On day two of the new year it was so bloody cold that the only sign of life I saw was a Coyote in Col. Sam Smith Park. Long before I saw anything but ducks, my thumbs were so cold I could have bit them off and not felt a thing. I went home for hot chocolate and tried again yesterday. This time I was looking for a Purple Sandpiper at Humber Bay East. It was pretty cold, but I survived long enough to not see the target bird.
Which brings us to today's adventures. My plan was to start at Humber Bay East and bird my way west toward Niagara. In fact, the title for this blog was originally:
Go West, Young middle-aged Birder Guy
Things did not start off well. Firstly, when I got to Humber Bay East a cold, arctic wind was blowing down by the lake. I tried to spend time looking for the Purple Sandpiper, but between the wind and the cold and the tears in my eyes, I had to give up after 10 minutes and head to shelter. But I didn't learn my lesson. After getting a look at the ducks in the bay close to the parking lot, I headed over to three different parks in search of the Harlequin Duck. The wind at pretty much every stop was worse than at Humber Bay. I soon began to notice that the only people out on this day were dog walkers, birders and crazy people. I guess that includes all of us.
I was ready to cut my losses and head home for a cup of hot chocolate and a hot bath, but I wanted to see owls today, and maybe get another look at the male King Eider at St. Catharines Marina. There was no sign of the Snowy Owl at Col. Sam, so I headed west to 50 Point Conservation Area in Hamilton, in search of Long-eared Owls, thanks to e-bird and whatever else might be there. And that was no understatement.
At the entrance, where I paid my $9.00 park fee, I was given precise directions to the owls, which I promptly forgot, even with a map. I went right past the spot, to the end of the marina, but was rewarded with the sight of hundreds of Canada Geese, some White-winged Scoters in the lake and pair of oddballs. A goose that looked like a hybrid of a Canada Goose and a Muscovy Duck, and a Duck that looked like it was bred by the Colonel to be some sort of new item on the KFC menu.
I got back in the car, turned around and headed back to where I hoped I would find the owls. It was a short trip. I actually was right around the corner from the correct trees, and could have walked, and eventually did, but I didn't know that at the time. I drove up the road, saw the incorrect pines, and pulled over to get a look for owls. Oooooops! I got the car stuck in a rut of snow off the side of the road. I couldn't go forward and I couldn't go back. I didn't see any owls.
Now, I have stuck myself in ruts like this before and it is just a matter of rocking the car back and forth and not panicking and getting the job done. I was getting nowhere. Another park patron passed by and saw my predicament. He asked if I had a shovel, and I replied that I didn't, so he headed back to the main gate to fetch some help. After he was gone I wondered what I had in my emergency kit that could help. A shovel. Naturally.
I got that out and a park security guy by the name if Dick showed up and helped with the shovelling and we just weren't getting anywhere. He suggested he go back and get some salt and kitty litter to help with the job and I figured that while he was gone, there was no point in fretting about the matter, so I took a walk and searched for the Long-eared Owls. Didn't take long. They were less than a minute walk from where I was stuck. Along with a few other birders that had just arrived, we got great looks at both Long-eareds. One in particular had a long body too. Didn't think they were that svelte.
Eventually, back at the car, a number of park workers and kind strangers showed up, seemingly out of nowhere, and with brute force and a lot of pushing, they got me unstuck from the rut. I got the heck out of there. Forgot to even look for the Snowy Owl. But I was now on my way to St. Catherines to see if that male King Eider was still about. As it turned out, it was not. Both the harbor and the canal were completely frozen over. There was not a duck of any kind on site. One small unfrozen corner of the canal, I found had some ducks and a few Double-crested Cormorants, but that was it. It was now past 3pm and I still wanted to find a snowy owl.
Another birder had posted a location of 3 Snowys earlier in the day about 10 minutes from where I was. The first location was devoid of owls, but had a nice looking Merlin on a wire. The second spot, along an unploughed, snow covered road, did prove successful. There was a car at the side of the road and a woman with a camera, so I figured she must be seeing the bird. Yes. But it was way across the field and she was hoping it would fly closer for a photo. I got my scope out and we both had a great look at the bird.
