Mt. Jefferson (Castle trail) 6/27

On June 27 th Karin and I hiked the Castle Trail to the summit of Mt. Jefferson, this encompassed a 10 mile round trip with 4,200 feet of elevation gain, some tedious rock scrambles, a damp/slick trail below tree line, warm calm weather above tree line which included a swarm of hornets on the summit and great views.

A rough sketch of our route, annotated (red line) via google earth clicking on the picture will provide a more detailed look.

The first 1.3 miles were easy going on a smooth trail, with the exception of crossing the Israel River, which went smoothly for us as the water was not too high.

Further into the hike trail became rough, and with recent rainy weather there were many slippery roots and moss covered rocks to contend with. Which always presents a greater issue on the decent...

Steeper climbing after passing the intersection with the Link Trail.

Just over 3 miles in we encountered our first scramble, to the sides we had a few hand and foot holds and made the accent without incident.

Once clearing the above scramble we reached a nice vista.

Not having hiked this trail before, I thought we'd "topped" the first "castle" but that was not the case... as Robert Plant once sang "scrambled on".

The first Castle from just above the first scramble, and the rim of Castle Ravine to the left.

The view south west toward the Pemi Wilderness, I heard a Bicknell's Thrush call from this area. The scenery was even more impressive once atop the castles, with views toward the Pemi Wilderness and Mt. Waumbek and the Pilot Range.

Karin making good progress above tree line, The Castles, large rock outcrops are below along the ridge stand some 20 feet high. The trail tavels right over them in a few spots, making for a dramtic hike.
A close up of a "castle".

The view back down the "Castellated Ridge" as its known, with the Pilot Range including Mt. Waumbek and Star King on the horizon.

Alpine Azalea above tree line.

Still a long rocky trek to the summit at 5712'

The weather was warm and calm near the summit, allowing a swarm of hornets to move about freely! We touched the summit marker and moved away quickly for a snack before becoming the snack. View north to Mt. Adams as another hiker works his way through the rock pile.

Mt. Washington, the Great Gulf , Mt. Clay (front and center), Mt Monroe (right Horizon), the Lake of the Clouds AMC hut is between Washington and Monroe.

Working our way back.

Approaching the ridge.

Looking deep into the Castle Ravine a new slide could be seen, from an apparent avalanche a few Winters ago.

Yet another photo of the ridge, Bowman Mountain is the flat topped hill well below and the Pilot Range on the Horizon.

We found this Moose Jaw at 4200 feet elevation.

The view from the trail head in Bowman, it was very special to end the hike being able to

see our "ridge walk" route. A few deer passed close by.

Tired feet, enjoying some "Grape Soda", Crosby, Stills and Nash and view up the Castllated Ridge to Mt. Jefferson.

We'd seen the above truck in Tamworth on the trip north, and snapped this shot on the way back, this struck us as being obscenely funny.........even more hilarious was finding this while "gassing up" on rte 1 in Saugus, Ma.

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We found this "guy", about 10' tall in Saugus, Ma. , would appear to be worth perhaps 500 bucks?

Mt. Hunger (Ashburnham) 6/21

Last evening would be the first time I hike to an eastern ledge near the top of Mt. Hunger. I'd been told there is a fine north/north east view over Stodge Meadow Pond toward Mt. Watatic and the Wapack Range.
I started the hike from Holt Road, in Ashburnham, where the trail (the Mid-state Trail) runs adjacent to a large distrurbed area (looks like housing development that might be on hold) before traveling through deciduous forest.

The Mid-State Trail, south bound off Holt Road.

The distance to the ledge is approximately a mile and the elevation gain is very modest, about 300 feet...the view is a big payoff for the effort! Stodge Meadow Pond from Mt. Hunger, Mt. Watatic to the left, North Pack and Pack just to the right of Watatic, Timberlost Farm is just to the left of the lake.

I scanned the lake for a while looking for loons and finally a pair swam far enough toward the pond's center for a view. As you can see from the photo above there are two islands that might be able to support a nest, however I don't recall ever hearing of a successful nesting of the species. The two dots in the forground of the pond are Common Loons.
Mountain Laurel is abundant in the area.

A bird list from the trip:
Common Loon ...2
Pileated Woodpecker ...1
Great Crested Flycatcher ...1
Red-eyed Vireo ...1
Blue Jay ...3
American Crow ...4
Black-capped Chickadee ...1
Veery ...2
Hermit Thrush ...4
American Robin ...3
Gray Catbird ...1
Chestnut-sided Warbler ...1
Black-throated Green Warbler... 4
Pine Warbler ...1
Black-and-white Warbler ...3
Ovenbird ...1
Common Yellowthroat ...3
Canada Warbler ...1
Eastern Towhee ...1
Dark-eyed Junco ...5
Scarlet Tanager ...2

Wachusett Mountain 6/13

I took a quick hike to the summit of Wachusett Mountain on Monday evening, June 13th. The route via the Bolton Pond , Semuhenna, West Side and the Old Indian Trails to the summit, returning by a slightly different route using more of the Old Indian Trail and shaving of a bit of distance. The best birds I heard in route were Louisiana Waterthrush, Dark-eyed Juncos, Hermit Thrushes, Black-throated Green Warblers, B-T Blue Warblers, Indigo Bunting near the ski slopes and a young Red-tailed Hawk calling.
Below are a few photos from the trip, though none of birds:

Bolton Pond
Lucky I saw before I stepped!

