October 21 to 28, 2010
Richard Stevens:
My goals for the rest of the week were three.
1. I wanted to camp out a night under the Harvest Moon. Probably the last full moon of the year where temperatures would be bearable enough to enjoy the outdoors.
2. Next I wanted to experience a snowstorm in the mountains both for the quiet calm of falling snow and potential rage of a windy night.
3. Kind of have a new theory to find owls, especially Northern Saw-whet Owls after watching Scott Rashid band them in Estes Park; I wanted to try it out.
October 21st
I headed south down Highway 285, resisted the urge to go up Guanella Pass Road at Grant (I had just been there a week ago).
At Kenosha Pass, I walked around the campgrounds and the road east of Hwy 285. Not many birds were around and no Dusky Grouse were found. Winds were quite strong at 21 mph with gusts to 32 mph. The start of my trip did not look good.
Once over Kenosha Pass however, winds were mild (less than 8 mph). I made the short detour up Lost Park (Park County) again finding few birds. It definitive is not the best time of year to find birds in the mountains.
At Jefferson, I turned up Michigan Creek Road and drove to the parking area where American Three-toed Woodpeckers have been seen for years. During an hour walk up the gravel road, I finally ran into a male American Three-toed Woodpecker. Location: 60 yards south of Michigan Creek Road and 40 yards west of the gravel road (see CoBus website for directions to birding locations). http://coloradobirdingsociety.net16.net
About an hour before sunset, I walked about 2 miles up Michigan Creek Road. Two Dusky Grouse were observed running across the road. One at 60 yards west of the parking area and the other 140 yards west.
I wandered down the road until dusk and played owl recordings on the return trip to my car. A Northern Pygmy-Owl responded on the north side of Michigan Creek Road at 40 yards east of the parking area.
No success in finding owls at Buffalo Springs Campgrounds (Park).
October 22nd
I camped out at Antero Reservoir (Park County). Skies were clear and winds mild most of the night. Temperatures dropped into the low 20s.
The Black Scoter reported by Zeeto on 10/15 was still at the northwest corner of Antero Reservoir. A Common Loon (Zeeto, 10/15) was at nearby Spinney Mountain Reservoir. That was just about it for the three Park County Reservoirs.
An hour walk around Trout Creek Pass was uneventful.
I could not find any Pinyon Jays at the Buena Vista Overlook or KOA Campgrounds below.
In Buena Vista (Chaffee County), I found a Lewis's Woodpecker along North Pleasant Avenue, north of Chaffee County Road 306 (Cottonwood Pass Road).
A search for the Western Screech-Owls that nested last year in Buena Vista turned up empty. I would try searching for them two additional times during the week; without success.
A drive up Cottonwood Pass to the road to Taylor Park Reservoir (Gunnison County) found a few Gray Jays and a Clark's Nutcracker. Two Barrow's Goldeneyes were on the reservoir. I may have gotten a brief look at a Brown-capped Rosy Finch at the Lakeside Campgrounds, too brief to be sure.
On the return trip to Buena Vista, I stopped and searched unsuccessfully for owls at Collegiate Campgrounds; without success.
However, my night was about to get more interesting. Scott Rashid when banding Northern Saw-whet Owls near Estes Park sets up mist nets and plays a Saw-whet call next to them. He checks the nets every 15 minutes for owls (basically every 15 minutes because foxes are in the area and he does not want to expose any owls trapped helplessly in the nets to their predation).
On the night I watched the banding, one Northern Saw-whet Owl was observed in a tree only feet from the nets and recording. I thought, why are nets needed, perhaps one could "point count" the owls without exposing them to mist nets or predators?
Just east of Buena Vista, there are quite a few acres of BLM (public access). I took three recording devices and set up "stations" at three locations. Just north of the Buena Vista overlook (Big Sandy Draw), just south of the overlook (CR 301), south of highway 285, and at County Road 302.
Final count; I eventually found 2 Saw-whet Owls up Big Sandy Draw (Pinyon-Juniper Woodlands), 2 Saw-whet Owls along CR 301 (also Pinyon-Juniper Woodlands), and none along CR 302 (Ponderosa Pine Forest). At Big Sandy Draw, I found 3 Saw-whet Owls; however, because of the closeness of the sightings, I was not sure that it was not the same bird.
That would be the advantage of banding, distinguishing the owls. In my opinion, not worth exposing the owls to the trauma of capture and the predation of other animals.
October 23rd
I stayed the night in Buena Vista (temperatures dipped into the middle teens). Before Civil Twilight, I was at Crystal Lakes (Lake County) hoping to catch a glimpse of the Long-eared Owl reported there are few months ago; did not happen.
I also found the Barrow's Goldeneye reported by Tim Kalbach on the Mt Elbert Forebay. His Brown Thrasher sighting is probably a first county record, which I missed of course.
A stop in Granite did not find any Rosy Finches; it really is a bit early for them to come down from the mountains. A Common Loon was on Clear Creek Reservoir.
After lunch, I missed finding Pinyon Jays again at the Buena Vista Overlook and Ruby Mountain parking area.
