Baxter State Park

What is it with people hanging dead animal heads on walls?  I'm grossed out and fascinated by it all at the same time. 

Over the years, Kathie and I had both spoken about going to Baxter State Park in Maine.  Our plans had changed.  Kathie's husband Gus suffered a stroke and was now in recovery. Our plans to drive from Maine to Wisconsin changed.  I knew they'd change when I had heard the news.  Over the years with my friendship to Kathie, I've also grown to include Gus as a friend.  He's a great guy and I am so thankful that we were able to visit longer.  But I'm not going to get all wishy washy emotional.  Neither of us like that emotion stuff:)  I'm just glad he's ok.  Kathie's got enough emotion for ALL of us:)

With my Dad's heart surgery and Gus's stroke, I knew Kathie would want to stay home.  I told Kathie not to stress because Gus was more important. He's an amazing guy. I just didn't want to intrude on their routine.  But in Gus fashion, he told us to get out of the house and have fun.  So like much of the summer, I "rubber banded" it with Kathie and my family in Wisconsin. We'd make it work and have fun with it all. It was a summer of family and friends which meant we birded close or somewhat close to home so that we could "snap" back if there was an emergency. Plus for everyone involved in both Wisconsin and Maine, we had to drive to appointments!  They're still getting their treatments/therapy!

One of the places, we decided to explore was Baxter State Park.  It was one of our splurges. Kathie's mission was to hit 500 lifebirds this summer.  Mine was to add just a few.  Our first lifer together was this beautiful Black-backed Woodpecker!

Black-backed Woodpecker

This woodpecker can be a hard one for many birders across the country.  But not because they are rare; but because they can be rather elusive and prefer dense forest areas. Kathie spotted this one and I was able to get a quick shot before it flew off. Throughout our time there, we heard many more drumming off in the distance. 

Baxter State Park is gorgeous and free to state residents!  We stayed at the Big Moose Inn which was really an iconic piece of Maine history and close to the park.  One of the things I love about Kathie is her knack for finding excellent restaurants and places to stay.  

There were birders coming through the area and had also stayed at the Inn during our stay.  I heard them in the morning but chose to stay in bed.  After they left, we went to get breakfast.  I could have sat there all day and it was Kathie who said, "Come on Rohrer, we've got birds to find."  I was hesitant because I knew it would be another day fighting blackflies and mosquitoes. My body looked like a war zone after my trek to Maine. Surprisingly though, there were NO ticks in this park. So if we had gotten rid of the blackflies, our journeys out into the park would have been even more perfect.

Philadelphia Vireo

Another bird I had to find was the Philadelphia Vireo.  I'll be honest. I'm not into vireos.  They're cool birds, but I wasn't into digging through every vireo call in the forest.  So many vireos sang and many of them were Red-eyed Vireos.  The calls are almost identical and I couldn't distinguish the two species apart. So when we found this one above, I smiled at the accomplishment and just enjoyed the rest of the scenic drive. 

Did we find a moose?  Yes but the moose was on the interstate!  There were moose sightings in the park, but we never did see one there.  We did find this cool looking Eastern Painted Turtle however!

Blackflies kept up the attack.  And human flesh was exposed.  No amount of spray would keep them off my body.  The spray worked with mosquitoes but not the blackflies.  Even writing about this memory makes me itch and cringe again. 

Black-and-white Warbler

However, with great bugs come great warblers.  So many great warblers. Baxter State Park is quite a magical place.  The habitat was just slightly different enough to have a unique sampling of birds that we couldn't find around Kathie and Gus's home outside of migration. 

Ok. I'll admit that there is one vireo I kinda dig more than the others.  The Blue-headed Vireo below is a looker.  Their slightly slower call, yet very similar Red-eyed Vireo call, makes them a tad easier to find. 

Blue-headed Vireo

And then there were eastern warbler calls galore.  Just when I thought I'd get used to a call, I'd second guess myself.  Is that a Pine Warbler or a Chipping Sparrow calling?

