Field Trips
February 15-17, 2013
*All field trips include a box lunch of 6-inch sub sandwich, chips, sweet snack and bottled water.
Friday, February 15th Field Trips
Pre – Festival Field Trip to Lake County
Meet field trip leaders in Duluth at the Miller Hill Mall Perkins Restaurant at 6:00am. 15 passenger vans will depart at 6:30am. Field trip ends at the Miller Hill Mall Perkins Restaurant at 2:00 p.m.
This is great field trip for those who are arriving early for the festival and want to do some serious birding before registering for the festival in the town of Meadowlands. This field trip will focus on some great winter specialties like Spruce Grouse that can be found gritting on dirt along the road ways. Also many other winter birds such as Red Crossbills, White-winged Crossbills, Boreal Chickadee, Black-backed Woodpecker and Three-toed Woodpecker, Hoary and Common Redpolls, Pine Grosbeak, Evening Grosbeak, Gray Jay, Northern Shrike. Keep an eye out for the elusive Great Gray Owl that can be found in this area, hunting along the roadside for small rodents. A Boreal Owl might be found on this field trip as this is a irruptive season for this rare little owl of the Boreal Forest. Another possibility is the Northern Hawk Owl that has been observed many times during the winter months hunting for food in the open areas such as logged out areas or along the roadsides. Besides birds there are mammals in this area that could be found on this field trip, such as Moose, Timber Wolf, Lynx, Bobcat, Pine Marten or a Fisher. Overall this is a great field trip to experience.
Pre – Festival Field Trip to Duluth & Surrounding Area
Meet field trip leaders in Duluth at the 40th Avenue West Perkins Restaurant at 6:30 a.m. 15 passenger vans will depart at 7:00 a.m. Field trip ends in Duluth at the 40th Avenue West Perkins Restaurant at 2:00 p.m.
This is another pre-festival field trip option for people who are arriving early before the festival begins and want to do some birding right away! We will depart the parking lot and head right over to the hunting grounds of the Snowy Owls in the Duluth and Superior, WI. Last year there was a huge influx of Snowy Owls and with any luck hopefully there will be several Snowy Owls to be observed this winter. Normally Duluth – Superior has about 5-6 Snowy Owls that spend the winter months in the port areas. After searching for these Owls there are many paths to take because it all depends on what birds we could chase. During the winter months Duluth can attract such birds as Townsend Solitaires, Varied Thrushes, Barrow’s Goldeneye and even a Gyrfalcon or some odd gull like a Glaucous-winged Gull from the west coast that showed up last year. Also this is irruptive season for the Boreal Owl and if there is a known area to locate this small rare owl of the Northwoods we will definitely head over there. We will spend some time observing gulls in Duluth at Canal Park. We will chum the gulls in towards us using day old bread and observe some great gull species like Thayer’s Gull, Glaucous Gull,Iceland Gull and possibly a Great Black-backed Gull.
Great Gray Owl Dusk Search
• Board the school buses at 4:00 p.m. at the Meadowlands Community Center.
• Leave parking lot by 4:00 p.m.
• Back at the Meadowlands Community Center at 6:00 p.m.
We will meet at the Meadowlands Community Center at 4:00 p.m, leaving by 4:30 p.m. We will return at 6:00 p.m. This trip is just look for any Great Gray Owls along the roadsides during the dusk hours. Great Gray Owls in non-irruption years are normally most active during the dawn and dusk. Sometimes on dark cloudy days you can spot a Great Gray Owl during daytime hours. We will concentrate on those roads that in the past have favored Great Gray Owls.
Saturday, February 16th Field Trips
Sax-Zim Bog
• Board the bus at 6:30 a.m. at the Meadowlands Community Center.
• Leave parking lot by 7:00 a.m.
• Trip ends at Meadowlands Community Center at 3:30 p.m.
The Sax Zim Bog is on most birders’ list of places to go to see northern birds. On this trip, the leaders will take you on several back roads in search of northern birds and Minnesota specialties. We will bird in the early morning hours to look for Great Gray Owls hunting along the roadside for voles and mice. We’ll also stop at local feeding stations for Pine Grosbeaks, Evening Grosbeaks, Common Redpolls, Pine Siskins, Purple Finches, and possibly Gray Jays, Boreal Chickadee or a Hoary Redpoll. We’ll also stop at a few known spots to look for Black-backed Woodpeckers and Three-toed Woodpeckers working the trunks of tamarack and black spruce trees. If there are any stake-out locations for Northern Hawk Owls or Snowy Owls, the trip will visit these location as well. Other birds such as White-winged Crossbill, Red Crossbill, Black-billed Magpie, Northern Shrike, and Snow Bunting are all good possibilities to see on this trip.
