On Saturday morning (10/15), the Killingworth Land Conservation Trust tried once again to hold its 3rd Cranberry Harvest, having postponed the event from a week earlier due to rain. And while the rain had finally begun to taper off and skies were trying to clear, Mother Nature was again the ultimate victor. Arriving to set up a table and tent as a greeting area, land trust Board members found a bog flooded in the last 24 hours with over a foot of water, covering the cranberries to be harvested by land trust members and Town residents.

As such, there was no practical way to hold the harvest, but that did not stop several intrepid cranberry enthusiasts. Adapting to the conditions, a small handful of people held an abbreviated, but spirited nonetheless, "wet harvest," similar to the larger cranberry farms do in Cape Cod. Rather than pick berries from the vine, a wet harvest requires a flooded field, whereby cranberries can be floated atop the water.

Discussions have already begun for an elaborate 2006 Harvest Celebration, featuring canoe races, scuba diving and large dogs happily running amok. For anyone interested in learning more about the bog, the cranberries, and management of the area to ensure the continued health of this unique natural area, please contact the Land Trust President John Himmelman, or its Bog Committee Chair, David Gumbart.

David Gumbart

For photos, go here (Killingworth Today -

it's worth the stop)