Hocking Hills Christmas Bird Count

Snow-flocked Hemlocks in the Hocking Hills

January 2nd turned out to be a cold, brisk, wintry day, perhaps not the best of days to be out birding.  The roads went from dry to snow-covered in a matter of hours, and we found ourselves in near white-out conditions at a few points in the day.  As a result, the birds stayed hunkered down for the most part, except for a few pockets of activity here and there.  I had hoped for at least 40 species for the day, and we ended the day with 44 species; however, only 35 of those were in our count territory - the other 9 were "borrowed" from Lake Logan, which was the territory of another count group.
I'm glad we stopped at the lake first thing, though, because there was much waterfowl to be seen.  Due to the mild weather that we've had thus far, the water was completely open (i.e. not frozen), so there were many more waterbirds than one would find if the lake had been even partially frozen.  We saw several good-sized rafts of American Coots and Hooded Mergansers (with females greatly outnumbering males), a couple of Pied-billed Grebes, a Double-crested Cormorant, and a Horned Grebe.  Please let it be noted that, with the exception of the Coots (and maybe the Mergs), I probably wouldn't have been able to ID the other waterfowl due to utter lack of experience (especially since they're all in basic, or non-breeding, plumage right now!).  Thanks to our fearless leader, Jim McCormac, for pointing out all these great birds!

As strange as it may sound to some, I find an odd type of enjoyment in driving around and stopping and looking and listening for birds.  Of course, this is all done on rural roads, so traffic is not too much of an issue, but you do have to be mindful of private property.  We stopped and "staked out" a couple of yards with feeders, and if the homeowners would have happened to look out while this car full of people with binoculars was checking out their house, they might have been a little alarmed!  One of these feeders got us our only House Finch of the day, though.

My bird count partners, Olivia and Jim.

Some species came easily, and were spotted or heard at almost every stop, with the American Crow probably taking the prize there.  Dark-eyed Juncos were also observed in great numbers (101 for the day for our group, I believe).  Other species like Carolina Chickadee and Tufted Titmouse were observed in surprisingly low numbers, especially given the number of forested habitats we encountered.  We got all 5 woodpecker species that we expected (Downy, Hairy, Red-belied, Northern Flicker, and Pileated), but we had to work really hard for the Hairy, and all the Pileateds were silent fly-bys.  That's one woodpecker you tend to hear more than you see it, but not on this day.  We had 4 Belted Kingfishers for the day, which I thought was a high number, but very few Starlings or House Sparrows, both of which I would have expected to see in decent numbers simply due to their commonness.

Surprises for the day came both in the form of what we saw and didn't see.  The aforementioned Horned Grebe was a nice find, as were several hearty-souled Savannah Sparrows cavorting with a large flock of Juncos, a Bald Eagle soaring over Lake Logan, and a few Killdeer holding out on the mudflats at the lake.  We had several misses, too, that were disappointing: no Turkey Vultures (did see a number of Black Vultures, though), no Red-tailed Hawk, and no American Kestrel.  Regarding the latter two, I suspect our chances would have been better if the weather weren't so dreadful.  Who wants to be teed up in a tree or perched on autility line when the wind is blowing the snow sideways?  We had also hoped and tried for Red-breasted Nuthatch, Winter Wren and maybe an overwintering Eastern Phoebe, but no luck.  And so it goes.

The day wrapped up at Crane Hollow Nature Preserve, where we had a group gathering and pot luck.  It was nice to sit in this warm, cozy house with some yummy snacks and in the company of friends, new and old, while we compiled the day's findings.  It was a wonderful way to start the new year!

