Maine and New Hampshire Boreal Trip Yields 4 Statebirds, July 2014

As summer plans started to take shape I realized that I would have some free time in July.  I initially thought about taking advantage of this time to head to Quebec to start a province list there, and stop in northern NH to try for Spruce Grouse along the way.  But then I realized that I had also 3 key statebird targets in northern Maine - Spruce Grouse, Three-Toed Woodpecker, and Bicknell’s Thrush.  I had only birded northern NH and ME once before, and it had been a long time ago – 1981 for ME, and 1997 for NH.  So I spent some time on GoogleMaps trying to figure out if it could be feasible to get to spots for all 4 of these New England statebird targets with a reasonable amount of driving.  And with a liberal definition of “reasonable”, I figured out an itinerary with stops near Baxter State Park, ME to try for Spruce Grouse and Three-Toed; Rangeley, ME for Bicknell’s; and Pittsburg, NH for Spruce Grouse.  I contacted Bob Duchesne and arranged to hire him for guiding support for the Baxter-area birds, and teamed up with Denny Abbott to put the plan in place.  And then as the trip neared a sighting of Screech Owl at Brownfield Bog in ME was posted.  So I added a stop in Brownfield along the way to try for the owl and the trip was set.

Day 1 – Brownfield Bog, ME and an Attempt for Screech Owl

We had received what appeared to be pretty detailed directions for the Screech Owl location – within 20 yards of a large sign describing the bog en route to the “dynamite shack”.  Though neither of new what the dynamite shack was, soon after we arrived at the bog we found the large sign and thought we had the right spot.  As dusk approached we realized we had ideal conditions to listen for nightbirds – calm winds and no road noise.  But despite playing some tape, we had no responses.  After about an hour we decided to drive a bit farther down the road to try again, and came upon yet another sign, identical to the first one, and right next to a small shack at the edge of the road.  Was this the dynamite shack?  And if so, was this the right sign instead of the earlier one?  We got out to play some more tape but there was now a pretty strong breeze which was making a lot of noise coming through the trees, so conditions weren’t the best.  We tried for another 30 minutes before giving up, and wondered if our results would have been different if we had started the night at the second sign instead of the first one.  Not the best start for the trip…

Day 2 – Forests West of Baxter State Park, ME

Although I had arranged to hire Bob Duchesne on Day 3 to try for Three-toed Woodpecker and Spruce Grouse, we were first going to spend the afternoon of Day 2 on our own to give them a try.  Our plan was to concentrate on the boreal forest immediately west of Baxter State Park, working the numerous logging roads in the area near Telos Road.  We had good directions for 2 general areas for the woodpecker, and a general strategy to try for the grouse, so I was cautiously optimistic that we might get both targets and not need to meet up with Bob the next day. 

With an early start we made it to the area by noon, and headed right to one of the woodpecker spots – an area just west of Nesowadnehunk Campground.  We had only been there for a few minutes when another pair of birders arrived who said they just had the Three-toeds at the other suggested spot on Harvester Road, and gave us explicit directions to a nest site.  About 30 minutes later we were on Harvester Road and within a couple minutes found the nest hole.  We were lucky to have run into the other birders who gave us such great directions.  Much of the time we were able to see one of the adults sticking its head out of the hole apparently to stay cool on this hot day.

And at one point one adult came in to switch places with the other bird on the nest.

These were my first American Three-Toed Woodpeckers for New England - my 425th species.  And Maine is only my 6th state nationwide for this species.

As we watched the nest we were serenaded by Olive-sided and Yellow-bellied Flycatchers and numerous warblers.  And a short distance down the road a Black-backed Woodpecker flew over right in front of us.  It was quite a spot.

We spent the rest of the afternoon slowly driving along the logging roads hoping to run into Spruce Grouse, but with no luck.  We did have a nice view of a bear cub and a young moose, and heard lots of warbler song.  Though probably due to the time of day, we actually saw very few birds.  So given our mixed success, I contacted Bob Duchesne and told him we would still need his help for Spruce Grouse the next day.

Day 3 – Second Day in the Maine Boreal Forests

We met Bob at 5:30 and were back in the boreal forests by 6:30.  Our first interesting observations of the day weren’t avian - a fisher running across the road right in front of us, and a snapping turtle laying her eggs at the edge of the road.  We then drove or walked along numerous miles of some of the best spruce habitat, but couldn’t find any grouse.  We had 15 species of warblers, including actually seeing many, had several Boreal Chickadees and a family of Gray Jays, but no grouse.  Late in the morning, Bob noticed a very recent scrape on the side of the road that a grouse had likely used that morning for a dust bath.

