All posts by richardhoeg@gmail.com

Northwoods Birding Notes

Year 11

It is time for some “Northwoods Birding Notes”. Many of these notes apply for anyone who travels the Northland’s roads.

  1. Winter Emergency Kit: When the unexpected happens, it is unexpected. Be prepared! My parents always required me to carry emergency supplies in the car. Although my parents are no longer around to enforce this rule, I still listen to them. My kit has very warm clothes, a blanket, a car towing cable, and a battery charger plus jumper cables. On my person I carry an extra set of car keys (even folks with AutoStart / Push-button tell me this is a good idea). Remember, the temperature in northern Minnesota will drop well below zero. These items can be life saving.
  2. Keep your car or truck’s gas tank above 1/2 full
  3. Dress warmly even in the car: When birding in the winter, I often cruise slowly with the windows down. If your car gets to warm given your heavy clothes, just turn the heat down! When outside, wool socks and long underwear are your friends!

Now some actual bird notes …

  1. I saw my first Pine Grosbeaks of the winter season yesterday morning at the Greenwood Bird Feeders! It was only three birds. There are huge flocks of Redpolls, but not at the feeders.
  2. Crossbills are everywhere this winter. I am seeing a much larger number of white-winged rather than red. Once again, the crossbills are not visiting feeders.
  3. Great Gray Owl numbers appear to be very good. In the last week I have seen six unique Great Gray Owls, and only one was located in Sax-Zim Bog. In addition, the Sax-Zim owl was no where near the popular Bog roads. Another neat feature is my owl sightings have been scattered across NE Minnesota
  4. I saw a Snowy Owl last Sunday … in November! Given how horrible last year was for Snowy Owls, I am hopeful for this winter’s birding season.
  5. Super Cool … let me repeat … Super Cool!!! The Friends of Sax-Zim Bog’s Welcome Center now have a live bird feeder cam! (daily hours). I will be volunteering all day at the Welcome Center on Friday the 13th of December. Stop by to say hello. I will make the 13th your lucky day!
    • Sax-Zim Bog Bird Feeder Cam (cam link for email subscribers)

And a few pics …

Playing Peek-a-Boo with the Sax-Zim Bog Great Gray Owl

White-Winged Crossbills enjoying some pine cones near my home … female and male.

Owl Time … a ThreeFer!

Year 11,

After what had been a cold snap for finding owls, the last three days have been fantastic … an owl a day for a ThreeFer! Yesterday I found a second Great Gray Owl … once again north of Duluth no where near Sax-Zim Bog.

Today shows how stupid birders can be when a rare bird appears. Last year, essentially no Snowy Owls were seen in the Duluth Superior area. A normal year has several Snowy Owls spending their time on the Arctic Riviera (Duluth!). Regardless, when I returned home from church and I heard a Snowy Owl had been spotted at the Superior Entry to the harbor, I immediately started Snowy Search ‘2024!

Why do I call myself stupid? I immediately saw the Snowy Owl upon reaching the Superior Entry. However Lake Superior was getting nasty as a winter storm bore down on the area. Spending time outside to watch a white bird hundreds of yards distant in 30F, damp weather with 30 mph winds blowing in off the big lake might not be considered fun, let alone intelligent.

Flight Time Snowy

Just Hanging

Oh well … Snowy Owl sitting across the channel on the Minnesota breakwater. My ThreeFer! As a fyi, I was using my Canon SX-70 for these pics … Super Zoom Camera … 130x magnification. I am a loooonnng ways away from this bird.

Magical Ice Bog Morning: Owl Time!

Year 11

Yesterday was one of those mornings that soothes the soul! My time in the deep woods provided me the inspiration that keeps me returning to the Boreal wilderness, even when some days are not as successful or filled with beauty. The morning started similar to the day before … sunny skies down by Lake Superior, and precipitation 35 miles inland. However yesterday morning it was a few degrees cooler than the prior, and rather than cold, blustery rain there was light, fluffy snow!!!

From earlier in the week I knew my forest road / trail already had a few trees down across same. However the strong winds of the prior day (60 mph wind gusts) felled even more trees. US Forest Service Road (#813) between my feeders and the Boreal Bog (about one mile) now had 10+ trees down across the narrow dirt road. Thankfully my plan all along was to hike into the Bog.

Enjoy cell phone pics of my hike to the Bog, and my “owl time” upon reaching the frozen wonderland! Great Gray Owl time! The owl spent over 35 minutes with me. It disappeared into the deep forest when the sun started to come out.

First the hike … (Ice Bog Snow Flurry video link for email subscribers)

A few still images from the hike into the frozen bog (cell phone pics)

As a fyi … the firearms deer hunting season ends this weekend. However, I know there was not a single hunter within miles and miles of me, but I still always wear Blaze Orange or Red during the hunting season. Finally, remember white-tailed deer hate bogs. Thus, I am extremely unlikely to meet up with hunters. In fact, I have never ever seen a deer or deer tracks in this area. Any deer hunter who knows anything about the wildlife would never hunt this area.

Great Gray Owl Ice Bog Time (video link for email subscribers)

Perch #1

Changing Locations

Perch #2

Yup … a good morning … made better by the hike!