October 4, 2006 In reviewing my notes from 2003 I noticed when we visited Foster Park in Kittery, Maine on Sept. 30, it was the Monarch butterfly gathering time and place. Since we were here on the same date we drove back to the park, but since it was a weekend this time they were charging $10 a person to enter. We only had ten minutes, so we left, not wanting to pay $20 for a brief visit with the orange beauties. Then we visited Portsmouth Cemetery with cuzDot. To my surprise there were dozens of monarchs, flying everywhere. Ones we disturbed flew to the top of a pine tree and rested there. We stopped at Wallis Sands beach with a fifteen minute window enroute to meeting Dick and his wife, Loretta. Lo and behold, not only was there great surf on the beach of my childhood, but there were orange and black butterflies! Again they flitted right in front of me, and every step I took disturbed the butterflies. When we returned to the beach there were few of the insects flitting about. Apparently the rest had migrated while we enjoyed our lunch with Dick and Loretta. An occasional one flew by, but the remaining ones could be counted easily. On the path to and rocks at Popham Beach today I counted about twenty Monarchs. What we see now seem to be the dillydalliers! Their migration time is past. I am reminded that the Monarch population was damaged a few years ago by severely cold frosty weather at their wintering place on a Mexico mountain. Dick said this year there seems to be an upsurge of Monarchs after a downcount following the loss. I've watched for Monarchs in my Pennsylvania back yard. Nary a one did I see this summer, and only a few last summer. So I was happy that we had the opportunity to observe their migration through New Hampshire and Maine. Carolyn | 
