Monthly Archives: March 2016

The Beauty of Snowmelt!

March 12, 2016Year 3Northern Lightsrichardhoeg@gmail.com

By tomorrow drizzle and snow will return in northern Minnesota, but for the past 48 hours the weather has been gorgeous. The unseasonable warm weather (60F this afternoon) has done some major damage to our snow cover. With the quick warmup, the Northland has been transformed. Water is screaming down to Lake Superior and setting the waterfalls to roaring. Area lakes have snowmelt ponds and refreeze, which made for neat photographic conditions.

This afternoon Molly and I took a quick 25 mile bike ride to explore some area rivers and waterfalls. Even though we were within 100 yards of Lake Superior and her 36F water, the mild winds meant we biked in shorts and light tops!

Here is some of what we saw over the past 48 hours, starting with a mild Aurora Borealis display two nights ago. I love the reflections and ice. These kinds of conditions are only present for a few weeks per year.
Boulder-Lake-11-Mar-2016-Ice-Meltdown-2

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Some of our waterfalls, including my favorite … the Splitrock shower waterfall. This spigot only turns on for about one week each spring during runoff!

(Splitrock Shower Waterfall … Beaver River … Gooseberry River)
March-Bike-Ride-Splitrock-Shower-Waterfall March-Bike-Ride-Beaver-River-Waterfall March-Bike-Ride-Gooseberry-Falls-Molly-Rich

Bald Eagles Behaving Badly!

March 12, 2016Year 3MN North: St. Louis River, MN North: Western Waterfront Trailrichardhoeg@gmail.com

At least this would have been your opinion this morning if you were one of the Canada Geese or Trumpeter Swans hanging out in the few open water spots at Chambers Grove on the St. Louis River. Some early Spring migrants are making their appearance in the Northland, and the Bald Eagles were hoping to have waterfowl for breakfast! Take a look at the last flight sequence photo for the mature bald eagle, and you will spy two geese paying close attention to Mr. Eagle!

In addition to checking out Chambers Grove, I found a large number of early migrating songbirds along the Western Waterfront Trail (63rd Ave. West). In addition to the mourning doves and red-winged blackbirds pictures, I saw pine siskins, song sparrows, grackles and robins! I hope they all know snow and cold weather will return within 24 to 48 hours. Today’s sunny 60F is an anomaly for Duluth at this time of March, but we all enjoyed it!

Immature Bald Eagle: Dive, Captain, Dive!

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An Adult Bald Eagle Gets in Upon the Act

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Mourning Doves Times 4, Times 3, Times 1!

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A Red-Winged Blackbird Sets its Territory

Norwegian Arctic Birding

March 10, 2016Year 3Norwayrichardhoeg@gmail.com

It goes with out saying one does not travel 225 miles north of the Arctic Circle to Tromos, Norway in late winter, before the Spring migration starts for a good birding experience. Molly and I made this trip to enjoy the gorgeous stark Norwegian coast via Hurtigruten in winter and then to chase the Northern Lights (with some cross-country skiing during the day), but what the heck … when will I next be in Tromso?! Thus, two afternoons ago I grabbed the rent-a-car and spent some time birding. Although my knowledge of where to find birds in the Arctic is extremely limited, given the snow and cold found inland and at elevations, I figured one should stay right next the the coast (i.e. the Gulf Stream). In a little over 90 minutes (my time available) I got good views of:

A white tailed eagle (being chased by a seagull)
Common Eiders (two large flocks)
Mallards (small flock)
Magpies (about ten birds)
A few ravens
Plenty of gulls (I don’t know my gulls … sorry)

Here are a some images from my Arctic birding experience …

Vistas to give you an impression of the beauty of the coast line north of Tromso, Norway. In the latter two photos you can see the flocks of Common Eiders.