The last two mornings have found me deep in the Boreal Forest near the Canadian border. Pine Island State Forest is remote, and has beautiful bogs … my favorite being Toomey Williams Forest Road. This road starts about six miles west of the small town of Big Falls, and for exactly 12 miles follows the path of an old logging railroad deep into the forest bog. For much of the road the combination of bog, small drainage creeks next to the road and dead snags provide a birder’s delight. It was almost exactly one year ago today when I came upon the most amazing bull moose on this road. What I never see on Toomey Williams Road, unless it is grouse hunting season, is other people. Even then I rarely see more than one other person over the course of a few hours.

When Toomey Williams Forest Road ends, I just turn left and follow Pine River Forest Road for another 8 miles. In total my loop from Big Falls is 44 miles long with 20 miles on dirt forest roads. Even the paved portions of my drive rarely have traffic. Over the past two mornings I have seen zero cars or humans during my time in Pine Island State Forest. I am in birding heaven.

For the past two days in has been Hawk Heaven with lots of Broad-Winged and Red Tailed Hawks on Toomey Williams Forest Road.

Red-Tailed Hawk on Toomey-Williams Forest Road

Broad-Winged Hawk on Toomey-Williams Forest Road

The Movie! (video link for email subscribers)

We are coming up on my favorite time of the year to be out in the woods … September and October. The fall colors will be gorgeous with moderate to warm air temperatures and very few bugs. Who could ask for me?! Add migrating birds into the equation and the formula for an enjoyable outing is wunderbar!

Over the weekend I spent time on Toomey Williams Forest Road in Pine Island State Forest (west of Big Falls, Minnesota). This road is one of the most impressive drives through Boreal Forest Bog Habitat in Minnesota. Except during grouse hunting season I have never seen another car on this road … Bull Moose Yes … Cars No! Sax-Zim Bog pales by comparison.

All of my favorite drives / birding outings are documented on the Minnesota Birding Locations page of this blog. Tomorrow I plan to be up on Stony River Forest Road. Here is a map which shows my bog drives.

One of my favorite times this weekend was watching a Red-Tailed Hawk hunt for over 30 minutes shortly after sunrise on Toomey Williams. I am lucky that Pine Island State Forest and Toomey Williams is only an hour from my cabin.

Red-Tailed Hawk Take-Off

A few minutes earlier on a spruce

Over the past 10 days I have spent some time driving my favorite bag roads … remote forest roads through wilderness bogs. My favorite road, bar none, is Toomey Williams Forest Road in Pine Island State Forest west of Big Falls. This road is a narrow (just barely one lane wide) through beautiful forest bog and forest. Sax-Zim Bog is strictly minor leagues when compared against Toomey Williams. However, unlike Sax-Zim, most Pine Island roads are not plowed free of snow in the winter. I have a page which reviews my favorite NE Minnesota birding locations, including Pine Island.

Spruce Grouse (female) and Pine Siskin on Toomey Williams

Closer to home I love an area I affectionally named the South Bog. Just like in Sax-Zim Bog, you will find the occasional farm on slightly higher. I found this Sandhill Crane on a hay bale, which was a new one for me. While I have seen many birds and animals hunting from the tops of hay bales, I had never seen a Sandhill Crane on a huge mound of hay. The crane was calming picking grubs, etc. out of the hay. After about 10 minutes, it moved on to another hay mound and repeated the process. Cool to watch.

Sandhill Crane Enjoying Breakfast on a Hay Bale

Finally, on the way home from the South Bog, I swung by Forest Hill Cemetery. The two ponds are now a food factory … generating bugs that hatch and fly (prey for Cedar Waxwings), and small swimming fish and other yummies (prey for Green Heron)

Green Heron

Cedar Waxwing