There will a portable bathrooms at one of the feeding stations and along the Zim Road on the north end of “bog”.
Duluth
• Board the bus at 6:00 a.m. at the Meadowlands Community Center.
• Leave parking lot by 6:30 a.m.
• Pick up participants at the Perkins Restaurant at the Miller Hill Mall in Duluth at 7:15 a.m.
• Back at the Perkins Restaurant at 3:00 p.m. and back at the Meadowlands Community Center by 3:45 p.m.
This trip heads right to Duluth to look for Snowy Owls at the International Airport and down in the harbor areas. We will also visit the landfill outside of Superior Wisconsin to look for Thayer’s Gull, Iceland Gull, Glaucous Gull, and possibly find a Great Black-backed Gull or a Lesser Black-backed Gull. Last year, a Slaty-backed Gull was seen several times at the landfill. We will head back to Duluth search the harbors in the event a Gyrfalcon is spending the winter near the grain elevators. If there are any stake-out Varied Thrushes or Townsend Solitaires in the Duluth area we will make sure to stop to find these casual western visitors. We’ll stop at the Canal Park area to see if any gulls are loafing on the break walls and scan through all the Common Goldeneyes for anything different such as a Long-tailed Duck, scoter species, or possibly a Harlequin Duck. We’ll stop at a feeder outside of Duluth to look for northern finches.
If you are lodging in Duluth and would rather not drive to Meadowlands to board the bus for this trip, note that the bus will stop at the Miller Hill Mall Perkins Restaurant parking lot to pick birders at 7:15 a.m., and returning there at 3:00 p.m. Please park your car in the mall parking lot and walk over to the restaurant. Directions to Perkins Restaurant if you are lodging along I-35, London Road, or in the Canal Park area in Duluth: Take I-35 to 21st Avenue West and exit on 21st Avenue West/U.S. Highway 53. Go north through 3 stoplights. When you come to the 4th stoplight (near the Home Depot) take a left turn toward the Miller Hill Mall and look to your right and you will see Perkins Restaurant. If you are lodging up near the Miller Hill Mall area (along U.S. Highway 53) you can walk to Perkins and leave your car at the hotel.
Larry Weber’s Nature Hike
- Meet at the Meadowlands Community Center at 7:30 a.m.
- Nature hike will depart at 8:00 a.m.
- Nature Hike ends at the Community Center at 12:00 p.m.
Larry Weber has recently retired from a 40-year career as a science teacher. He taught students from seventh grade up to graduate school. His awards include the Minnesota Secondary Science Teacher of the Year in 1993 and the National Biology Teacher Association’s Middle School Life Science Teacher of the Year for 1998.
Larry writes a weekly phenology column for a local newspaper, presents phenology updates for two radio stations and is a regular contributor to the Minnesota Conservation Volunteer. He lives with his wife on an old farm in Carlton County, Minnesota where he watches, photographs and writes about critters.
Here is a link to Larry Weber’s books he has written: http://www.kollathstensaas.com/authors.php?authorID=4 and http://ourbooks.myshopify.com/search?q=Webwood
Lake County Field Trip
• Board the vans at 5:30 a.m. at the Meadowlands Community Center.
• Leave parking lot by 6:00 a.m.
• Return to the Meadowlands Community Center by 4:00 p.m.
This field trip will focus on some great winter specialties like Spruce Grouse that can be found gritting on dirt along the road ways as well as many other winter birds such as Red Crossbills, White-winged Crossbills, Boreal Chickadee, Black-backed Woodpecker and Three-toed Woodpecker, Hoary and Common Redpolls, Pine Grosbeak, Evening Grosbeak, Gray Jay, Northern Shrike. Keep an eye out for the elusive Great Gray Owl that can be found hunting along the roadside for small rodents up in this area. A Boreal Owl might be found on this field trip as this is a irruptive season for this rare little owl of the Boreal Forest. Another possibility is the Northern Hawk Owl that has been observed many times during the winter months hunting for food in the open areas such as logged out areas or along the roadsides. Besides birds there are some mammals that occur in this area that could be found on this field trip such as Moose, Timber Wolf, Lynx, Bobcat, Pine Marten or a Fisher.
*We are using 15 passenger vans for these field trips because there are so many forest roads on which a coach bus or a school bus cannot travel. Restrooms will not be very numerous because the area we are birding is a long way from gas stations or public places to use the restroom. So use the rest room at the Meadowlands Community Center before departing. There will be another rest stop at a lodge that allows visitors to use their facilities but other than that all other restrooms breaks will be outside. So please take this in consideration before you sign up for this field trip.
Sunday, February 17th Field Trips
Sax-Zim Bog
• Board the bus at 6:30 a.m. at the Meadowlands Community Center.