Bob went into the woods to look for the bird and I decided to search a different portion to cover more area.  Bob came back out and said he heard a female grouse giving an alarm call, so I followed him back into the woods to try to see her.  We went back to the same location, and we both heard her give one more call note and heard a couple twigs snap, but that was it.  We waited a couple more minutes, but realized we weren’t going to find her, though she was likely quite close.  I sure wish I had followed Bob into his part of the woods initially.  But since we still had several more locations to check, I was still hopeful.  Unfortunately, even with a couple more hours of searching, that single call note was the limit of my observations of Spruce Grouse in ME.  Hardly satisfying, but enough (though just barely) to check it off for my ME list – my 5th state for the grouse.

Day 4 Morning – Saddleback Mountain, ME

The plan for the morning was to hike up the ski area at Saddleback Mountain in Rangeley, ME to try for Bicknell’s Thrush.  Bob Duchesne had given me some good advice, including that I would not need to hike up more than about halfway up the mountain to get the Bicknell’s.  He suggested there would be no need to go higher than where there is a trail goes cuts around the eastern part of the mountain connecting the various ski trails.  With clear skies and only a light breeze, I was pretty optimistic as I started my hike up the Grey Ghost Trial from the lodge at about 5:30 AM.  I almost instantly started hearing Swainson’s Thrushes, and quite a diversity of warblers.  But as I continued up the mountain, the only thrushes I heard were Swainson’s.  I tried hard to turn them into Bicknell’s but to no avail.  When I reached the connecting trail and still hadn’t heard any Bicknell’s, I was beginning to become pessimistic.  I spent some time going around the mountain on the connecting trail, rather than continuing the steep ascent up the mountain, but still only heard Swainson’s. 

But since it was just 7 AM, and there was still plenty of song, I decided to continue up the mountain.  I was now well on my way toward the top of the mountain and still hearing loads of warblers (especially Blackpolls - I ended up with 14), Winter Wrens, Juncos, Yellow-bellied Flycatchers, White-throated Sparrows, and the continuing occasional Swainson’s Thrush.  But then I heard what I thought was a single Bicknell’s call note coming from the woods on the other side of the slope.  I walked over to that section of the woods and heard another call note.  It was indeed a Bicknell’s!  I played some tape but got no response.  So although I could check it off my list, it was a hollow victory, and I wanted to do better.  So I decided to continue my ascent up the mountain and try to get above the Swainson’s, hoping that the only thrush would then be Bicknell’s. 

Now I was up to the end of the Grey Ghost Trail and starting up the Tri-color Trail toward the ridge.  By 8 AM I was halfway up the Tri-color Trial and nearing the ridge, but was still just hearing Swainson’s.  And now the amount of song was diminishing, and it was beginning to get quite warm.  Plus I was feeling the effects of the hike having gained something like 1,500 feet in elevation.  So I decided to turn around and head back down the mountain, feeling like my search for Bicknell’s was only marginally successful.  On a brighter note, the view from the top of the mountain was spectacular.

And I’ve always loved wild lupines.

I now have Bicknell’s in VT, NH, and ME on its breeding grounds, in addition to seeing one in NH in migration.

I ended up with 28 species that morning, including 17 Swainson’s Thrushes and 7 species of warblers.  And despite the limited Bicknell’s success, it was a fun and exhilarating hike.

Day 4 Afternoon – Spruce Grouse Search in Pittsburg, NH, and a Quick Stop in Quebec

Our next stop was to head to Pittsburg, NH to try for Spruce Grouse.  The Grouse is rare in Pittsburg, but when it is spotted it is typically seen somewhere along East Inlet Road.  So our game plan was to spend late afternoon on Day 4, and the morning of Day 5 if needed, birding along East Inlet in search of this elusive bird.  And given our very limited success the 2 previous days in ME in excellent habitat, where Spruce Grouse is much more common, we weren’t particularly optimistic.

Denny and I arrived in the area mid-afternoon, and almost as soon as we turned onto East Inlet Road a Gray Jay flew overhead.  We stopped to check it out and soon found two adult and two juvenile Jays.  Or more accurately I should say that these friendly birds found us, at times flying within just a couple feet of us looking for handouts. 

