Hike of the Month: Cross-Country Skiing at Camp Santanoni

Newcomb, Essex County
For a unique winter experience, join other hikers for a Winter Weekend/Open House on March 12 and 13 at historic Camp Santanoni, a 19th-century Adirondack Great Camp.

The 9.8-mile round trip starts at the estate's impressive stone Gate House and follows the carriage road through dense forest past an old dairy, farmhouses and the ruins of a large barn. It continues to Newcomb Lake, where participants can warm up by the fire at the sprawling Main Lodge and get a hot drink at the quirky Artist Studio.

Camp Santanoni is just one place to explore in winter. Check DEC's Great Winter Hikes webpage for more places to enjoy the outdoors.

Maple Sugaring Weekends

New York is the second-largest producer of maple syrup in the United States. If you'd like to learn how it's produced, Five Rivers Environmental Education Center (Albany County) is hosting maple sugaring open houses on three Saturdays in March (12, 19 and 26) from 1:30 to 3:30. You'll get to twirl a brace drill, pound a spile, inspect sap flow in the sugarbush, enjoy the aroma of sap boiling down and take the maple taste test.

Because sugar maples, New York's official tree, are found throughout the state, there are numerous sugaring operations as well. The weekends of March 19-20 and April 2-3 are official maple sugaring weekends, featuring events at locations around New York. In central New York, visit Lime Hollow Education Center in Cortland for Maple Sugarin' Day demonstrations and pancake breakfast on March 19th from 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM (fee). Check the New York State Maple Producers Association's website to find other sugaring open houses near you.

Read Sweet Success, an article about maple sugaring in the February 2013 issue of Conservationist magazine.

Watchable Wildlife: Harbor Seals at Montauk Point State Park

Suffolk County, Long Island
Harbor seals are the most abundant seals in New York State. They can be found in coastal oceanic waters or basking on sand bars, rocks or remote beaches during low tide in estuaries, bays and rivers. The best time to watch harbor seals is during the day, from early winter into spring. Head to Montauk Point State Park on the eastern end of Long Island where the Atlantic Ocean meets Block Island Sound. Visitors are treated to stunning views and great watchable wildlife opportunities. Seal watches are scheduled almost every weekend through April.

To avoid stressing these seals, stay back about 150 feet. If a seal feels threatened, it may bite.

Nature Notes: Male harbor seals average 5 to 5½-feet long and weigh 200 to 250 pounds. Females are smaller, about 4½ to 5-feet long and weigh 150 to 200 pounds.

Upcoming DEC Events

• Canada Goose Hunting Season Opens (South Zone), March 5th
• Free Ice Fishing Clinic at Carter's Pond WMA, March 5th at 9 AM
• Family Fun: Dr. Seuss Read-a-Thon at Five Rivers, March 5th at 10 AM
• Snowbirds Walk at Reinstein Woods, March 5th at 10:30 AM
• Birding 101 Class #3 at Reinstein Woods, March 19th at 2:30 PM

Conservationist Magazine

Read how volunteers lend salamanders a helping hand in the February issue of Conservationist magazine! You can also discover the allure of electric vehicles, learn how much fun ice fishing can be, and read about hardy Long Island sea duck hunters.

In addition, we'll take you in the field with a DEC ECO who recounts his part in one of the largest manhunts ever conducted in the state to find two escaped convicted murderers. Also, tag along with a DEC forest ranger on a rescue of a critically injured snowmobiler. All this and more in the February Conservationist. Subscribe online or call 1-800-678-6399.