This afternoon Violet and I went to Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge. Jamaica Bay is one of my favorite places to go with my family.  Unfortunately, we haven't been since the fall.   This fall, there was a hurricane called SuperStorm Sandy and there was damage at Jamaica Bay.  There was a breach in the barrier between the saltwater bay and the freshwater pond.  Usually, we hike around the pond, but because of the breach, you can no longer do that.



Luckily, the birds didn't seem to know the difference! We saw swans, Canada geese, an osprey, and an egret or heron (not sure which!).  Here's Violet looking at a goose swimming in the West Pond.  Violet was pleased to be back at Jamaica Bay, but she was sad about the pond breach.  When the pond was breached, the freshwater fish died. Isn't that sad? The ranger reminded us that it was nature's way, but we were still sad for all the fish.



Here's Violet on the path back to pond.  There were lots of things washed up in the little forest area along the path where we have walked so many times before.  The benches and signs were mostly washed away.  My family was very lucky that the hurricane did not cause much damage to our neighborhood.  Many families in our part of the country were not so lucky.  Violet and I kept those families in our thoughts today.




Here I am with Violet at the Visitor Center. I'm glad we got to talk to the rangers about the park.  They are planning to fill in the breach.  I thought they might build a bridge, but filling the breach would be less expensive than building a safe bridge.

Have you ever been on a hike? What did you see?