Michigan birdwatching - August 2002

08/09/2002 Archived Entry: "Oscoda and Tawas Pt."

On Sunday, 8/4, we visited Tawas Pt along Lake Huron. I saw my first Black Tern while there. We saw a family of American Kestrels, and some other birds. We visited the town of Oscoda for a bit.

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08/09/2002 Archived Entry: "Heartwick Pines and Mio"

On Monday, 8/5, we visited Heartwick Pines. We spent a long time in their visitor's center, viewing the many information areas they had setup about logging. I saw my first Evening Grosbeak on their feeder. Outside a large window were two feeders. One was a sunflower hopper, and the other was a small, suction-cup feeder attached to the large window. A male Evening Grosbeak sat in the suction-cup feeder for several minutes. I was right by this feeder, only a few inches from the bird. It was a magnificent view. In all, two male and two female Evening Grosbeaks visited the feeders. A male and female Purple Finch also came to eat.

We walked the one mile trail by the visitor's center and viewed some virgin white pine trees. During the walk, we saw and heard a Red-Breasted Nuthatch.

We drove around the campsite area, which contained semi-open campsites. Small trees provided some shade, but the sites were separated by a lot of these trees and bushes, making them private.

We drove to Mio, which was about 45 minutes away. The Au Sable river here looks excellent. It's good for canoeing and fishing for trout. We drove along the Au Sable, stopping at lookout areas. We visited an isolated lake called O'brien. We saw some Kirtland Warbler areas, but not the bird. We did see a Common Nighthawk land and rest on a bare tree limb.

We ate a bad meal at the Au Sable restaurant in Mio, before doing our drive tour. I wanted to stay the night and canoe the next morning, but was voted down 2-1. We got home around 12:30 A.M.

#bird - #michigan