Here's the full list of species that our group saw and/or heard, if anyone cares to know:

• Hooded Merganser
• Double-crested Cormorant (new for the Hocking Hills count!)
• American Coot
• Canada Goose
• Pied-billed Grebe
• Horned Grebe
• Mute Swan
• Mallard
• Killdeer
• Belted Kingfisher
• Bald Eagle
• Red-shouldered Hawk
• Northern Harrier
• American Crow
• Norther Cardinal
• Blue Jay
• Carolina Chickadee
• Tufted Titmouse
• White-breasted Nuthatch
• Brown Creeper
• Song Sparrow
• White-throated Sparrow
• Dark-eyed Junco
• Savannah Sparrow
• Swamp Sparrow
• American Tree Sparrow
• Eastern Towhee
• Hermit Thrush
• Eastern Bluebird
• American Robin
• Pileated Woodpecker
• Downy Woodpecker
• Hairy Woodpecker
• Red-breasted Woodpecker
• Northern Flicker
• Mourning Dove
• American Goldfinch
• House Finch
• Carolina Wren
• Golden-crowned Kinglet
• Black Vulture
• Northern Mockingbird
• House Sparrow
• European Starling

Up close with the ice

A visit to any of the parks in the Hocking Hills region never fails to fill me with a sense of awe and reverence, no matter what the season. There's magic in them hills, I tell ya. Thus, it was no surprise that I was immediately taken in by the sight and feeling of the gigantic ice formation at Ash Cave.


The vast array of color and texture present within the formation was absolutely mind boggling.






Some images had to be converted into monochrome to really show off the texture.






In addition to the icy star of the show, there were some other nice things that caught my attention. The underground runoff from the ice mountain flows into a rippling creek, partly visible here.


Cone from an Eastern Hemlock


My first species ID puzzle of the year. I was very surprised to look down and see this bug actively walking about on the snow. I actually saw this same type of bug the next day at home, flying about, even. I've tried to identify it using my Kaufman Field Guide to Insects of North America, but no luck yet. I'll keep trying though.


In case you didn't know what you're getting into here, it's icy here!


Don't worry, though, because I came prepared. My winter boots have absolutely NO traction (right Meg?), and I've taken a couple of spills due to this fact. Luckily I have a pair of Yaktrax, which give me great traction on the ice. Caution is still necessary, of course, but I would not have been able to take many of these ice photos without the help of these nifty little helpers.

The temperatures have risen and stayed above freezing for the last several days, so much of the ice and snow around the house and around town has melted. But I'm not done with the ice yet.

To see a special surprise that I found while taking these photos, please visit my photo blog.

Icy Ash Cave

This weekend Dave and I drove up to Ash Cave in the Hocking Hills. We went in hopes of seeing a monstrous ice formation.

Admittedly, this formation is pretty large. But we've seen it even bigger in past years, so we were a teeny bit disappointed.

This little guy next to the ice mound gives you some idea of perspective.

And here's Dave looking up at the falling water that is contributing to this mound.


A good number of folks were out on this fine weekend to enjoy the warmer temperatures and, for the first time in several weeks, no snowfall!

Stay tuned for more images and musings on this icy spectacle.

Visting Old Man's Cave

I have two favorite "natural" places to visit in the state of Ohio: the Wilds, and the Hocking Hills region. You already know that we spent the day at the Wilds last weekend. So it made my month to spend some time at Old Man's Cave in the Hocking Hills this weekend! There are 6 natural attractions spread throughout the Hocking Hills, but Old Man's Cave is the most central among them. And what a great place to meet up with a friend for a winter hike, right? I met my blogging friend Meg (Art of Rustic) there yesterday for a lovely couple of hours of hiking. Meg and her husband have a farm that I hope to visit someday, where they have two lovely horses and lots of trails. She asked me if I would come birding at her place sometime. Heck yeah I will!

The last time either of us had been in the area was last summer, when things were pretty dry. Winter and spring, however, are great times for high water levels, meaning that you can take those obligatory waterfall shots.


The Upper Falls


The Devil's Bathtub


Water cascading over the rocks
There were also many other beautiful things to observe, even in the middle of winter. I was grateful to have a walking companion who understood my need to stop, look, and touch things every 5 feet or so, and who indulged my need to photograph all along the way, too. Everything was damp, and the place was alive with color.


