Tag Archives: MN North: Brighton Beach

Brighton Beach Drive … It’s Back!

Year 11

Duluth’s Brighton Beach Park has been under reconstruction for 3 years. Lake Superior storms had done severe damage, and Gitchi Gummi was close to making the park its own. As of today, the drive through the park after a 3 year hiatus is back! We locals who live nearby have been able to hike through the park during most of the rebuilding effort. The park is located on Duluth’s northeastern edge just before the start of the Two Harbors Expressway and Scenic 61 within walking distance of the mouth of the Lester River.

The park has always been a good birding walk particularly during the fall migration. Brighton Beach Drive was always a favorite detour for my wife and I when driving home, but 3 years this option has not been available. However, as of today, October 28, 2024, the drive is back. Please note the road is now only one way (smart decision) in a northeasterly direction.

Here is a short video of Brighton Beach Drive (link for email subscribers) which I took on my cell phone this morning (reopening day)! The pine groves seen to the left side of the road are where I was hiking/exploring for migrating owls a few days ago (daytime migration perches). A round trip walk from my house through Brighton Beach Park is 2.5 miles.

Screen Capture from my Video (video link for email subscribers)

Could not Find Owls!

Year 11

I was actually out hiking and looking for migrating owls this morning in the pines at Brighton Beach on Lake Superior, but I became distracted. I also looked for Poppa Great Horned Owl which was hooting in the pre-dawn darkness as I left this morning.

Photo of the steam engine #332 taken very near Brighton Beach! I believe it will also be chugging along the North Shore tomorrow morning … leaving The Depot in downtown Duluth at 10:30 am.

Frozen Snow Birds!

Year 6,

Another snowstorm is starting in the Northland. The forecast has us getting blasted with 4 to 8 inches of snow, but more importantly 30+ mph winds off Lake Superior. Earlier this morning my youngest son, Erik, drove me over to Sax-Zim Bog. I thought it would be perfect weather for finding owls … dark, overcast and zippo winds. The owls thought otherwise. However after this storm ends in two days the birds WILL be hungry.

Upon getting home I had a new device to try in my fight against Blepharospasm, prescription swim googles. I did not go swimming, but took a short hike which is something my eyesight has prevented me from safely doing. While I only hiked for 1.5 miles, the goggles created a moisture chamber which allowed me average vision (good vision in my book). The birds rewarded my hike, both down near Brighton Beach and once I returned home.

Pileated Woodpecker as the snow just is getting started. From a photography vantage point you are looking at my top three images … out of 91 that I took in a little over one minute. If you do not use burst mode on a camera these photographs should be a vote in favor of that mode. While I had tons of blurry photographs, I had some nice pics which were in focus with a low ISO (high quality). In addition, the slow shutter speeds (1/15th of a second) allowed me to show the snow as streaming by the bird. In sunny conditions I might have a shutter speed of 1/1000th of a second to freeze action.

Mallards on Ice! All the water except Lake Superior have been frozen for over a month. Every winter hundreds of mallards jam into a small area every night where a stream provides some open water as it comes out from under a highway right next to the big lake (warmed by being underground). Our local raptors tend to learn about this duck bonanza as the winter progresses.