After relaxing for a little bit with our generous hosts we had trout stuffed with crabmeat. Before leaving Massachusetts we imagined that we would be sleeping in a small fishing cabin in our sleeping bags on the floor. When we arrived we were treated like royalty with everything from delicious food and drink to the comfortable sleeping arrangements, to the view of lake. We set our plans for the next day and went to bed early in preparation for a long day of birding.
We packed our bags full of water, granola bars, bug spray, and bird books and set out for Baxter State Park at first light. After leaving the cabin and driving down the dirt road we quickly realized we were not going to make it to the park at 7:00 a.m. as we had hoped. Getting to the park late, the park rangers took down all of our pertinent information and let us journey through the park. On our way to the parking lot luck was on our side as a Ruffed Grouse went scampering across the road in front of us. Was it to be a sign for a successful day ahead?
As we got out of the car and began to scope out the area we could see American Robins, Downy Woodpeckers, and Cedar Waxwings fly-catching on a tree. Then Mike heared "che-BEK" and immediately started walking towards a big oak tree. Mike already knew what the bird was, and also knew that he had never seen one before (and, as it turns out, I've never seen one before) – a Least Flycatcher. With its distinctive call, eye-ring, and nervous tail flick it can be easily distinguished from similar flycatchers. After a few minutes Mike still couldn't find the bird. And after a few more minutes we moved on. We moved to some more birds calling on the other side of the camp area. After finding a few birds the "che-BEK" was still calling to us. We gave it one more try. After increasing frustration at not being able to find the bird through the leaves I finally spotted it through a tiny hole between some branches. I called everyone over to find it. The hunt for the Least Flycatcher was over.
We gathered up our things and followed the trail north towards Katahdin. We heard Black-Throated Green Warblers everywhere and an elusive Winter Wren, which could be heard, but not seen. The first gem of the park came next – the Bay-Breasted Warbler, an uncommon warbler whose chestnut throat makes it unique to other warblers. After that the warblers kept coming: the Black-Throated Blue Warbler, Common Yellow-Rumped Warbler, and Common Yellowthroat all made an appearance. After a couple hours up the trail we were finding lots of birds, just not the one we came for. We took a little break to re-fuel and then head back town to hopefully find the Cape May.
On our way down it was unusually quite until we heard a "tee tee tee" in the distance. Was it the Cape May? We quickly tried to find the bird, but it was quickly apparent it was deeper into the woods. Venturing further in we could see flashes of a bird, but nothing clear. After a while we weren't sure if it had flown away or was just being quiet. Then, the bird flew. Mike and Ed saw it, or at least kind of saw it. From their quick glance they came to the conclusion it was not a Cape May, but a similar sounding bird - a Golden-Crowned Kinglet. We moved on.
Farther down we heard the same Swainson's Thrush that we had heard earlier going up the trail. We had given up the first time, but this time we were devoted to finding it. After a long while we found the bird. Back and forth along the trail the bird would keep flying, hidden among the leaves on the trees. It finally stopped on a bare branch for all of us to see. For many of us it was our first sighting for this species.
After nearly seeing what we thought was a Cape May and find the Swainson's Thrush we gathered up lunch at a shaded picnic table and replenished our strength for the afternoon. We talked and watched a brazen little chipmunk gather food around the picnic table. After lunch we set our sights on a less elevated trail in hopes of more birds. Our hopes of seeing the Cape May were depleted, but not extinguished.
We were to be thwarted again. The afternoon trail would be sunnier and hotter, and the deer flies began to find us, unlike the morning hike. After crossing a few bridges over rivers and bogs and stopping by a lake that over-looked the mountains the afternoon was pretty much a bust. No new birds – and by the end we were tired and exhausted from all the hiking and heat. The day was done. Even though we were unable to find the bird of the day we still felt it had been a good day. We had seen a Least Flycatcher, Swainson's Thrush, and a Bay-Breasted Warbler.
We headed home for the day and had a relaxing dinner. After dinner Mike collapsed on his bed for a short nap, which ended up being for the rest of the night. Cathy, Ed, and I were not satisfied with the day – we wanted more. So, we decided to go owling. The three of us grabbed flashlights and set out for the night. Unfortunately, as we learned later, it is easier to find owls when you phish (phising is the act of luring a bird out with sound such a bird recording or bird call) them out. We didn't know this and were unable to see or hear any owls. Instead? We decided to walk down to a nearby pond and look for peepers who were making a lot of racket. Once we were satisfied with the frogs we had found we headed in for the night hoping to find some more birds the next day.
No comments:
Post a Comment