L: Bark of the Eastern Hemlock tree
R: Moss, looking almost phosphorescent


Lovely, dainty fungus


Twisty downed branch
We didn't see very many birds during our hike, which was kind of surprising to me. In fact, the only birds we saw were two Rock Doves (AKA pigeons), but we did see evidence that a much larger bird had been in the area.


First I noticed lots of wood "shavings" on the ground all around the base of this hemlock tree. Then we looked up to see this:


Yup, a Pileated Woodpecker (or perhaps multiple woodpeckers) had been working on this tree. There were sets of holes like this on 3 sides of the tree!
Even though the temperatures have been moderate over the last week or so, there are still some pretty large chunks of ice clinging to the rocks in areas where the sunshine doesn't reach.




Nature's chandeliers
I've mentioned before the cooler micro-climate that exists within the parks of the Hocking Hills, and this fact hit us especially hard yesterday as we wound our way up and out of Old Man's Cave and headed toward the parking lot: off came all those layers, 'cause man it was hot up in the real world! Well, not hot, but it reached almost 50 degrees yesterday, which is much warmer than it had been down in the cave.

After our hike we drove to La Cascada, a great Mexican restaurant in Logan, and had some fantastic authentic Mexican lunch.


Some people say "cheese" when they take a picture... I say "La Cascada!"
Thanks for the companionship, Meg. I had a great time!

Sharing the Hocking Hills with a friend

My recent vacation got off to a good start when I spent a day hiking and birding the Hocking Hills region with my blogging friend Kelly of Red and the Peanut. Her son was attending a tennis camp at Ohio University, so she decided to spend the week exploring Athens and Hocking counties and all of the beauty this area of the state has to offer. I'm really glad we got to not only meet in person, but do some birding and enjoying of the great outdoors together.


left - Kelly snapping a photo
right - a path to the Upper Falls of Old Man's Cave

One thing that became apparent to us very quickly at our first stop (Old Man's Cave) was the special micro-climate that exists within the 6 Hocking Hills parks. A cool and moist environment was created here millions of years ago when the glaciers advanced to their farthest point south in Ohio, and that environment persisted within the gorges of the Hocking Hills even after the glaciers retreated. Another thing that the glaciers left behind were the seeds of more northern species of plants, such as eastern hemlocks and Canadian Yews.

So how did this micro-climate manifest itself to us, other than the fact that it just feels cooler and more moist in the parks? Well, soon after we got into the park proper, we heard the ethereal, flute-like song of the Hermit Thrush. We were both in awe. They do not nest in Ohio (their nesting grounds are up in the most northeastern states and Canada), but there has been documentation of nesting pairs in various regions of the Hocking Hills during some years. While we don't know if the bird we saw was part of a nesting pair or not, he was certainly singing to attract the ladies. And we didn't just hear one. I believe at one time we heard Hermit Thrush song coming from 3 distinct locations. But even better, we saw one. It was an incredible sighting, about 10-15 feet in front of us in a tree, right at eye level, singing it's heart out. Then it flew across the ravine to a rock wall where it hopped around either catching bugs or sipping water. It was Kelly's eagle eye that spotted the bird, so I'm doubly thankful she was with me! Unfortunately neither of us got a photo of this beautiful creature, but the image surely burned itself into both our memories. Oh, and a bit of a bonus for me: LIFE BIRD (I'd heard one before, but had not seen one until this day)!

Another oddity: Fire Pink... blooming in JULY!!!! Ours quit blooming shortly after Mother's Day! Another thing to chalk up to the micro climate, I suppose.


Even though it has been a wet summer, the waterfalls were not running. Dribbling a little bit, maybe, but not running. Here are some side-by-side shots to give you an idea of what I'm talking about:


Old Man's Cave, Lower Falls
July 2009 on the left, April 2008 on the right


Cedar Falls
July 2009 on the left, March 2008 on the right

I was a little bummed, as I really would have liked for Kelly to have had a chance to see the majesty of these waterfalls in person, but I guess she'll just have to come back next spring to see them for herself!

We saw some other cool stuff along our walk, like this colony of mushrooms on a dead tree:



And a pair of snapping turtles!







Thanks for a fun day of birding and hiking, Kelly, and for helping me get my vacation started off right! I hope you enjoyed your time in the Hocking Hills - I know I always do! (See Kelly's blog, if you haven't already, for more photos and accounts of her time spent in the Hocking Hills region.)


Bird list:
Hermit Thrush
Cedar Waxwing
Wood Thrush (heard only)
Eastern Phoebe
American Robin
American Crow
American Goldfinch
Black-throated Green Warbler (we hunted this one down after hearing it sing for a long time, finally got a visual - LIFE BIRD)
Blue Jay (heard only)
Acadian Flycatcher (heard only)
Hooded Warbler (we THINK! - heard only - I'm 95% sure)
Grey Catbird
White-eyed Vireo (heard only)
Red-eyed Vireo (heard only)
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Eastern Bluebird (heard only)
Common Yellowthroat (heard only)
Carolina Wren (heard only)
Red-shouldered Hawk (heard only)
Turkey Vulture

Sacred Spaces

Well, here we are at my 150th post. It's kind of hard for me to believe. To honor this milestone, I will share photos of some very special places in the Hocking Hills, and thus conclude my series from the Shoot the Hills competition.

There are quite a few waterfalls throughout the Hocking Hills region, each with its own unique features. I only visited 2 during the competition, and luckily I got to spend some quality time with both of them. By "quality time" I mean to say that it was just me and the waterfall - no one else around. One way to achieve this is to get to the waterfall early in the morning (say, before 8:00), which is what I did at Ash Cave. Another way is by dumb luck, which is what happened at Conkle's Hollow. You have to walk back quite a bit from the trailhead to get to both of these falls, and once you do, it's almost as if you've entered another world. When you enter it alone, it becomes very sacred space. I'll refrain from too much New-Agey, hippie mumbo-jumbo, but suffice it to say that when I left both of these waterfalls, I felt cleansed, blessed and very much in touch with this planet that we inhabit.

And now, without further ado, the waterfalls themselves. It's a very cool but humid environment around both of them, with the smell of wet earth and wet rock, and a somewhat disorienting throwing of sound by the rocks that surround you. Sand and puddles underfoot, rocks and tree limbs to maneuver around or focus on... are you there with me?

The approach to the fall at Conkle's Hollow

Looking through the rocks

The falls at Ash Cave - This is actually "behind" the falls, and I stayed here for a long time, planning out how I could creatively capture its beauty. You may see the "rock" that was featured in my "Photographer's Choice" photo.


I begin to isolate my subject, trying to decide on the best angle for the shot.


Closer, but I'm still not so sure about that stuff in the foreground... (I like it in monochrome, though. Some surprise, huh?)


Okay, I've almost got something I like...


My finished submission. I took a shot with every white balance setting available on my camera, and I think the "fluorescent" setting is what gave me such a blue coloring. The "cloudy" look of the water was achieved by a slow shutter speed (6 seconds).


Slightly different postitioning, made monochrome in Picasa. I really like this one, too.

One last technical note: I used a neutral density filter on my lens for all of these shots, which limits the amount of light that comes through the lens. I don't think any of those shots would have been possible without that filter, because I was already maxed out with my other options of shutting out the amount of light that came in through the lens. (Limiting light is a necessity when shooting at the slow shutter speeds needed to get that "veiled" look of the moving water.)

And one last non-technical note: I'd like to thank all of you for reading this blog and sharing in my nature experiences. I hope we'll all still be here together 150 more posts from now!