At dusk, I set up three "listening stations" on BLM northeast of Salida (Chaffee County). I only found one Northern Saw-whet Owl this night. It was up Mountain Gulch Road.
October 24th
I spent the night back at Antero Reservoir in Park County. Finally got to see a little snow, mostly just a dusting. Temperatures again dipped into the middle teens but winds were mild or I would have driven over to Buffalo Springs Campgrounds which, surrounded by trees and hills are more protected from the winds.
There were no scoters or loons on Antero Reservoir this morning. The previous Black Scoter at Antero Reservoir was not at Spinney Mountain Reservoir or Eleven Mile Reservoir either. A female White-winged Scoter was at Eleven Mile Reservoir. Two female Surf Scoters were found a Spinney Mountain Reservoir.
In the afternoon, I drove south on Highway 9 looking for proper habitat to set up my "listening stations". I finally found suitable habitat up Smith Gulch Road, not far from Deer Haven State Trust Lands. One Northern Saw-whet Owl was found up Smith Gulch Road. Throughout the night, I moved the "stations" three times, so nine locations (at least two miles apart) were surveyed.
October 25th
I slept most of the morning (getting to bed around 8:00 am). Drove through Temple Canyon State Park (Fremont County) just to prove to myself that there would be few birds. Flycatchers and Vireos should and were long gone by now.
In the afternoon, I drove up the Shelf Road to set up my "listening stations". There is much BLM Land north of Canon City. During the night, I again moved the stations three times (therefore surveying nine locations). It was my most successful night with 3 Northern Saw-whet Owl sightings at two of the locations.
October 26th
Around 2:00 am in the morning, I passed the Crags Campgrounds (Teller County) and decided to check it out. The habitat is not the best for Saw whet Owls and none was found. A Northern Pygmy-Owl however, was quite noisy.
After visiting a friend in Woodland Park (Teller County) and was ready to head for home. Instead of driving up the busy and boring Interstate 25 (through Colorado Springs and south Denver), I turned west back toward the Park County Reservoirs.
Today I found no scoters at the three reservoirs. Strange, in previous years, the scoters would "hang around" for days or even weeks before moving south. The weather has been quite nice except of one day, perhaps they preferred to take advantage and fly in good weather?
The highlight today was a pair of Tundra Swans at Spinney Mountain Reservoir. Winds were outrageous. Many ducks could have hidden in the high waves?
I was enjoying the owling every night and decided for one last night of it. This time picking the San Isabel Forest southwest of Antero Reservoir. Before dark, I drove back into Buena Vista for a late lunch and to get cell phone service (to check back in with home).
As a side note, my new ATT service was to provide emails on my Cell Phone. Over the last few days, I had sent 3 emails, which later I discovered never, were received. New service is no better than the old one.
I again missed Pinyon Jays in the Buena Vista area; where have they gone? Chaffee County and Buena Vista is usually quite good for them. A few Juniper Titmice and a flock of Bushtits were at the B.V. Overlook.
I tried another 9 locations for my "listening stations"; however, this night no owls were curious enough to make an appearance.
I was headed home, but Bryan Ehlmann said he would like to drive down and search for Northern Saw-whet Owls and make an attempt to find a Spotted Owl. What the heck, I stayed the night in Buena Vista.
October 27th
I met Bryan Ehlmann and Gary Weston at Antero. No scoters, 2 Tundra Swans (Spinney Mountain Reservoir), left my car at Antero Reservoir and headed for Cripple Creek.
We looked around Cripple Creek and Teller City for Rosy Finches; finding none. At dusk headed down the shelf Road. One Northern Saw-whet Owl was relocated (do not know for sure if it was a different bird as it was near the same location as a few days ago).
North of Canon City, we turned east and drove up Phantom Canyon Road. Winds were whipping down the Canon (could not measure as I had left my Anemometer in my car. A three hour search did not turn up any Spotted Owls (or any owls).
Too tired to drive back to Antero Reservoir, we returned to Canon City.
October 28th
After only a couple of hours of sleep, we again drove up Phantom Canyon Road. This time we did hear a Spotted Owl! As a protected species, we cannot write down the location.
After sunrise, we continued North and then west to Antero Reservoir. No Swamp Sparrows were found a Lake George (too late in the year?).
No scoters were found in brief visits to the three Park County Reservoirs. The pair of Tundra Swans had moved from Spinney Mountain Reservoir to Antero Reservoir.
Richard Stevens:
My goals for the rest of the week were three.
1. I wanted to camp out a night under the Harvest Moon. Probably the last full moon of the year where temperatures would be bearable enough to enjoy the outdoors.
2. Next I wanted to experience a snowstorm in the mountains both for the quiet calm of falling snow and potential rage of a windy night.
3. Kind of have a new theory to find owls, especially Northern Saw-whet Owls after watching Scott Rashid band them in Estes Park; I wanted to try it out.
October 21st
I headed south down Highway 285, resisted the urge to go up Guanella Pass Road at Grant (I had just been there a week ago).
