Tag Archives: MN North: Amity

Sunday Night at the Movies … Minnesota Style

Year 10, ,

How many of you remember the days before one could even rent VCR tapes? In my youth during the early 1960’s this meant gathering around the TV as a family to watch “Sunday Night at the Movies”! Everyone hoped the two networks (CBS and NBC) had picked a film the entire family would love. Here in Duluth we had only two TV stations (ABC was still somewhere off in the future). Heck, our city at the time did not even have a McDonalds.

Thus, I bring you 365 Days of Birds at the Movies … on Sunday night (at least that is when I am blogging). (Image courtesy of FreePik.com)

Here is a short YouTube clip of the NBC Sunday Night Marquee Opener from the early 1970’s (video link for email subscribers).

Here are my movies, which started with an unexpected session the North Shore Duluth Scenic Railroad’s Steam Engine! I was hiking / birding in the woods near my home yesterday afternoon when I thought: “Is that a steam engine whistle?” Yup! The North Shore Scenic Railroad was out testing #332. The train was over three miles away from me when I first heard it. I upped my hiking pace … hurried home … and went to find a steam engine one mile away from my house!

And Now the Movies! (all videos taken during the last seven days)

North Shore Scenic Railroad Steam Engine #332 (video link for email subscribers)

Ring-Necked Pheasant near Sax-Zim Bog (video link for email subscribers)

Steam at Sunrise over Lake Superior (video link for email subscribers)

Boreal Forest Bog Tour

Year 10, ,

As noted with yesterday’s post about Surf City USA on Lake Superior, the weather up here in the Northland has been horrible. During these super poor birding conditions, I often go exploring. Sometimes I find my explorations have really bad potential (like yesterday NW of Sax-Zim Bog), but occasionally I find routes where the habitat looks grand even if I don’t see many birds. Two days ago I explored over toward Aitkin and a Boreal Forest Bog Area which Kim Eckert describes in his Birder’s Guide to Minnesota. Before Sax-Zim Bog became famous, this was where folks went in search of Great Gray Owls … County 18 and Pietz’s Road. Obviously I had to first get over to the area, and my mapped route travels along Boreal Forest Bog (County Rd #8) and the Mississippi River  (Great River Road / Hwy 10). In better conditions, I suspect this could be a very good bird outing. One could shorten the drive from the Duluth area a bit by taking US #2, but I have never seen much along the stretch from Hwy 53 to Floodwood. Regardless, here is my map.

I have seen a few birds over the past week, but the pickings have been poor.

Wet Birds (Red-Bellied Woodpecker, Ruffed Grouse, Bald Eagle, Spruce Grouse)

25,294 Robbins and Mary Poppins Can’t Be Wrong!

Year 10

Mary Poppins tells the Banks children she will stay until the wind changes. American Robbins (and almost all birds) understand this fact, and during the southern migration pay attention to this rule. For over 7 days here in northern Minnesota we had very strong winds from southerly directions. However on Saturday the winds changes and blew with a strong velocity out of the Northwest. In a little under five hours at Stoney Point, Neil Gilbert reported 25,294 Robins on the move … migrating south along the lakeshore.

There is a buoy out on Lake Superior not too far from Stoney Point. Here are two screenshots of the conditions … first as reported Wednesday, and then on Saturday. Note how the wind which had been very strong in the face of the southward migration switched with a vengeance.

I was out hiking the forest near my home on Saturday afternoon. The number of birds, particularly Robins was amazing. If one knew where the Mountain Ash trees and their berries were located in the woods, it was easy to find hundreds of birds gorging themselves.

Pay attention to the wind direction and speed during migrations. You will have better birding experiences.