• Leave parking lot by 7:00 a.m.
• Trip ends at Meadowlands Community Center at 3:30 p.m.
The Sax Zim Bog is on most birders’ list of places to go to see northern birds. On this trip, the leaders will take you on several back roads in search of northern birds and Minnesota specialties. We will bird in the early morning hours to look for Great Gray Owls hunting along the roadside for voles and mice. We’ll also stop at local feeding stations for Pine Grosbeaks, Evening Grosbeaks, Common Redpolls, Pine Siskins, Purple Finches, and possibly Gray Jays, Boreal Chickadee or a Hoary Redpoll. We’ll also stop at a few known spots to look for Black-backed Woodpeckers and Three-toed Woodpeckers working the trunks of tamarack and black spruce trees. If there are any stake-out locations for Northern Hawk Owls or Snowy Owls, the trip will visit these location as well. Other birds such as White-winged Crossbill, Red Crossbill, Black-billed Magpie, Northern Shrike, and Snow Bunting are all good possibilities to see on this trip.
There will a portable bathrooms at one of the feeding stations and along the Zim Road on the north end of “bog”.
Duluth
• Board the bus at 6:00 a.m. at the Meadowlands Community Center.
• Leave parking lot by 6:30 a.m.
• Pick up participants at the Perkins Restaurant at the Miller Hill Mall in Duluth at 7:15 a.m.
• Back at the Perkins Restaurant at 3:00 p.m. and back at the Meadowlands Community Center by 3:45 p.m.
This trip heads right to Duluth to look for Snowy Owls at the International Airport and down in the harbor areas. We will also visit the landfill outside of Superior Wisconsin to look for Thayer’s Gull, Iceland Gull, Glaucous Gull, and possibly find a Great Black-backed Gull or a Lesser Black-backed Gull. Last year, a Slaty-backed Gull was seen several times at the landfill. We will head back to Duluth search the harbors in the event a Gyrfalcon is spending the winter near the grain elevators. If there are any stake-out Varied Thrushes or Townsend Solitaires in the Duluth area we will make sure to stop to find these casual western visitors. We’ll also stop at the Canal Park area to see if any gulls are loafing on the break walls and scan through all the Common Goldeneyes for anything different such as a Long-tailed Duck, scoter species, or possibly a Harlequin Duck. We’ll also stop at a feeder outside of Duluth to look for northern finches. If you are lodging in Duluth and would rather not drive to Meadowlands to board the bus for this trip, note that the bus will stop at the Miller Hill Mall Perkins Restaurant parking lot to pick birders at 7:15 a.m., and returning there at 3:00 p.m. Please park your car in the mall parking lot and walk over to the restaurant. Directions to Perkins Restaurant if you are lodging along I-35, London Road, or in the Canal Park area in Duluth: Take I-35 to 21st Avenue West and exit on 21st Avenue West/U.S. Highway 53. Go north through 3 stoplights. When you come to the 4th stoplight (near the Home Depot) take a left turn toward the Miller Hill Mall and look to your right and you will see Perkins Restaurant. If you are lodging up near the Miller Hill Mall area (along U.S. Highway 53) you can walk to Perkins and leave your car at the hotel.
Lake County Field Trip
• Board the vans at 5:30 a.m. at the Meadowlands Community Center.
• Leave parking lot by 6:00 a.m.
• Return to the Meadowlands Community Center by 4:00 p.m.
This field trip will focus on some great winter specialties like Spruce Grouse that can be found gritting on dirt along the road ways as well as many other winter birds such as Red Crossbills, White-winged Crossbills, Boreal Chickadee, Black-backed Woodpecker and Three-toed Woodpecker, Hoary and Common Redpolls, Pine Grosbeak, Evening Grosbeak, Gray Jay, Northern Shrike. Keep an eye out for the elusive Great Gray Owl that can be found hunting along the roadside for small rodents up in this area. A Boreal Owl might be found on this field trip as this is a irruptive season for this rare little owl of the Boreal Forest. Another possibility is the Northern Hawk Owl that has been observed many times during the winter months hunting for food in the open areas such as logged out areas or along the roadsides. Besides birds there are some mammals that occur in this area that could be found on this field trip such as Moose, Timber Wolf, Lynx, Bobcat, Pine Marten or a Fisher.
*We are using 15 passenger vans for these field trips because there are so many forest roads that a coach bus or a school bus cannot travel on. Restrooms will not be very numerous because the area we are birding is a long way from gas stations or public places to use the restroom. So use the rest room at the Meadowlands Community Center before departing. There will be another rest stop at a lodge that allows visitors to use their facilities but other than that all other restrooms breaks will be outside. Please take this in consideration before you sign up for this field trip.