Adirondacks, NY

We made some changes to the itinerary of this trip this year.  The Adirondack Birding Festival was held the previous weekend, and after consulting the festival schedule, we added some new locations to explore.  The weather was also in our favor the entire weekend, although it also proved favorable for the biting blackflies and mosquitoes!

On the first day we drove directly to Bloomingdale Bog where we walked on the rail trail there.  We soon began hearing birds we had expected including Nashville, Palm and Blackburnian warblers, White-throated Sparrow, Veery, and Purple Finch.  We had flying views of a male Harrier (“gray ghost”) and American Bittern.  We were entertained by a small family group of Canada Jays who seemed to fly in as soon as “peanuts” was mentioned, and they did gobble them up as soon as we dropped them.

We then made a couple of stops along Floodwood Pond road where we saw one lone Common Loon (no babies though).  On the way to our hotel in Long Lake we followed up on a report of a member who had attended the festival and had seen a Black-backed Woodpecker at a location near John Dillon Park, so we decided to check that out in case the woodpecker was nesting nearby.  Unfortunately, no luck, but we did stop in at the Park Headquarters and talked with staff members.  It is a totally accessible park managed by Paul Smith’s College; although we did not take time to walk the trails there, we knew it could be a future addition.

On the second day, instead of driving to the Massewepie Mire via Tupper Lake, we started on Sabbatis Circle Road.  We had more warblers here including Black-and-white, Redstart, Parula, Chestnut-sided, Canada, Magnolia, Yellow-rumped, and Black-throated Green.  One of us heard a distant call of Olive-sided Flycatcher, and with concentration, we all eventually heard it, but it stayed too distant to see.  

At the Tupper Lake pull-off we heard Snipe and saw a few Ring-necked Ducks, and at the marsh there most of us saw two Sandhill Cranes.  Then we were off to the Mire.  We had spoken with one of the guides for the birding festival and she offered some tips for birds to expect there, including a nesting loon in one of the ponds we pass to get to the Mire.  Very nice looks were had by all!  She also told us about access to a beautiful bog which is adjacent to the Mire.  A beautiful spot, and looking very similar to Ferd’s Bog, we decided this would be our new “Ferd’s,” saving the long drive to Inlet.  An added bonus was hearing Mourning Warbler nearby.  Massewepie Mire did not disappoint, once again.  On the way in we must have been near an Ovenbird nest because two scolded us as we passed.  We had nice looks at Lincoln’s Sparrow, more Nashvilles, and many Cedar Waxwings.  Two of us tried to make a woodpecker call into a Black-backed, but it turned out to be a Hairy.  We also had nice views of Golden-crowned Kinglets whose crowns, when really agitated, look more “ruby-ish”.  On the way out, one of us also heard a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher.   After our walk, we drove a little further past the entrance to the trail where the guide said she had seen four Black-billed Cuckoos on a festival walk.  We did not see or hear them, but had a very nice look at a Broad-winged Hawk, and a Ruffed Grouse (no Spruce) sand-bathing.  On the way back to Long Lake we stopped again at Tupper Lake marsh to confirm our Sandhill Cranes sighting, and again at Sabbatis where we had a nice bittern fly up, and more Canada Jays.

On our last day we made the obligatory stop at Shaw Pond near Long Lake, but it, having been drained after intense rains two years ago, was no longer a pond.  We did spot some baby ducks far out, but could not locate a parent.  We also had Great-crested Flycatcher, a calling Raven, and a Sapsucker here.  Then we were off to another new location, thanks to the festival brochure - the Railbed wetlands in Minerva - which, perfect for us, was located east.  We were happy to find it and make it an addition to the trip.  The morning was overcast, so not too hot, but we did need our bug nets.  While being serenaded by a Swainson’s Thrush, we had nice looks at Blackburnian, more Cedars, and a very close Virginia Rail. We also saw a Kingbird, Hummingbird, another bittern, and added female Common Merganser (with babies in tow) and our first Great Blue.  

After a stop at Stewart’s shop on Route 28 (99 cent ice cream on Father’s Day!), we made our way to the Northway and our exit for the Fort Edward grasslands.  Along our first stop on Townline Road, one of us had a conversation with passing motorists who asked if we were the “senior citizens birding group” which gave us all a laugh!  At the wetland near the end of Townline we heard Marsh Wren, and had a double flyover of Bittern and Green Heron.  In the large grassland we did not get Grasshopper Sparrow nor Meadowlark, but heard Bobolinks.  We noted that all the fields seemed high, undoubtedly not mowed because of the amount of rain we have experienced this spring - which is great for nesting species!  One of our last stops was lunch and a walk at the Alfred Solomon Grassland Bird Trail, the first time we could walk this trail.  Here we added a Kestrel, Willow Flycatcher, and a flyby Thrasher.  

Once again, this weekend trip was filled with memorable moments for the six of us, and we were pleased with the tweaks we made to the itinerary.  A solid 113 species was our second highest for this trip.  Click on photo below to view complete species list.