2024

Mount Feake Cemetery, Waltham, Massachusetts

My mom moved again, this time to Waltham. The Charles River is very close to our house, and across from it is Mount Feake Cemetery. This cemetery isn't nearly as diverse in its plant life as other ones I've been to, being mostly grass. It's still quite spacious, though. It took me several trips to walk the whole perimeter of the property.

These concrete pillars are the only remnants of a boathouse from the 20th century, named Nuttings on the Charles. This boathouse had a ballroom, which was famous at the time because it was one of the only ballrooms where the famous traveling jazz bands of the time played. Now, it's popular with the geese.

If you want to know more about the boathouse, there's a lovely blog here that covers it in more detail than I could: http://backsideofamerica.blogspot.com/2012/01/smoke-on-water.html

Since it was late springtime, the geese had their goslings join along for foraging. They're very good parents - when they cross the road, there's one parent in the front and one in the back, and they'll keep a close eye on you if you're near the young ones.

Despite being woodpeckers, northern flickers actually prefer to forage on the ground.

I was due for a good blue jay picture for a while. Really can't get enough of how deep blue their wings and tailfeathers are. I've heard that when European tourists come here to do birding, they find the blue jays especially amazing, and I can see why.

This strange organism was there when I was leaving. I have no idea what this is.