Turtlesinger, Inc.


is a Federal 501(c)3 Public Charity - New Jersey Charities Registration # CH2998200
Mission Statement: To educate and entertain the public about turtles with original songs and/or live turtles.



November 17, 2021



Hike #1: The North Wildwood Seawall Trail





You can tell by the shadow cast by this praying mantis that it was a late afternoon walk/hike.


We’re so grateful Charlie spotted this praying mantis. It’s our first encounter with one on the North Wildwood Seawall. There was a fairly steady stream of traffic on the wall, so we’re glad we were able to keep this praying mantis from getting crushed underfoot!


The North Wildwood wall is a little over 3-mile-long round-trip hike along the back bay to the north, ending at the ocean to the south. For a video of the view at the south end of the wall, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



A Walk to the Sea





This is the beautiful view that awaited us at the end of the wall!


We passed many fishermen along the wall as well as other hikers.


Hiking on our way south, we also saw loons, brant geese, many large gulls and shorebirds, a rat, fish in the shallows, and people with their dogs enjoying the outdoors.


But there were a few more surprise encounters awaiting us on the way back north.


To see a few of them, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



Late Afternoon Ghost





I absolutely adore ghost crabs, so imagine my delight when we discovered a large one after following the line of his tracks from the wall!


We’ve been lucky to see ghost crabs around the world, and to see how their camouflage matches the different color sands on different sand beaches.


For a video of this fast-moving crab, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



Ghost Crab on the Move!





This ghost crab had had quite enough of our attention, and made his way back to his hole, right next to the wall.


This is the first ghost crab we had seen from the wall!


For a video of an artistic rendering someone left for everyone to enjoy from the wall, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



Wait For It…





This video of someone’s artistic rendering in seashells and stones, complete with a heart, a peace sign, snowman face, and labyrinth, ends with another surprise guest:


Wait for it…….


Yep—another delightful ghost crab! This scene was right in front of the wall.


Finally, for a closeup photo of the wonderful ghost crab in this video, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



Blending Right In





Our last shot from our North Wildwood Seawall hike is a closeup for you of the previous marvelous crab.


We’ve also seen from this seawall trail: ducks, a fox, a muskrat, and a friend of ours who lives near the North Wildwood Wall regularly sees dolphins and sometimes seals on the beach!


And also right off the seawall is the Hereford Inlet Lighthouse with its beautiful gardens.


Our second hike took us inland. For pictures from that hike, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



Hike #2: Cox Hall Creek WMA





The next day we found ourselves taking a 3-mile hike through the Cox Hall Creek Wildlife Management Area in Villas, New Jersey and enjoying some beautiful fall foliage.


Cox Hall Creek WMA is a former golf course, and has 4 miles of wonderful (paved and dirt) winding, interlocking paths, and many ponds along the different trails.


We also saw some of our favorite creatures on this hike!


For more pictures of things we encountered on this hike, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



3 Turtles Sunning





We estimate that we saw at least 17 wild turtles at 4 different ponds we passed on our hike.


We also believe we saw painted turtles as well as a red-bellied turtle and even a young snapping turtle!


For a video of some of the beauty along one of the trails, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



A Beautiful Place





Here’s just one of the ponds by one of the paths. The fall colors were beautiful, and the video and pictures just don’t do them justice. I guess that’s why National Take A Hike Day exists: to encourage us all to get out in nature and see it with our own eyes!


Just before we got to this part of the trail, a fellow hiker overtook us and told us she had just seen a large snake a ways back. We went to look for it, since I grew to appreciate snakes when I got my training in reptiles at the Big Bronx Zoo (and discovered I was not allowed to work with turtles only)!


We didn’t find the snake, but we did discover another creature! To see it, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



Another Praying Mantis!





Imagine my delight when I saw another praying mantis on the path, and yet again we made sure it crossed to safety. Apparently it’s too late in the season to help wild turtles cross the roads: but we can still help praying mantises!


This mantis looked encumbered by a very large abdomen, and we wondered whether it needed to lay an egg case, or ootheca, nearby.


Unlike the mantis we saw the day before, this one was much smaller…and we loved her green eyes and green body!


For a panoramic view of the trail, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



Beautiful Trail





We recently retired from our jobs at the construction office, and are just loving having the time to take hikes again!


We look forward to continuing our work as cantor and organist at Holy Spirit Lutheran Church as well as our work for Turtlesinger, Inc.!


For some final foliage on our 2nd of 3 wonderful wildlife walks, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



Pretty Pond





Believe it or not, there is a small painted turtle (which is nearly impossible to see) sunning on the bank of this pond.


But we loved the fall foliage in this photo, so you’ll just have to trust us when we tell you it’s there, and enjoy the colors.


Before we left Cox Hall Creek Wildlife Management Area that day, we also saw a huge great blue heron at the largest pond there as well as some other large birds.


For photos from our 3rd hike the next day, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



Hike #3: Cape May Point State Park!





The next day took us to the beautiful trails at Cape May Point State Park, where you can find marsh pools ringed with red in the fall.


This day was breezier and cooler, so we didn’t see any turtles.


But to see another incredible creature we did encounter, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



Such a Cool Snake!





We were so disappointed not to see the snake from the trail the day before that I prayed to see a snake at Cape May Point State Park: and we found this one!


This snake literally was cool, and was probably looking for heat on the trail walkway. But we were delighted to be able to video it before it would normally have quickly disappeared in warmer times of the year.


For another pop of color at the park, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



Pop of Red





We saw beautiful shades of red, yellow and orange along the trail.


The trail contains many signs along the way about the different trees growing in the area, as well as all the wildlife sighting possibilities in the park.


Finally, for a video of some more wildlife we saw along the way, SCROLL DOWN…



November 17, 2021



Ducks and Swans!





We saw these ducks and swans at the last great pond along the trail as we neared the Cape May Point lighthouse.


The ocean is right over the sand dunes near this trail. We took most of the blue trail, which is 2 miles long.


We hope you’ve enjoyed taking our 3 hikes with us on National Take A Hike Day, and we hope you can take a hike and enjoy the great outdoors! Thanks as always for reading!





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turtlesinger@hotmail.com | Phone: (609) 205-9248