Tag Archive: MT Loretto


Outdoors day at Mt. Loretto

Filed under: Environment, Uncategorized, Work
June 13, 2022

It’s been a minute. The last time we had Outdoors Day at Mt. Loretto was 2019. Here’s hoping it once again becomes an annual event. For me it’s a workday outside of the office. A chance to meet people I don’t normally work with and meet the public.

I was assigned to “Camping”. I don’t camp, my idea of camping is a hotel with no room service. But I was going to make the best of it. Outside with fresh air (pollen), nature (ticks) and people (too many). The highlight of the place was Smores. We had a campfire and all the ingredients. I don’t know how to make Smores, I’ve never made or eaten Smores. Someone said today might be the day! It was not.

To be perfectly honest, I don’t stick around much. Did a lot of wandering, my co-worker was there with his wife and dog, he said he didn’t mind.

One thing I saw, after completing the Nature Walk and walking back to my designated spot was a Mallard duck. I thought it was a decoy because it was so perfect looking and still. I walked toward it and it turned and quacked at me. Definitely a real duck.

We left after planting a tree in memoriam to a co-worker that has sadly passed away. Their family was there and it got really emotional, for them, I didn’t really work with them or know them very well.

My ride dropped me off down town so I walked to Fool’s Gold on Houston Street for a beer (or a dozen, lost count).

All around a good day.

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Mount Loretto Unique Area: A day at the beach made for everyone

Filed under: Animals, Environment, New York, Work
December 17, 2019

Link to article

Typically you would think a day late in November would be too cold for the beach, but that wasn’t the case on a recent walk at Mount Loretto Unique Area. It was not that hot, but not that cold. You needed a jacket, but not gloves and hats.

The sun was bouncing off the water which was nearly flat, it was so calm.

“It’s a nice time of the year,” said Glenn Mazzola.

Joe Padalino was not thrilled to hear we were going to the beach.

“I didn’t want to get caught in the sand,” said Padalino who uses a wheelchair to get around.

But it was a different story when we traveled from the parking lot along the non-vehicular road to the coastal area of the state park. There were two paths to the beach to help people go places they couldn’t usually go.

“Now I feel good because I am actually on the beach,” said Padalino from the observation deck at the end of one of the paths. “It’s not something I get to do much.”

“It’s a good place to get lost in your mind,” he added.

What made it especially nice was Howie Fischer, an experienced birder, met us there. He had his telescope for getting a better look at the water fowl out in the bay which included brant, grebes, loons and ducks.

A black-and-white duck (bufflehead) was one some of us got a good look at. Fischer reported back that he saw or heard 30 species, and he helped us be aware of some of them even if we didn’t get a good look.

We started our visit to MLUA at the observation deck on the Mount Loretto Pond near the parking lot. This is a special place for Lifestyles because we were at the ribbon cutting for the accessible trail to the observation deck.

At the pond we saw geese, and a large blue-and-white bird (great blue heron) and a small blue-and-white bird (a kingfisher), both with serious beaks for fishing.

Take a look at our photos for more of what we saw and commentary on it.

Written collaboratively by Joseph Jones, Greg Mazzola, Dolores Palermo, Joseph Padalino, Steven Filoramo for Life-Wire News Service with Kathryn Carse.

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