While we watched these inquisitive birds Boreal Chickadees could be heard calling nearby.  Certainly a nice start to the NH leg of the trip.

We continued to drive down East Inlet Road and at about 2 ½ miles from the beginning of the road we came to an overgrown trail heading off to the west where Denny had had Spruce Grouse in the past.  We starting walking down the trail but quickly came to some deep water, so we headed back to the car to put on our boots to be able to continue the hike.  We were just about to head back down the path when I heard a muffled flutter of wings nearby.  I instantly remembered that Bob Duchesne had mentioned that one way to detect hidden Spruce Grouse was to listen for a wing flutter sound as they changed perches.  So I walked just a few feet back down the road and noticed some movement up in a spruce tree.  And there it was – a female Spruce Grouse well hidden in the trees.  Denny and I watched (and heard!) it fly to 3 additional perches – surprisingly each time now in young deciduous trees.  I was able to get this less-than-stellar photo of the Grouse way back in the shady woods.

NH was my 6th state for this species, and my 3rd and most likely final New England state.

In less than an hour we had seen or heard Spruce Grouse, Gray Jay, and Boreal Chickadee – 3 of the key boreal targets birders hope for in Pittsburg.  And we got all 4 of our ME and NH boreal targets.  That was about as successful as we could have imagined.

And now that meant we had lots of extra time on our hands since we weren’t planning to head home until lunchtime the next day.  All along I kept hoping that we would have at least a little time to head to Quebec to start my province list there, just as I had done in Manitoba and Saskatchewan back in May.  So with passports in hand, we headed north to the immigration booth.  While we were waiting our turn to go through immigration, I spotted an adult Bald Eagle in the distance in Quebec air space – a nice start to the province list.  In the next 90 minutes we got about 40 species making numerous stops along the road in good habitat – nothing too exciting mind you, but of course everything was new. 

Day 5 Morning - Parc National du Mont-Megantic in Quebec

With an entire morning available before heading home, I planned a trip a short distance into Quebec to the Parc National du Mont-Megantic.  With a bit of on-line research I found a park map with many miles of trails, and some high elevation mountain tops that could be driven to.  We got to immigration when it opened at 8 AM, and by 9:30 we were in the park after a few more brief stops along the way.  At the park headquarters we found a worker who spoke English who suggested a couple trails to take, and that Mont Saint-Joseph would be the best mountain in the park for birding.  Almost parenthetically she said that birders go there early in the morning for the Bicknell’s Thrushes.  That one wasn’t on my radar screen but certainly worth a try.

We began the drive up Mont Saint-Joseph in some drizzle and light rain.  There were some Juncos and White-throats along the way, and an occasional warbler and Winter Wren, but otherwise it was pretty slow.  When we reached the summit it was raining pretty hard, so we waited it out in the car.  After a while it was just drizzling, so I headed out with umbrella in hand, and took a walk around the summit.  The area was wooded with classic krummholz – stunted spruces with branches all pointing away from the prevailing wind direction.  In just a couple minutes I heard a call note that I quickly remembered from my hike up Saddleback Mountain the day before – it was a Bicknell’s Thrush.  After hearing this bird continue to give its call notes it erased any doubt I had in my mind about my identification of the calling bird the previous day in ME.  I played a bit of tape and the bird came right in to investigate.  In the next several minutes I had the best views of Bicknell’s ever.  I ended up finding at least 3 birds, and had 2 giving full songs in addition to the characteristic call notes.  We also had Gray Jays at the summit, making it a very nice stop.  Other nice birds in the park included both Kinglets and Red-breasted Nuthatches.

Our last stop in Quebec was at a farm along the road where we picked up several Snipe and a very early Semipalmated Sandpiper.  I ended up with 63 species for the province, including a nice 12 warbler species.  I almost got a 64th species as we exited Canada.  We were sitting in line at US immigrations and heard a singing Mourning Warbler.  But since we were literally right at the US-Canada border, the question was whether the bird was in NH or Quebec.  I found the clearing the bird was likely singing from, and unfortunately it was in NH right on the border. 

Quebec is now my 3rd highest province list, and my Canadian ticks total 415.  Needless to say, keeping province lists hasn’t exactly been a priority for me.  But now that there are less ticks to pursue in the US, and I’ve got at least small lists in 6 provinces, maybe I’ll be spending more time birding Canada.