Category Archives: Year 7

Migration! Finally!

Year 7, , ,

Okay … there have been early migrants for the past month, but things really kicked in over the past few days with a combination of a wind out of the south and some very needed rain. Thus, at 5:50 am I was out the door … wearing shorts (47F) … and looking forward for a great morning of birding. Nature did not disappoint.

My first stop was to visit my owls. As they were hiding, and the crows were silent, I decided I would find my friends later in the day and thus headed for Lake Superior and the St. Louis River. While hiking Mud Lake I hit pay dirt. For years I have listened to Sora, but never been able to get much of a view. These birds hide out in deep marsh rushes. Finally, this morning an individual was a bit out in the open.

My first Sora photograph!

Mud Lake continued to be a great birding spot. At one point I almost stepped upon an American Bittern. I’m not sure who was more surprised, me or the bird. In addition I saw a nice flight of Yellow Warblers fly through the area.

After Mud Lake I drove over to the Western Waterfront Trail for a hike along the river. Right away I heard my first Baltimore Oriole of the year, and when I returned later (round trip hike) I was able to find the oriole out in the open and amenable to having its photo taken.

Baltimore Oriole Video (link for email subscribers)

While I rarely take photos of Canada Geese, these Goslings were only a day or two old … quite cute.

Finally, I promised some images from my last visit with the Great Horned Owl family (Wednesday morning). Now that I am home from the cabin, and have a high speed web connection … voila.

Oh wait … before the owl pics, I also had another lifer yesterday afternoon at the cabin. A migrating Foster’s Tern stopped upon a nearby buoy.

Great Horned Owl Family

At sunrise … final image … everyone is asleep and ignoring me!

Mid Morning Wake-Up

Mid Morning Grooming

Even with four birding stops, I was home by 9:30 this morning. It helps when one leaves before 6 am!

Wilderness Lake Sunset

Year 7

The sunset over Northstar Lake last night put the Covid-19 pandemic in perspective. Nature is endless and beautiful. When the loons started their eerie call while Molly and I huddled next to the fireplace, I looked outside and saw the beautiful glow of the sky post sundown. I walked down to the dock and recorded this peaceful scene. (video link for email subscribers)

We had driven over to Northstar Lake to set our cabin’s water system and put the boat in the water. Ice out was only two weeks ago. My job of getting running water meant repeated trips into the frigid waters. The lake temperature is in the high 30’s and we pump water out of the lake. Thus, I spent some refreshing time in Northstar’s clear, clean water. This same water will eventually make its way to Hudson Bay. Our small creek at the north end of the lake is the first lake in the Hudson Bay watershed. Our small Northwoods cabin only source of heat is the fireplace and wood stove.

The water system was ornery and some minor parts broke forcing me to make repairs. However, given the pandemic it was nice to work on something as basic as a water system. The problems took enough time that I was forced me to give up for the night and head inside. Oh well, a fire I had made was roaring in the fireplace. Molly had been keeping it well fed with logs. The morning found me making my final repairs and voila … water. The next chore was to make kindling. I walked over to the chopping block, grabbed logs, and split the wood down into kindling. Given the cold temperatures, we have need a constant fire and running out of kindling would not be a good.

The final chore of the morning was to put our boat in the water. When I first arrived at the boat launch I quickly noticed a flock of nine migrating pelicans. After finishing boat details, I grabbed my camera. Even though the weather had deteriorated to a cold wet, slushy day (40F) with a very stiff wind, I took the boat in search of the pelicans. I saw the birds in a narrows, but one more problem arose on my birding expedition. To enter “The Narrows” and boat down to the southern part of Northstar Lake, there was one problem. While entering “The Narrows” there is only a ten yard gap of deep water between supports of an old logging railroad bridge trestle. Normally that presents no problem as there are markers present to let boaters know where the underwater hazards are located, but winter’s ice had sheared off the markers that located the two wooden bridge supports. However, I was confident I could navigate this hazard … albeit very slowly. I inched my way into “The Narrows” and thankfully I avoided running my boat up onto the trestle. Given there was not another boat on the lake (not many neighbors), it would have been a cold wait for help if I had failed in my navigation.

With my successful trip through “The Narrows” completed, I slowly positioned my boat upwind from the flock of pelicans. The rain, sleet and wind pelted against me as the boat floated towards the birds. I knew large birds like pelicans, similar to airplanes, had to take off into the wind. These images resulted. Moral of the story … not all birding trips are in perfect weather, but all birding trips are perfect! (there is a Common Loon in the background of the first photograph!)

I am back inside warming up. The fire needs more wood … thus it’s time to head back out to the wood pile. Owl pictures from sunrise yesterday morning are coming soon, but my data connection via my cell phone here at Northstar Lake is slow. Actually its only within the past year I even have had a cell connection from the cabin. In the past I had to boat out into the middle of the lake in the hopes of getting a poor cell connection. Stay warm, safe, sane and healthy during this Pandemic! Life here on Northstar Lake is good.

Blue Bill Birding Photobomb!

Year 7, ,

Here I am … a hard working photographer out at sunrise, and some “reject” insists on photo bombing my work!

Greater Scaup / Blue Bill … with some unknown joker in the foreground.

This was actually my third birding stop of the morning. I left the house at 5:40 am for the short hike to my “owling grounds”. Sunrise here in Northeastern Minnesota was 5:37 am this morning. If a person wants to see other than sleeping owls, you need to be out with the sun. By the time I arrived at the nesting area (5:50 am), the sun was just starting the kiss the tops of the taller white pines. Today I will feature Ma and Pa Great Horned Owl. For the next twenty minutes after I arrived this duo put on a great display for me. Actually, they actively attacked and defended their owlets against the sunrise crow attack. However, by 6:20 everything had settled down … the crows had departed and owls were starting to snooze.

Given how deep the parents perch within white pines, I can only surmise that the youngsters don’t have the same “warming effect” yet from their feathers. At sunrsie the triplets (yes … in fact all three owl chicks survived!) are always out in the open to catch the warming rays of the sun. It was 39F at sunrise this morning. The owlets don’t tend to perch in deeper cover till much later in the morning. Obviously this makes them easy targets for crows which is why the parents are always on the lookout.

Ma Great Horned Owl (truly the first golden light of the morning)

Pa Great Horned Owl

Ma and Pa in a White Pine (click upon to view full sized … both parent owls are present … this pair is very difficult to find once they embed themselves in deep cover … move one foot in either direction and the parents disappear from view)

One of the Owlets (much later in the morning)

Finally I hiked the five ponds at the Lester Golf Course. I keep hoping to see some warblers, but new arriving migrants were few and far between … just the tree swallows pairing up to raise some new families.