Balance Rock

Some summit shots of the construction site...

The Old Tower is still standing.

The site is fenced off, but it appears hikers can still enjoy the surround area of the summit and picnic tables too.

A hole has been installed!

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Taken from inbetween the links of the fence.

The actual summit, the high point, was still accessable...so a hike is not "compromised"...you can still "touch" the highest point in Worcester County.

Many are looking forward to seeing the project completed and the "new summit"!

Mts. Pemigewassett and Garfield (White Mtn National Forest) 6/3 + 4

Karin and I headed north for some camping and hiking in the Franconia Notch area of New Hampshire's White Mountain National Forest. After setting up camp at Waterest Campground , in Woodstock; we headed out for a modest hike up Mt. Pemigewassett (aka Indian Head). This modest 3.5 mile round trip hike ends on the 2500' summit which affords nice views of Mt. Moosilauke, North Woodstock, the Loon Mtn/Lincoln area (all to the south) and an obstructed view of the Franconia Ridge to the northeast. The cloudy day brightened and we had the summit/ledge area to ourselves for the 45 minutes we stayed atop Indian Head.
The view southwest toward Mt. Moosilauke just left of center.

To the east is Mt. Liberty and Flume (obstructed).

Mt. Lafayette to the northeast.

I93, Rte 3 and North Woodstock to the south

The view west toward the Kinsman Mtns., a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher was calling from the stand of spruces right of center.

The ledge near the summit.

On Saturday we took a more aggressive hike up Mt. Garfield, standing at 4500' and a 10 mile round trip with 3000' of elevation gain. I'd read and been told this peak has spectacular 360 degree views and the day's weather and visibility appeared to be perfect. As far as birding goes this would be a listening only endeavor. The 3000' gain takes place relatively evenly over the 5 mile one-way hike, along the Gardfield Trail, so the grades were not overly difficult, perfect for the first "major" hike of the season. I heard Winter Wrens, Swainson's Thrushes, and lots of Black-throated Green, B-t Blue, Blackburnian Warblers early on.

A stream crossing that posed no issue, however the issue was black flies.

Once above 3000' feet Blackpoll Warblers were dominant, a few Boreal Chickadees called out, a single Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Dark-eyed Juncos and a few Yellow-rumped Warblers were heard.

Open fir stand beyond the 3000' elevation mark.

This looked like a good area for Black-backed Woodpecker but none were heard, though we did not linger at all.

Once near the summit the terrain along the Garfield Ridge Trail became steeper but before we knew it, we'd arrived at the summit! While the photos below speak better than words, they don't quite add up to the whole experience!

A spectacular view to the Franconia Ridge, Mts. Lafayette, Lincoln and Liberty (far left), from a few hundred feet below the summit I heard a single shrill "veer" call of a Bicknell's Thrush (always a prize).

South Twin Mtn (left), Galehead (for ground), the heart of the Pemigewassett Wildness and "the Bonds" to the right.

Owl's Head Mtn below center with Flume and Liberty on the right horizon.

Another shot of Owl's Head and Flume.

There was once a fire tower on the Garfield Summit, perhaps watchmen caught napping on the job had to "walk the plank"?

The tiger stripe pattern along the western flank of North Twin was quite remarkable, it appeared to be a pattern of dead and live trees.

I always get a laugh while reading the AMC White Mountain Guide (28th edition), because time after time it mentions views from various points as being "among the best in the White Mountains". Of course there are many spectacular vistas in "The Whites" , from high remote peaks, lower hill tops and road side stops.....and this day Garfield was among the very best!

Worcester County Tour 5/28

Chuck, Paul and I birded from 2:15Am to 9Pm on Saturday for a Worcester County big day effort. While none of us had ever done a Worcester County "specific" big day before, we have enough long term knowledge of the area to "throw together" a decent route. Perhaps we will do a few more of these in the years to come and refine the process, perhaps others will do the same?

Wetland off Turnpike Road in Royalston.
Our first birds were Song Sparrow, Eastern Whip-poor-will and Barred Owl at Birch Hill Dam in South Royalston. We came up empty on a few other owling spots in the area, and continued on to Turnpike Road in Royaston, which abuts Priest Brook and some nice open marshy space. Key prizes in this area included American Bittern, Ruffed Grouse, Alder Flycatcher (many) and a nice assortment of warblers including Magnolia, Black-throated Green (and Blue), Nashville, Blackburnian and Northern Waterthrush along with Veery and Hermit Thrush. Next we headed to Royalston hoping for Evening Grosbeak and perhaps Pine Siskin, while we missed those; Blackpoll Warbler, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and Least Flycatcher were tallied.
Female Hooded Merganser in a backyard nest box, our only "hoodie" of the day!