Pine Warbler

Who's making that short and loud vocal burst?

Magnolia Warbler

Oh!  It's a singing male Magnolia Warbler setting up a territory! But didn't they have a different call?  Yes but it wasn't making that one:)

In Arizona, visitors always ask me, "What's that hawk?"  My automated response is "Red-tailed Hawk."  Then they respond, "But that doesn't look like our Red-tailed Hawk back home." 
"It won't.  We have several subspecies here." 
Back to Maine.  I'm in the visitor spot now and I ask Kathie, "What's that warbler call?"
"American Redstart"
There are so many vocalizations for this species.  And I think I've nailed the ID on this bird now just by hearing their various calls a million times.  I had A LOT of practice in both Maine and Wisconsin.  I can officially "talk" to this bird and it's part of my bird vocabulary now. 

male American Redstart

Another bird that I've also memorized and can easily ID is the high slurred wind up zzzzzzeeeeeeet of the Northern Parula.  Easy peasy. 

Northern Parula

In short, Maine was incredible.  There are several more posts that I will write which will include birding codes and connections to the birds.  I discovered some weird things about myself there while birding.  I'll explore that during a trek to Monhegan Island with Magill in our next post. My last lifer from Baxter State Park was the Yellow-bellied Flycatcher which I have also memorized now.  It was fun finding this species but it's a birder's bird.  It's one of them flycatcher jobs, but by finding this species, I completed all of my North American flycatchers. 

In many ways, Maine birding was my "dotting the i's and crossing the t's trek" to complete my flycatcher and vireo lists.  I just need Black-whiskered Vireo now to complete all of my vireos for the US. Kathie and I both loved Baxter State Park.  We only scratched the surface. Stay tuned for more.....

600 Life Birds

Oh the road can be sooooo slow!  Life birds?  What are those?  Last year in April I was at 500 life birds.  Throughout the year, I added birds regularly every month.  This year it has been a trickle:) I suppose it gives me a chance to absorb all the amazing observations of the birds without feeling rushed.  I do hope to make up for the birds down in Mexico this year. Will I be able to make it to 700 by the year end?  Here are the stories behind each of the top ten birds.

Monk Parakeet

The Monk Parakeet was seen downtown Ft. Myers, Florida near a swimming pool.  I grew up with these birds at home as they are sold in the pet trade as Quakers. In fact, this is how they invaded the US! Loud, ruthless and quick to multiply, the Monk Parakeets have become established in many US communities which include cities like cold Chicago and tropical Florida.  My bud Sydney and I played a hunch and followed the human trail to several nest sites and voila! There they flew in great numbers with twigs and branches making nests around power lines and palm trees.

Wilson's Plover

The Wilson's Plover was number 510.  I went to Bunche Beach, Florida to count hundreds of shorebirds only to come out with thousands of chigger bites!  It took nearly two months for my body to heal!  It rained after I heard and saw the bird.  I was able to help several birders get their scopes on the this plover.  Later in Mexico, I would see this bird once again under much better circumstances.  Sunny and bug less! It's call is distinct and easy to pick out.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

At 520, a Rose-breasted Grosbeak made its way into Willcox, AZ.  I went to chase the bird and hung out in a very kind man's backyard.  There we watched this beautiful bird feed off of his fruiting mulberry tree.

Bobolink

By life bird 530, I was in Maine visiting Kathie.  Together, we went to a field near her home and discovered the magnificent Bobolinks.  There they called and collected caterpillars for their young ones. This is one unusual and gorgeous blackbird.

Black Guillemot

Life bird 540 happened near Eastern Egg Island.  This Black Guillemont went after what looked like twizzler's licorice.  I braced myself on the rocky boat as I snapped off several shots of this bird flying near the side of our boat.  At this point both Micheal and Kathie were under the weather and very seasick!  Now THAT was an adventure I won't forget anytime soon:)  Nor will they.

Blue-headed Vireo

In the dark mossy forests of Maine, we discovered a Blue-headed Vireo.  This lovely bird graced the branches while we sweat it out in the woods:)  This bird made 550 on the list. 

Prairie Warbler

At 560, the Prairie Warbler made its swirly call as the rain began to fall.  I was able to briefly see this bird before it went back into hiding as two young morons revved up their truck and sped past us on the dirt roads of Maine. 

the exotic Northern Red Bishop

At 570, I was alone again in California.  Here I spotted the exotic invading Northern Red Bishop.  What a beauty!!!

Wrentit

By December, it all began to slow down.  Again, I returned to Southern California where I stood silently near a city park lake and watched the Wrentits move around me.  This was Life bird 580.  

At 590, the Black-throated Blue Warbler was a real shyster. Not all life birds play nice.  We sat and waited and waited for this warbler to come out.  When he did, the tiny warbler was so far away! I finished in the US with number 599, the Painted Bunting.  But I wondered which bird would mark the magical 600.  Drum roll...............

Green Parakeets

We flew into Southern Mexico during the night hours.  At dawn, the first bird that made itself known was the Green Parakeet. They seemed to be flying everywhere around us.  And so in my life, number 600 marks the Green Parakeet. The adventure continues next week as we begin our exploration into Chiapas, Mexico. 

Height Of Emotion

New England is a gorgeous place to bird.  I found myself drawn towards the borders of New Hampshire and Maine. The mountains and heavily forested areas were rather magical.  So we decided to take a trip into the Rangely District where we would explore several areas. 

We stopped at several hotspots which included rest stops, campgrounds and the infamous Boy Scout's road.  But before we began our walks into the wooded areas, we stopped at this amazing overlook.  Talk about breathtaking!

As the day went on, we had some amazing views of vireos and warblers. The humidity increased and a storm was brewing. 

Blue-headed Vireo

It would be great if someone could invent a light air conditioning outfit that would keep us cool on our hikes:) When we explore new areas(or old), we become wrapped up in all the wonderful discoveries forgetting about the bugs biting or terrible heat beating us slowly down.  But there comes a point when it doesn't matter how many bottles of water you drink or what sun hat you wear......

There comes a point when someone (or everyone) breaks down and says enough is enough.  Yet the bird song keeps us from using our common sense.  What's that?  Who's making that call? Just a couple meters here.  Pangs of hunger. Thirst. Itch. Damn mosquito!  Itch. Blood. Itch! A tick!?! How long has that been there?!  Just a few more minutes. Northern Parula!  Awesome!  And the time flies.  The dearest of friends become grouchy. The bug bites become too much.  And....

Northern Parula

SHAZAM!!!  Like that storm building on the horizon, words become thunder and lightning.

Red-breasted Nuthatch

Wait!  A Blackburnian Warbler!?!  Life bird!!!  And then the storm hits:)

Blackburnian Warbler

I look back at this day and really enjoyed our visit to this region.  The views were beautiful but I remember everyone suffering from humidity and heat exhaustion.  At one point Kathie and I were grouchy with each other and dare I say it.....sounding like a bunch of old farts. Looking back at it, I have a good chuckle. Recently I witnessed another birder duo go at it and realized it's a natural part of any friendship/relationship.....especially when birds are involved. I had a smile. 

It rained hard later that day. A welcome relief from the unrelenting heat. We sat inside of a cute and cozy restaurant watching the thunderstorm take hold. 

I ate my warm chowder and noticed a couple Killdeer running around in the parking lot. On the way home, we spotted yet another porcupine for the year!  I have gone years without seeing them in the wild and within this year alone, I've had 7 different sightings in Arizona, Maine and New Mexico!

Locals know where to go for some relief from the humidity!

I think of all the incredible places we visited in New England, and I have to say that this area and the Lost Pond were my favorites.   Stay tuned for more!

Broad-winged Hawk

For more about birds from around the world, check out Wild Bird Wednesday!