Maudslay State Park – The Adventures of Shadow and Wilma

Today Shadow, Wilma, and I Adventured to the Vandenberg Esplanade in Lowell, Massachusetts. The Vandenberg Esplanade is a paved trail along the Merrimack River that is approximately one mile in length. I believe it may be part of the Lowell Heritage State Park.

We had a nice Adventure to the Vandenbert Esplanade. If you ready my last blog you are already aware that my weekend started out quite frustrating with car issues cancelling our weekend Adventures. However, we visited the Heritage Ice Cream and Restaurant, a somewhat local spot, and accidentally discovered the Vandenberg Esplanade across the street. Although a simple, urban park I was thrilled to find an area to explore, knowing my car was in rough shape.

I decided to drive to the parking lot, versus crossing the very busy Pawtucket Road. It took some time to find a spot where u-turns were permitted, but once we did we quickly located the parking lot. We strolled along the paved path, Shadow and Wilma enjoying the city smells, and exploring a new site. The River view was scenic, benches aligning the path, and bright green trees throughout. There was a storm heading in from afar, making for quite the picturesque sky, and even a brilliant lightning strike across the River. There were many people walking, some socializing on benches, and of course some dog walkers. Two visitors asked me some questions about Shadow and Wilma, commenting about Wilma: “she is still stubborn isn’t she”? which actually brought a smile to my face as I often think that to myself. Although she did not do anything in particular to bring on the comment, I still found it humorous. We are continuing to work on training, but there is no doubt that she is our PAWFECT pup! Admittedly I often get compliments on how well my dogs are behaved! 100% PAWFECT pups!

Although it was not too hot on our Adventure today, Shadow appeared a bit warm so we only walked for about thirty minutes or so, attempting to keep at a continual and steady pace. Shadow attempted several times to head down the stairs into the water, but there was alot of trash in the River, so I decided otherwise. Poor guy! (PS – Don’t worry he got a neighborhood swim in this morning 🙂 ) We had a pleasant walk along at the Vandenberg Esplanade, a nice surprise find (Rating: 3)

Yesterday Shadow, Wilma and I Adventured to Maudslay State Park in Newburyport, Massachusetts. This was our second visit to the Park as Shadow, Buster and I had Adventured there back in May 2015. Maudslay State Park is the former estate of the Moseley family, and is located along the Merrimack River. It is known for its 19th century gardens, meadows, pines, and as one of the largest naturally-occurring stand of mountain laurels in Massachusetts. It is popular for hiking, cross country skiing, picnicking, horseback riding, and summer concerts.

We had a nice Adventure to Maudslay State Park on a sunny, Fall day. We arrived to find the parking lot packed with people, many with dogs in tow. Soon out of the car I was greeted by a woman searching for a missing dog. I viewed the photo and hoped for the best, keeping my eyes out for sweet little Ellie, throughout the day. My heart weighed heavy as we began our afternoon hike.

We peaked at the map before following the masses, pleased to soon find ourselves away from the crowd on a woodsy, tree-lined trail. I had printed a map, which clearly labeled the trails but soon found we were on a complex trail system with no names,or colors to direct us in our hike. So I decided to remember where we had walked, noticing little details along the trail. I was thrilled to eventually find the water, and a trail leading to the shore’s edge. We ambled along the water trail, finding a cute little bridge with a River view. The water’s edge was iced, as well as some of the rocks along the shore. It crackled as we walked bye, adding sweet nature sounds to the air. This was my favorite part of our hike today, adding color, and variety to the trails.

Throughout our visit I found the trails to be very dull, and quite confusing. I even had a brief moment of worry in finding the trail back with numerous turns in all directions. I was able to use my Nature Warrior (haha) skills, and continually headed back the the starting point until we chose the correct path. This however did not dampen our energized pace as we explored a new Park. My thought is this Park might be quite beautiful in the spring, but definitely bland and brown this time of year. I guess that will be the theme for the next six months in New England, but this will not slow us down. It is funny that Shadow, Buster, and Shadow visited this Park before as I do not recall specific details. However my photos reminded me that Shadow and Buster enjoyed a dip in the water on a much greener journey. We definitely will plan a trip back to Maudslay State Park in the warmer months of the year (Rating: 3)

November 2018