chance to reconnect with the natural world. For those of us interested in conservation and stewardship, they also serve as living classrooms where we can observe, learn, and simply enjoy the wonders of nature.

As I often remind readers of The Nature of Things, stewardship begins by noticing things. A short walk on a local trail can lead to discoveries, appreciation, and ultimately a deeper connection with the places we call home.

A Walk Through the Gladys E. Douglas Preserve

biodiversity, ecosystems, Native Plants, nature conservation, Wildlife & Plants, , , ,

A few weeks ago, while spending some time in Dunedin, Florida, I decided to take a walk through a relatively new nature preserve that the City has opened to the public — the Gladys E. Douglas Preserve.It is not a large preserve, but sometimes the size of a place has very little to do with its value.

The trail winds through a habitat known as sand pine scrub, a landscape that developed on deep sandy soils left behind long ago when sea levels were much higher and much of Florida was underwater. What remains today are scattered ridges and sandy uplands that support a very specialized community of plants and animals adapted to dry, nutrient-poor conditions.

Walking the trail, you quickly notice that this is not the lush, tropical Florida many visitors imagine. Instead, it has a quieter character — sand underfoot, low scrub vegetation, scattered cactus, palmettos, and sand pines with their long soft needles catching the sunlight.

But as is often the case in nature, the real interest is found when you slow down and start looking closer.

Along the trail I noticed patches of pale gray lichens scattered across the sandy ground like small islands of frost resting among fallen pine needles. Nearby, a low cluster of prickly pear cactus pushed up through the sand, quietly reminding anyone paying attention that life in this habitat requires a certain toughness.

On one pine trunk, rows of delicate white fungi had formed along the bark, almost like someone had traced lines up the tree with a careful hand. It looked like nature’s own quiet artwork.

Places like this may seem small on a map, but they play an important role in protecting habitats that are becoming increasingly rare as development spreads across Florida. They also provide something that is becoming harder to find — a place where people can simply walk, observe, and reconnect with the natural world around them.

For me, that is often the real value of a place like this.

A short walk, a few photographs, and a reminder that even the smallest preserves can hold a surprising amount of life — if we take the time to notice.

If you ever find yourself in the Dunedin area, this little preserve is certainly worth a visit.

And if you go, take your time.

Nature rarely reveals its best stories to people who are in a hurry.