I was going to go next to Woodland Cemetery for the Eastern Screech-owl, but according to Siri, I only had about 15 minutes of light left and I wasn't going to go owling in the dark in a cemetery. So I decided to go to the end of Milen Road, about 10 minutes away, and see if I could see the female King Eider before dark. I got there just in time, as the dusk was settling over the lake and very quickly found the "queen" Eider. All alone, diving and swimming, I at least got one Eider for my troubles.
So, what started as a very cold and desolate day, turned into quite the adventure and proved to be quite fun. Brought back a few Big Year memories: The chasing, the finding, the getting stuck in the snow and mud.
At the entrance, where I paid my $9.00 park fee, I was given precise directions to the owls, which I promptly forgot, even with a map. I went right past the spot, to the end of the marina, but was rewarded with the sight of hundreds of Canada Geese, some White-winged Scoters in the lake and pair of oddballs. A goose that looked like a hybrid of a Canada Goose and a Muscovy Duck, and a Duck that looked like it was bred by the Colonel to be some sort of new item on the KFC menu.
I got back in the car, turned around and headed back to where I hoped I would find the owls. It was a short trip. I actually was right around the corner from the correct trees, and could have walked, and eventually did, but I didn't know that at the time. I drove up the road, saw the incorrect pines, and pulled over to get a look for owls. Oooooops! I got the car stuck in a rut of snow off the side of the road. I couldn't go forward and I couldn't go back. I didn't see any owls.
Now, I have stuck myself in ruts like this before and it is just a matter of rocking the car back and forth and not panicking and getting the job done. I was getting nowhere. Another park patron passed by and saw my predicament. He asked if I had a shovel, and I replied that I didn't, so he headed back to the main gate to fetch some help. After he was gone I wondered what I had in my emergency kit that could help. A shovel. Naturally.
I got that out and a park security guy by the name if Dick showed up and helped with the shovelling and we just weren't getting anywhere. He suggested he go back and get some salt and kitty litter to help with the job and I figured that while he was gone, there was no point in fretting about the matter, so I took a walk and searched for the Long-eared Owls. Didn't take long. They were less than a minute walk from where I was stuck. Along with a few other birders that had just arrived, we got great looks at both Long-eareds. One in particular had a long body too. Didn't think they were that svelte.
Eventually, back at the car, a number of park workers and kind strangers showed up, seemingly out of nowhere, and with brute force and a lot of pushing, they got me unstuck from the rut. I got the heck out of there. Forgot to even look for the Snowy Owl. But I was now on my way to St. Catherines to see if that male King Eider was still about. As it turned out, it was not. Both the harbor and the canal were completely frozen over. There was not a duck of any kind on site. One small unfrozen corner of the canal, I found had some ducks and a few Double-crested Cormorants, but that was it. It was now past 3pm and I still wanted to find a snowy owl.
Another birder had posted a location of 3 Snowys earlier in the day about 10 minutes from where I was. The first location was devoid of owls, but had a nice looking Merlin on a wire. The second spot, along an unploughed, snow covered road, did prove successful. There was a car at the side of the road and a woman with a camera, so I figured she must be seeing the bird. Yes. But it was way across the field and she was hoping it would fly closer for a photo. I got my scope out and we both had a great look at the bird.
I was going to go next to Woodland Cemetery for the Eastern Screech-owl, but according to Siri, I only had about 15 minutes of light left and I wasn't going to go owling in the dark in a cemetery. So I decided to go to the end of Milen Road, about 10 minutes away, and see if I could see the female King Eider before dark. I got there just in time, as the dusk was settling over the lake and very quickly found the "queen" Eider. All alone, diving and swimming, I at least got one Eider for my troubles.
So, what started as a very cold and desolate day, turned into quite the adventure and proved to be quite fun. Brought back a few Big Year memories: The chasing, the finding, the getting stuck in the snow and mud.
Long-tailed Ducks
It was this cold:
One of the few signs of life in Col. Sam Smith Park:
American Wigeon and Redheads
Great Black-backed Gull
White-winged Scoter
Odd Goose
Very Odd Duck with what looks like chicken feet
My Stuck Car
Perhaps this boat could help
The two Long-eared Owls
After seeing the owls these guys materialized from nowhere and got me out
Dick is on the left with my shovel
Snowy
The "queen" King Eider
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