A Trip to the Bog

Last Monday, Martin Luther King Day, Art and I took a break from mudding sheetrock seams and drove up the the Sax Zim bog area for some birding.

Maybe I should clarify: Art did all of the mudding. Art also did all of the driving. Driving and slowing down and stopping so I could look for birds. I called him "my faithful driver Kato."

Art is the BEST. He isn't a birder but will patiently drive through a heavy snowfall on unplowed back roads for hours so I can look for birds.

Back to the story.

Hasty Brook is only about 30 miles from the bog. The weather really was pretty crummy- very overcast and snowing. Art had the truck in four wheel drive on most of the back roads and was able to pull a fellow and his little sedan out of a ditch.

Moving along slowly I spotted a movement off in the distance. Can you see it in the photo above?

A magnificent Great Gray Owl. His head moved back and forth, scanning for a meal. Art stopped the truck (and took out a book) while I grinned, watching the owl in the distance. He lifted off and glided to a tree closer to us. It was a perfect view.

The photo above is far from perfect but I was so thrilled to catch the owl take flight. It flew across the road in front of us and landed in a field on the other side.

We never approached the owl, but when it flew closer to the truck , I felt we were disturbing its hunt so we slowly drove away.

Moving along down the snowy roads I spotted a familiar silhouette T'd up high in a black spruce. It was this Northern Hawk Owl. Again, this bird was quite a way off and my photos are not very sharp, but they they're good enough for me!

As we watched the Northern Hawk Owl left his perch, flew to the ground and snatched up a meal. It flew back up to a snowy branch and ate its meal.

Boreal Chickadee

There are a few feeding stations in the bog that are maintained by local residents. As we pulled up to one of them and stopped the truck, I immediately heard the raspy, hoarse version of "chickadee-dee-dee" sung by a Boreal Chickadee. I had really hoped to find one. I've only seen two of them in the bog before. There was no one else to be seen on that road so Art turned the truck off right in the middle of the road and I rolled the window down. There were many Black-capped Chickadees and Pine Grosbeaks. I could hear a Boreal Chickadee out both truck windows- there were two of them! I tried my best to get them both in view at once but couldn't.

I love this picture of a Black-capped Chickadee tapping at a seed held in its toes, surrounded by lichen and snow-covered branches.

It was such a wonderful day. With the poor weather, I never expected to see so many wonderful winter visitors to the bog. It is such a special place. I've visited several times and the bog never fails to show and teach me something wonderful.

This year, for the first time, I am unable to attend the Sax Zim Bog Festival of Birds. Registration closes on January 31, so there is still time to sign up. I've always had a great time at the festival so if you're looking for a community based festival with experienced guides, fabulous local food, and of course the special birds of the far north, you really should go.