Every summer camper has a favorite spot around the NorthWoods campus. We have yet to take an official survey, but I would guess our Pond would be the highlight. It is spring-fed, and at 18 feet deep in the center, it offers a surprisingly cold, refreshing dip for kids who would rather spend all summer adrift than on land. And of course, there is the Pond’s Edge, home to tadpoles, frogs, crayfish, caddisflies, water boatmen, and a host of other macroinvertebrates in various stages of metamorphosis. We introduce these in a formal pond study at the start of the camp week, but the course doesn’t end there. With a net in hand, campers run to this favorite spot every chance they get.
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re are spots in the woods that are favorites, too: the lean-to that opens to the red pines, a place where the wind always seems to be at work. There is a magical forest where gnome homes and fairy houses are constructed, a place carpeted in moss that is a land of emerald enchantment. And, of course there are a few campers who might pick their favorite spot as close to the NorthWoods kitchen as they can get, where Sunshine is cooking up a delicious afternoon treat.
But between the lodge and pond, there is another favorite spot, drawing a certain kind of camper, one with a penchant for the slithery, the sly, and the stealthy. Among the perennial flower gardens, this south-facing hillside spot is made up of stone wall, rock ledge, and the gaps in between. On sunny summer days, you don’t have to imagine a snake basking here on the warm rocks, because if you approach quietly enough, you can see one for yourself. These rocks make a home for Vermont’s two most common snake species – the Common Garter Snake and the Red-Bellied Snake, neither of which are poisonous, both of which will bite depending on the skills of the handler.
While so many things, in nature and in the world, are roped off, off-limits, and behind caution signs, we had a great summer enabling kids to get up close and personal with some of our lesser known wild residents. The world of reptiles and amphibians is fascinating, and touching the skin of a live snake makes a much more powerful connection to this world than feeling one that’s been flattened on the roadside. For some campers, like Atrell pictured above, it is clear that they have encountered snakes many times before. These campers must have favorite spots like this one in their backyards, and they take on a new role here, instructing others with a more tentative grasp not to be afraid and how to hold a snake safely. This summer especially, these rocks were a favorite spot, and it drew young herpetologists who scattered along the wall, pleasantly surprising our staff with their on-going patient and skillful quest. With the warmth in the day dwindling as fall nears, these snakes will adapt to their changing environment. Their metabolism will slow, and they enter brumation, the reptilian equivalent of hibernation in mammals. It will be a cold and quiet winter in the rock wall.
For those who would like to become involved in conservation efforts or collecting and reporting data on Vermont’s 11 snake species we found The Vermont Reptile and Amphibian Atlas to be a great online resource.