[wisb] Northern WI weekend

Hey all,
Just got back from a weekend up north.  On Friday we headed north to Bayfield 
where we had a most excellent time.  We did the Raspberry Island excursion 
which included a lighthouse tour which was really great.  Afterwards I took a 
little hike along the trail in the half hour I had left on the island.  Along 
the way I had a few warblers including a couple palm and magnolia as well as a 
RE vireo.  I hustled on to the sand spit (beach) where I literally had maybe 
2-3 minutes but ran into a small group of shorebirds.  I easily IDâ??d the 
semipalmated plovers (3 I believe), and made a guess at the sanderlings (about 
4) but the larger birds I didnâ??t know.  I took a few distant photos and ran 
back to the dock where the boat was waiting to leave.  When I got back I was 
able to send a few photos to Nick Anich (and confirmed by Ryan Brady) who IDd 
the other birds as RED KNOTS (2).  What luck.  Thanks much to them for helping 
me with those.

Also today I headed over to the Nicolet NF.  Thereâ??s a campground I have 
driven by a couple times that I have always wanted to stay at.  Itâ??s just 
north of Alvin off HWY 55 called the Brule River Campground.  Itâ??s not 
heavily used and there were a grand total of 0 campers there when I arrived 
this morning.  But it looked really nice, amidst towering red pines, balsam 
firs and a few other conifers, and itâ??s right on the Brule River (which is 
the border between WI and MI so you can just swim across to the UP if you want) 
and sure enough, I found that the campground was home to a number of GRAY JAYS 
which I am sure would visit your campsite if you were to stay there.  There 
were at least four.  I had brought along our bag of peanuts in case I ran into 
any and they seemed very appreciative.  A couple blue jays also enjoyed the 
snack but theyâ??re a bit more wary.  I also heard a broad-winged hawk call 
several times and heard what sounded like maybe a pine warbler attempting a 
song way up in a pine tree.  So for anyone heading to Alvin this fall/winter, 
Iâ??d really recommend a stop at this campground, just remember to bring them 
some snacks.

Alvin itself was getting poured (rain on and off all day) on when I came back 
through, and I didnâ??t see any birds there though itâ??s always nice to see 
how many people in this small town feed the birds.  I continued on and had a 
flock including warblers and vireos near the Windsor Dam Campground (which had 
a few campers in it but is nowhere near as nice as the other one), but nothing 
I was able to ID as it was dark and they quickly moved up.  I checked a few 
more spots before heading out, including the Pine River Rd. pullout, but the 
only thing I saw there was what was likely a kestrel that swooped in for a few 
minutes before heading out.  Crummy day overall with sun/clouds/rain on and off 
all day.  Here are a few photos, I have several more to put up so if anyone is 
interested or wants more info on anything, let me know and Iâ??ll let you know 
when I get more up.

Our lake near Tomahawk, by the way, was host to the usual kingfishers and a 
single common loon, as well as a bald eagle, one of several I saw this weekend.

Photos:

Raspberry Island Lighthouse: 
http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/2118022080059461204lbGOjV

Raspberry Island shoreline: 
http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/2036655600059461204KUsryU

The ranger kind of adopted our son:  
http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/2402437750059461204ocLfcB

A really great tour by another ranger, who played the role of a real lighthouse 
keeper circa 1923:  http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/2107080250059461204pBBIvT

Raspberry Island beach:  
http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/2499859320059461204yCWfjS

A gray jay helps itself to some peanuts while I had lunch:  
http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/2387298200059461204fLaWeC

-Mike Duchek, Waukesha, Waukesha Co./Bradley, Lincoln Co.

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  • » [wisb] Northern WI weekend - Mike Duchek