Prospect Hill Road in Royalston, if Paul heads any further north he'll be in New Hampshire!

In route to the Gardner Airport we pickup Savannah Sparrow at the old Fernald School and a flyover female Common Merganser was a real bonus! At the airport our target Horned Lark was spotted on a runway, Prairie Warblers and Field Sparrows were heard but we missed Dark-eyed Junco. Onto the Ware River Water Shed, another key area were a very grudging Golden-crowned Kinglet finally sang, we added Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Canada and Blue-winged Warblers and Eastern Bluebird to name a few.

The Rte 56 overlook of the Worcester Airport yielded an Eastern Meadowlark, but no American Kestrel, two species that have declined in our area over the past few decades. After a "healthy" lunch at Hot Dog Annies we continued south into Chalton's "Water's Edge" were Louisiana Waterthrush, Wood Thrush and Indigo Bunting were added then a Yellow-throated Vireo at Oxford's "Greenbriar" and the off to Uxbridge for a Worm-eating Warbler. We missed both the Worm-eating Warbler and Orchard Oriole there but added Ring-billed Gull and a lingering Solitary Sandpiper.

We decided to avoid downtown Worcester for the nesting Peregrine Falcons and headed for Westboro's nesting Osprey and Mute Swans (which we still didn't have yet). On the way we picked up Grasshopper Sparrow and Northern Mockingbird in Sutton and a Great Black-backed Gull in Milbury, this a surprise as very few linger in Worcester County after their breeding season commences. In Westboro we'd get the Osprey and Mute Swans quickly, but a Herring Gull was a nice surprise, we'd only get one Herring and Black-backed Gull for the day!

We were now headed back north to Wachusett Reservoir were Bald Eagle, Common Loon, Spotted Sandpiper and a "bonus" Bonepart's Gull were added. Our total stood at 114 species, but daylight was getting short, but we still had Pine Hill Road in Lancaster and Bolton Flats were we expected to add a few species such as shorebirds, marsh birds and perhaps a surprise or two. We hit the Pine Hill Road WMA but the territorial Vesper Sparrows were not singing, so we quickly headed for Bolton Flats with the expectation of returning to Pine Hill right at dusk.

At Bolton we quickly added Bank Swallow, Amercian Black Duck, Northern Shoveler (a bonus) and Blue-winged Teal (another bonus)! A few Greater Yellowlegs, 1 Least Sandpiper, 2 Semipalmated Plovers and a calling Virginia Rail were added shortly after then we waded through some deeper water and found the Red-necked Phalarope that bart Kamp had mentioned (see previous post). Despite being on a big day effort we lingered to enjoy the handsome phalarope and shortly after picked up a Lesser Yellowlegs and lastly a Marsh Wren. The previously reported Common Moorhen nor the Sora called while we were present and as darkness was approaching we headed back to Pine Hill Road, only a short distance away.

The wind had subsided in the past few hours and listening conditions were perfect, the only noise we had to contend with were the buzzing blood-thirsty mosquitoes! Soon we heard American Woodcock calling, then Vesper Sparrow, soon the whip-poor-wills started up, further in Grasshopper Sparrows joined the chorus and not to be undone at least 2 Barred Owls called in the distance and our last new bird of the day would be a distant Great-horned Owl that answered a our imitation!

We'd "pack it in" about 9PM with 128 species for the day, we had looked for something in the 125 to 135 range, so we were very pleased with the effort and remain optimistic that higher totals are within reach with a little more route refinement and scouting of more key and uncommon species.

Our list for the day:
Common Loon
Double-crested Cormorant
American Bittern
Great Blue Heron
Turkey Vulture
Canada Goose
Mute Swan
Wood Duck
American Black Duck
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Hooded Merganser
Common Merganser
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Broad-winged Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Grouse, Ruffed
Wild Turkey
Virginia Rail
Semipalmated Plover
Killdeer
GreaterYellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs
SolitarySandpiper
Spotted Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
Red-necked Phalarope
American Woodcock
Bonaparte’s Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Rock Dove
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Barred Owl
Eastern Whip-poor-will
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Alder Flycatcher
Willow Flycatcher
Least Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
Blue-headed Vireo
Yellow-throated Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Common Raven
Horned Horned
Tree Swallow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Bank Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Carolina Wren
House Wren
Marsh Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Eastern Bluebird
Veery
Hermit Thrush
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Blue-winged Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Pine Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
Redstart, American Warbler
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Louisiana Waterthrush
Common Yellowthroat
Canada Warbler
Scarlet Tanager
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Grasshopper Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardina
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
Bobolink
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Baltimore Oriole
Purple Finch
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow