Poet's Seat

This is the year I planned on returning to further my investigations of rock formations within the Connecticut River Valley. Many have past documentation reaching back as far as the 1860's. A new piece of photography from that bygone era surfaced over the winter in "Kendall's Recess". So it meant working my way down the mountainside ledges as I've done many times in past years. I stopped along the way to acquaint myself with new photographic equipment that allows much longer timed shots amongst its many features. Passing by the (likely) sites of "Kitchen and Pantry" and "Cozy Cave", the confirmed locations of "Curve Rock" and the "Grand Porch", I finally ended up at the location for Kendall's Recess. Surprising is, in the old photograph a small cave is present. However it was not the "Recess" but the previously identified location of the Bear's Den. In the end, Kendall's Recess was a nondescript niche in the ledge. Just to the south, I made good use of a long timed photograph to scale on up - and out - onto the Poet's Seat.

The Grotto

With another big dose of spring weather (and a new camera with a big learning curve) I took on towns around the southern end of Quabbin Reservoir, on down to the Connecticut State border. First up was to relocate one of those mysterious stone chambers I had visited some years ago and tried to relocate (unsuccessfully) a few years back. This time it went much better, with no foliage, I pushed on through brush and thorny bushes to make my way to the site. A bit farther to the southwest in Town, I hoped to get a look at the "Rock Rimmon" where history records the naming of this rocky eminence (or what they describe as a "boss") in 1854. However, all I obtained was a drive by view as once again the modern housing development has impeded access. One newer home now lies embedded into the side of Rock Rimmon. Pushing on into Hampden County I took a closer look at the Grotto (sometimes listed as the Cave) to see if more might be determined about its own particular origin. Also nearby, another site depicted on postcards from the Gilded Age in the Dell (sometimes called the Glen) a short, rocky, picturesque locale. Still farther south, down by the Connecticut border, I searched out a possible cave mentioned in a real estate listing on some acreage for sale. Not sure what a real estate sales person considers a cave but none was found.

With a new Spring seemingly on the verge of being born, it is time once again to take to the outdoors! A long list has been prepared over the winter and I began with a return to a South Berkshire County cave first visited late in the summer of last year. I wanted to see if this cave might make a good "glaciere" or ice cave. Apparently not but the interior was glazed with a good coating of ice making for a very tricky exploration. On the way out of the area, I took a quick look at a region of karst that has not been visited in some years. Water was pouring into the insurgence of one of the caves and exiting out through the entrance. I've notice over the years in high water, an artesian effect, in a nearby sinkhole where water bubbles up under pressure.