Pagami Creek Wildfire / Tomahawk Rd. Winter Birding

Year 2,

Old Man Winter has been kind to us so far this year in northern Minnesota, and when the pre-dawn foretold a mild and sunny day, I decided to drive up near the Canadian border and visit the Pagami Creek Wild Fire region. Given the small amount of snow on the ground so far this winter, I knew that Tomahawk Road would still be driveable. Soon heavy snows will make the road impassable till spring.

My goal was to arrive at the entrance to Tomahawk Road around sunrise for two reasons. First, birds tend to be active at dawn after a cool night as they forage for food; and second, an early arrival would get me past the local logging operations before the HUGE trucks take over the initial miles of Tomahawk. As sunrise in the Ely area was at 7:42 am, I timed my arrival perfectly turning onto Tomahawk at 7:45 am.

There were two bird species I really wanted to see, Spruce Grouse and Black Backed Woodpeckers. Both birds are elusive and rare, and woodpecker would be a lifer for me. Please understand that black backed woodpeckers love large burnt out forest fire areas, and thus there are few areas available that have suitable habitat within a days’ drive of my home. Spruce grouse are also rare, and the best viewing opportunities generally  require one visit the deep wilderness of northeastern Minnesota.

After yesterday’s fantastic birding in Sax-Zim Bog where I volunteer at the Visitor Center and seeing both a Great Gray Owl and Sharp-Tailed Grouse, I should have been happy with a even a fair day of birding today. Well, I had a simply stupendous day of birding! Not only did I see one spruce grouse, but by the time I completed by roundtrip on Tomahawk Road back to Minnesota Route #1 three hours later my tally included well over 30 spruce grouse (unheard of numbers), and a couple of black-backed woodpeckers including one individual who let me watch and photograph / video him from distances often less than ten feet. Life is good … including a new lifer!

Birding Details:

  • Sunrise – 7:42 am
  • Arrival at Tomahawk Road: 7:45 am
  • Spruce Grouse Locations: mile 9.6 (just after Inga Creek) to Isabella Lake BWCA Entry Point parking lot at mile 18.3 … prior to mile 9.6 there are many stands of large pines planted in 1946 which do not seem to host as many birds.
  • Best Spruce Grouse Location: large flock at mile 9.9 (wetlands on NE side of road, small hill on SW side or road … scattered spruce trees.
  • Black-Backed Woodpeckers: near the Isabella Lake BWCA Entry Point parking lot and road … stop and listen for pecking sounds … 75% of the time the woodpeckers were on pine trees already laying upon the ground … make sure you get out of the car and walk \ listen.
  • Departure from Tomahawk Road: 10:30 am
  • Logging Notes: timber operations were only for the first 1/4 mile of Tomahawk Rd … upon arriving there were 5 large filled logging trucks parked but operations had not yet begun for the day
  • Traffic: I saw zero vehicles / people the entire time I was on Tomahawk Road, a period of approximately three hours.
  • Distance from Lester River Bridge in Duluth to the Isabella Lake BWCA Entry Point parking lot on Tomahawk Rd: 93.4 miles (note: it took me 1 & 3/4 hours to reach the turn off Hwy #1 to Tomahawk from Duluth)
  • Cell Phone Connection: Are you kidding?!!

View this project’s Flickr photo stream. (click upon images to view at full size)

Black-Backed Woodpecker Videos

Chowing Down on a Burnt Out Log

Walking Towards Me! Only a few feet away.

Black-Backed Woodpecker: Read & Aim, Fire, Eat!
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Black-Backed Woodpecker
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Spruce Grouse Duo! (female and male)
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Winter Birding at Sax-Zim Bog: Great Gray Owl

Year 2

The Sax-Zim Bog Visitor Center staff and volunteers met today up at the Bog in preparation for another year of winter birding. However, given the temperatures in the 40’s and minimal snow on the ground, it didn’t feel much like winter.

Most of us birded on the way to and from the bog, and the birds definitely were accommodating. Two Great Gray Owls were spotted. The first GGO’s was seen a bit south of Overton Rd on Owl Avenue around 9:30 am, while the second GGO was seen around 3:00 pm on rt 133 just west of hwy #7.

In addition, gray jays and pine grosbeaks are already visiting the feeders at the Visitor Center, and on the way home Frank and I saw many bald eagles, ruffed grouse and sharp-tailed grouse in addition to the GGO.

The Friends of Sax-Zim Bog look forward to having you visit both the Bog and the Visitor Center this winter. We open for the season this Saturday, December 12th at 10:00 am. Here are a couple of my photographs from this afternoon.

Great Gray Owl
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Sharp-Tailed Grouse
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Old Vermilion Trail Ski & Bird

Year 2

I’ve decided to add some groomed ski trails at my Old Vermilion Trail public bird feeders. What could be better now than a grand day in the woods just north of Duluth?!

Actually my deciding to add cross-country ski trails came about by accident this past Wednesday. I knew after Tuesday’s five inch snowfall over the hill, I wanted to try some early season skiing at Boulder Lake. On my way out to the Boulder Lake Trails, I stopped to refill my feeders. Old Vermilion Trail is a dirt road, and on Wednesday morning it had not yet been plowed. Knowing that the Boulder Lake Ski Trails can be rutted with lots of debris in the early season, I decided to ski Old Vermilion. After a delightful ski on the road, I decided to set some tracks on the old logging road which is directly opposite my feeders. For the past five days, while everyone in the Duluth area has been bemoaning the lack of snow, I’ve been having some great skis (classic only, not skate) on my personal trails!

Unfortunately the last few days of temperatures in the 40’s have done a number to my trails, and I am now in need of new snow. However, I plan to keep the ski trail open this year … if only for my own benefit. It was fun to drive the short distance out of Duluth this afternoon, do some birding and then ski for an hour. Please note these are skied in trails, not professional groomers or equipment. In short, cross-country skiing like it used to be. Bring on the Birkie!

Here are some Black-capped chickadee photos from late this afternoon and the garmin data from my ski. As I was setting some new trail this afternoon (lower section on screenshot), it slowed me down a bit. From a birding vantage point I saw the following: black-capped chickadees, red-breasted nuthatches, bluejays, downy woodpeckers, pileated woodpeckers and one ruffed grouse. Nothing exotic … just the normal birds.

At any point this winter, please feel free to email me for current ski trail conditions! You’ll find my email address in the “About Me” section of this blog (see blog header menu).

Finally, my Minnesota Birding News App (IOS and Android) is out of beta and now launched. There is no charge for the app. My thanks to the 25+ folks who helped me test the app, but particularly Dan Tallman whose input and testing was extremely valuable. Try out his blog!

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