Tidmarsh – Plymouth , MA
This week was one of the hardest weeks I could have ever imagined. On Tuesday December 28th we laid to rest our beloved dog Bruschi, the sweetest, cuddliest and best friend I could have EVER imagined over the last 14 years. We knew the day was coming but I still couldn’t have prepared for the saddest that was about to hit our house. After the loss of Bru the thought of being home literally hurt my heart so we threw ourselves into nature and explored a few places that I’ve been wanting to check out in the area.
On Wednesday we visited Tidmarsh in Plymouth, a Mass Audubon location that has really transformed over the past few years. Tidmarsh is an over 480 mile property that based on the Mass Audubon website is “the largest freshwater ecological restoration ever completed in the Northeast.” Walking through the area you can definitely see the trail updates are very fresh, given the fact one of the bridges was still under construction, but it was beautiful area. It was calming and peaceful and exactly what our family needed to try and start to heal together.
When we first parked in the lot at 60 Beaver Dam Road we traveled off the main trail to the left and up a hill through the Ridge & Meadow Trail to the overlook area which was an amazing view. You can see a few of the old cranberry bogs and streams like Beaver Dam Brook which now connect back to the Atlantic Ocean for the first time in over 100 years. We then traveled down behind the overlook through the Forest and Red Maple Trail and over a stream where we spotted some mallard ducks swimming around. As we were taking in the scenery a little cardinal flew overhead and landed on the branch next to us. This was about the moment on the trail where I really needed it too, because if you know about cardinals they have a connection to loved ones who have passed and usually visit you when you need them and some comfort. <3
Overall the trail is a little over 3 miles long, although there are some loops the Volunteer’s Trail, which we didn’t visit this time but will in the future, is an in and out trail so keep that in mind! We also found that on the All Trails app and on the Mass Audubon website there appears to be some sort of connection between the Madar Loop and Volunteer’s Trail but we never did see it so we had to turn around there as well. Since we really weren’t in the mood to go home after our hike we headed over to the Plymouth Airport for lunch and visited Plane Janes! If you’ve never visited before it’s a lunch and breakfast spot right near the landing strip where you can sit, eat and watch the planes take off and land, very cool for our kids!
All four of us loved this location, for the nature and the beautiful landscape, but for our family it will also hold a place where we started to try and heal together as best we could knowing our sweet furry buddy was at peace. We love you Bruschi.
