Day 151: A Merganser Mom and her Chicks (photos)

June 23, 2014Year 1MN North: Mouth of the Lester Riverrichardhoeg@gmail.com

Shortly after dawn I walked down to the mouth of the Lester River on Lake Superior. After yesterday’s hectic activities for Grandma’s Marathon, Lester River once again was enjoying peace and solitude. I found this Common Merganser and her two chicks having breakfast while swimming through the morning fog.

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

The Lester River Bridge often gives me the opportunity to shoot photographs of unsuspecting birds from directly above, including this Common Merganser family.

Days 149 and 150: Some fun photos

June 23, 2014Year 1MN North: Amityrichardhoeg@gmail.com

After our visit to Crisp Point, life has been hectic as we prepare for lots of family overnight guests in preparation for Grandma’s Marathon and two cyclists who are each touring across North America in different directions (see WarmShowers.Org). Thus my time for birding and photography has been extremely limited!

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

Day 149: Find the Bird (morning outside our living room window)

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Day 150: An eagle! (attending a wedding reception)

Days 142 to 148: The Birds of Crisp Point Lighthouse and the U.P.

June 23, 2014Year 1Michigan: Crisp Point Lighthouserichardhoeg@gmail.com

Kind of like the bridges of Madison County … with an feathered twist!

Crisp Point Lighthouse is a beacon which keeps watch on a point just a few miles shy of Whitefish Bay on the eastern end of Lake Superior. Recently, my wife Molly and I served as volunteer lighthouse keepers for just under a week. A 20 mile ride along narrow dirt roads is required to reach this remote stretch of beach on Michigan’s Upper Peninsula Lake Superior coastline. Once one arrives, the lodging accommodations are your own tent. There is not a lighthouse keepers residence. However, for Molly and me the opportunity to camp over 38 miles from the smallest town is considered a “cushy and plum” assignment! During our stay at Crisp Point Lighthouse, our only neighbors were seagulls, eagles, and timber wolves.

Here are a few photographs from our stay as lighthouse keepers. Birding was actually a bit of a challenge as the sandy soil and cold harsh climate does not generate lots of food for birds. In addition, this stretch of Lake Superior coastline does not have many streams and rivers … another limiting factor. (learn more about lighthouse keeping at Crisp Point)