A section of “Map of The State of Connecticut Showing Indian Trails, Villages, and Sachemdoms Made For the Connecticut Society of the Colonial Dames of America” by Mathias Spiess and Hayden Griswold, 1930.
This map shows approximate locations of Wangunk camps on both sides of the Connecticut River before the settlement of Europeans in what became Middletown and Portland. (The entire statewide map may be found here.)
Bird populations have been declining in Connecticut for some time. This is one reason why we are working to suppress the mugwort infestation on the midden cap and replant with wildflowers and grasses to create a pollinator- and bird-friendly environment. Continue reading
Drone photo courtesy of Matt Stauble, Stauble Media. Click on the image to enlarge.
Our vision for the Midden Lookout Park is coming into view. This has been a core project of the Jonah Center, since 2006!
A recent drone photo by Matt Stauble shows the developing Midden Lookout Park in its summer glory. Follow along with this story by referring to the location letters A-I in the image.
A is the main location, the Midden Cap, where you can enjoy views of the 1000-acre marshland known as the Floating Meadows, a rich habitat for fish and birds. Continue reading
Watch carp spawning in the Coginchaug River just upstream from the canoe and kayak launch in Middletown — a Jonah Center project completed in 2014. It’s the perfect place and time of year to see many amazing forms of life out in the Floating Meadows. Our thanks to videographer Phil LeMontagne for this video.
Arterial corridors being studied are in red. Click on the image to enlarge.
You are invited to attend 2 upcoming public meetings to learn and provide input to make Middletown’s major arterial corridors safer for everyone. This is part of Connecticut’s Safe Streets For All (SS4A) program. Continue reading
We are making progress on the Midden Lookout Park and will soon be requesting volunteers for our next steps. (Note: “Midden” is a word that means “trash pile” or, in our case, “landfill.”) The photo below shows the various existing and new trail segments. At the bottom is the Keating Enterprise Building at 180 Johnson Street in Middletown.
Work Party #1 (Date TBD) — On a day when there is snow on the ground (to minimize the presence of ticks) but it’s not too cold, we will need help clearing the route for the Loop Trail. No equipment is necessary — boots to stomp down the mugwort make good tools. But, if you have them, loppers, clippers, pruning saws, or weed whackers will be useful.
Work Party #2 (Date TBD) — After woodchips are dumped on the midden cap, we need people to help spread them to suppress the mugwort in the spring.
If you can help us out (depending on your availability on the exact date, of course) please sign up as a Trail Blazer using this form. That will put you on the list for upcoming messages. Thank you to all who have already signed up! You may also use our Contact Form and put the words “Midden Volunteer List” in the message space.
We hope to see you soon for some fun, cool weather work on this project!
By Phil LeMontagne
Butterflies like Monarchs and Swallowtails are awesome to see in the garden. It’s even more exciting when a less common species like the Great Spangled Fritillary shows up! For nectar the adults like native flowers such as Purple Coneflower, Joe Pye Weed, and Common Milkweed. Great Spangled Fritillaries can live as adults for three months—at least three times longer than most butterflies! To attract them, grow native violets in the garden. These are the only plants their caterpillars will eat. Click here or on the image above to view.
Middletown power plant as seen from the Air Line Trail in Portland. Photo by John Hall
A recent New York Times article by Maxine Joselow reports that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency plans to consider only the cost to industry when setting pollution limits, not the monetary value of avoiding illness and saving human lives. The pollutants affected are fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and ozone which are signifcant health hazards in the lower CT River Valley. A PDF copy of the full article may be found here.
Beau Doherty of Portland is an avid wildlife observer and excellent photographer. Below, he shares with us some photos of species you might spot during winter. Be on the lookout for them on your walks, especially those listed as endangered, threatened, or species of concern. Several of these photos were taken at the Helen Carlson Wildlife Sanctuary on South Road in Portland, a Preserve of Mattabeseck Audubon Society, designated an “eBird hotspot.“
The beautiful Hooded Merganser is seen often in winter at the Helen Carlson Preserve, in the Connecticut River, or in Great Hill Pond. This one surfaced with a small fish in its mouth. They nest in tree cavities.
Continue reading
Drone Video: Future Midden Lookout Park, approach from downtown Middletown over the North End neighborhood. Courtesy of Matthew Stauble, staublemedia.com.
On December 1st, Middletown’s Common Council unanimously supported a resolution granting permission for the Jonah Center to develop the city’s closed landfill (aka “midden”) into an environmental education and wildlife viewing area. The site overlooks a large marshland — the Floating Meadows — populated by herons, egrets, cormorants, osprey, eagles, ducks, beaver, muskrats, and deer. Continue reading
by Steve Cronkite
The Middletown Urban Forestry Commission (UFC) has been endeavoring to install a Miyawaki-style micro-forest in town for over two years. They are therefore thrilled to announce that on November 8th, with the help of 20 hard-working volunteers, they planted 99 donated native trees and shrubs and one native perennial in a Miyawaki-style micro-forest on the southeast corner of Van Buren Moody Elementary School on Country Club Road in Middletown. Continue reading
Each year, tax-deductible gifts help The Jonah Center for Earth and Art continue our work. Please consider donating today.
We advocate for multi-use trails, safer roads for pedestrians and bicycles, clean energy and energy efficiency, protecting our natural environment, reducing pollutants and toxic chemicals, removing invasive plants, supporting parks, planting and protecting trees, environmental education, and sustainable living in the greater Middletown, Connecticut area. (Video credit: John Shafer.)
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