Hiking the Forest Resource Center just after a prescribed burn.
I’d added this to the To-Do List some time ago and thought it might not be too soggy of a choice so we decided to finally check it out.
Then I saw a notice about a prescribed burn there literally a few days before. I didn’t know if or how that would affect the trails but figured well that might be neat anyway.
The Interpretive Center isn’t open on weekends. There wasn’t a car in the lot when we arrived and we saw two other hikers all day.
Miles: 7.2
Route: RED (Firewise) – WHITE (Project Learning) – Light Green (Forest Products Loop) – BLUE (Swamp Life) – RED (Firewise) – PINK (Swamp Loop) – RED (Firewise) – YELLOW (Pine Acres)
>> Detailed hike guide visit our main “Forest Resource Education Center” page <<
We pieced together all of the shorter trails that are clustered around the center, and added in the longer YELLOW (Pine Acres) trail.
The trails were nice, the many nature and forestry displays were interesting, and we enjoyed the park more than expected.
On the Swamp Life Loop was a small bird box and I stopped in my tracks when I realized I was being watched.
By an owl.
A teeny, adorable, little owl.
Adorable adorable adorable owl face peering at me.
We only saw him for a few seconds before – vooooooooop – he ducked his head down and disappeared. While we’ve spotted a lot of wildlife on our hikes, this is the first owl for us (other than a snowy owl).
Prescribed burns are conducted from October through March are important to help prevent fires from starting or spreading by clearing out leaves and pine needles on the forest floor.
Evidence (and scent!) of the recent burns were in several areas along the trail.
After hitting all short trails around the center, we headed off on the longer YELLOW (Pine Acres) trail. Nothing particular to see, just a nice easy hike through the pine barrens.
We spotted some random big blue blazes that didn’t correspond to a trail on the map. Eventually they lead to a side trail that crossed a wet area by using wooden pallets.
This didn’t look worth going over all that to find out if it was actually a newer park trail or just some casual thing – so we skipped it.
YELLOW ends at an alternate parking lot and was our turn around spot.
Some more burned areas on the way back.
Wildlife spotted: A tiny OWL!!!!
Post-hike: Tried the new cloud macchiatos – caramel for me, cinnamon for Tom. Not that much different than regular ones but tasty.