MN North: Lake Vermillion | 365 Days of Birds

Sometimes you get lucky in terms birding. Read on …

I am with my entire family on the very remote NW side of Lake Vermilion … all my kids, their spouses and my 7 grandchildren. Thus, Grampa / Dad is limited in terms of birding opportunities. We have an entire small great resort to ourselves for seven days! We are staying at Vintage Vermilion

While sitting on the dock yesterday morning I heard a Merlin crying out very near to us. I told everyone that the call was from a Boreal Forest falcon. Both my daughter and oldest son chimed in that they had heard the bird throughout the previous night. They are in two different cabins with their respective families.

Anyhow I grab my binoculars, my Bluetooth speaker and play a couple of Merlin calls. Oh my, it was like a dam burst. Within seconds Momma Merlin screamed back at me. A couple of minutes later I located their nest in a tall white pine.

Sometimes you get lucky! Happy 4th everyone!

Boreal Forest Merlin

Our Local Common Loons

I love to bicycle, and I also love to photograph birds. This past week I co-led a bike tour through the BWCA (boundary waters canoe area) of northern Minnesota, and the north shore of Lake Superior. My boyhood friend, Jim, runs a bike touring company … Bike Tour Vacations, and I often work as his second in command tour guide.

While the combination of cycling and birding is fun, leading a tour is a bit difficult when combined with birding and photography. I often cannot afford to stop and take the time to capture the desired photos. However, if one uses one “bird smarts”, the results are fun!