We saw this beautiful Whimbrel at the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary a few weeks ago. It was out on the sand by the marsh grass.
The Whimbrel is a fairly large wader of the Curlew family. It gets its English name because it is imitative of the bird’s call.
We had never seen one there before, so this was a big treat! Look at that bill. It is huge!
The views at the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary are many and they are breathtaking. I took this photograph from the lookout on the Goose Pond Trail heading out toward the beach. You can see Tri-Island in the distance on the right which is also a fun hike. You may be treated to many shorebirds feeding in the marshes.
In the far distance you can see the white beaches of Wellfleet and Jeremy Point. It doesn’t get much prettier!
When we hike at the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary and want to go out to the outer beach across the boardwalk on the salt marsh, we always look at the tide charts to make sure it is not near high tide. We got stuck last year in February and ended up wading in, rolling up our jeans and holding our shoes. Thank goodness it was a warm day but the water was still pretty cold.
This past summer they have marked where they think the tides will be in the future, as they seem to be getting higher each year.
The first photograph shows the trail looking out to Cape Cod Bay with the beach in the distance. The second photograph shows looking back to the trail from where the high tide comes in now. The years they have marked ar 2025, 2050, 2063 and 2075.
It’s amazing how high the tides might rise with the warming climate.
Milkweed wildflower seeds are ready to blow wherever they want here on Cape Cod. You can see the pods are open and bursting with white fluff and attached seeds. The seeds will just disperse in the wind.
The Milkweed plant is the stable plant that the beautiful Monarch butterflies feed upon. There are a lot of Milkweed plants all over Cape Cod where you can see the Monarchs.
I saw this Milkweed plant at the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary where you can see many Monarchs in the summer months. I also have seen many Milkweed plants at Fort Hill which is also a favorite place of the Monarch butterflies.
I wonder if the seeds will still be there the next time I visit the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary.
The leaves are starting to turn colors as the days are getting shorter and cooler. I loved this photograph of the reflections from the Silver Spring Trail at the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary. There were so many Lily Pads in the water, but their flowers had gone by quite a while ago.
The Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary has so much to offer. We see something new each time we go. It is such a treat!