At Kenosha Pass, I walked around the campgrounds and the road east of Hwy 285. Not many birds were around and no Dusky Grouse were found. Winds were quite strong at 21 mph with gusts to 32 mph. The start of my trip did not look good.
Once over Kenosha Pass however, winds were mild (less than 8 mph). I made the short detour up Lost Park (Park County) again finding few birds. It definitive is not the best time of year to find birds in the mountains.
At Jefferson, I turned up Michigan Creek Road and drove to the parking area where American Three-toed Woodpeckers have been seen for years. During an hour walk up the gravel road, I finally ran into a male American Three-toed Woodpecker. Location: 60 yards south of Michigan Creek Road and 40 yards west of the gravel road (see CoBus website for directions to birding locations). http://coloradobirdingsociety.net16.net
About an hour before sunset, I walked about 2 miles up Michigan Creek Road. Two Dusky Grouse were observed running across the road. One at 60 yards west of the parking area and the other 140 yards west.
I wandered down the road until dusk and played owl recordings on the return trip to my car. A Northern Pygmy-Owl responded on the north side of Michigan Creek Road at 40 yards east of the parking area.
No success in finding owls at Buffalo Springs Campgrounds (Park).
October 22nd
I camped out at Antero Reservoir (Park County). Skies were clear and winds mild most of the night. Temperatures dropped into the low 20s.
The Black Scoter reported by Zeeto on 10/15 was still at the northwest corner of Antero Reservoir. A Common Loon (Zeeto, 10/15) was at nearby Spinney Mountain Reservoir. That was just about it for the three Park County Reservoirs.
An hour walk around Trout Creek Pass was uneventful.
I could not find any Pinyon Jays at the Buena Vista Overlook or KOA Campgrounds below.
In Buena Vista (Chaffee County), I found a Lewis's Woodpecker along North Pleasant Avenue, north of Chaffee County Road 306 (Cottonwood Pass Road).
A search for the Western Screech-Owls that nested last year in Buena Vista turned up empty. I would try searching for them two additional times during the week; without success.
A drive up Cottonwood Pass to the road to Taylor Park Reservoir (Gunnison County) found a few Gray Jays and a Clark's Nutcracker. Two Barrow's Goldeneyes were on the reservoir. I may have gotten a brief look at a Brown-capped Rosy Finch at the Lakeside Campgrounds, too brief to be sure.
On the return trip to Buena Vista, I stopped and searched unsuccessfully for owls at Collegiate Campgrounds; without success.
However, my night was about to get more interesting. Scott Rashid when banding Northern Saw-whet Owls near Estes Park sets up mist nets and plays a Saw-whet call next to them. He checks the nets every 15 minutes for owls (basically every 15 minutes because foxes are in the area and he does not want to expose any owls trapped helplessly in the nets to their predation).
On the night I watched the banding, one Northern Saw-whet Owl was observed in a tree only feet from the nets and recording. I thought, why are nets needed, perhaps one could "point count" the owls without exposing them to mist nets or predators?
Just east of Buena Vista, there are quite a few acres of BLM (public access). I took three recording devices and set up "stations" at three locations. Just north of the Buena Vista overlook (Big Sandy Draw), just south of the overlook (CR 301), south of highway 285, and at County Road 302.
Final count; I eventually found 2 Saw-whet Owls up Big Sandy Draw (Pinyon-Juniper Woodlands), 2 Saw-whet Owls along CR 301 (also Pinyon-Juniper Woodlands), and none along CR 302 (Ponderosa Pine Forest). At Big Sandy Draw, I found 3 Saw-whet Owls; however, because of the closeness of the sightings, I was not sure that it was not the same bird.
That would be the advantage of banding, distinguishing the owls. In my opinion, not worth exposing the owls to the trauma of capture and the predation of other animals.
October 23rd
I stayed the night in Buena Vista (temperatures dipped into the middle teens). Before Civil Twilight, I was at Crystal Lakes (Lake County) hoping to catch a glimpse of the Long-eared Owl reported there are few months ago; did not happen.
I also found the Barrow's Goldeneye reported by Tim Kalbach on the Mt Elbert Forebay. His Brown Thrasher sighting is probably a first county record, which I missed of course.
A stop in Granite did not find any Rosy Finches; it really is a bit early for them to come down from the mountains. A Common Loon was on Clear Creek Reservoir.
After lunch, I missed finding Pinyon Jays again at the Buena Vista Overlook and Ruby Mountain parking area.
At dusk, I set up three "listening stations" on BLM northeast of Salida (Chaffee County). I only found one Northern Saw-whet Owl this night. It was up Mountain Gulch Road.
October 24th
I spent the night back at Antero Reservoir in Park County. Finally got to see a little snow, mostly just a dusting. Temperatures again dipped into the middle teens but winds were mild or I would have driven over to Buffalo Springs Campgrounds which, surrounded by trees and hills are more protected from the winds.
There were no scoters or loons on Antero Reservoir this morning. The previous Black Scoter at Antero Reservoir was not at Spinney Mountain Reservoir or Eleven Mile Reservoir either. A female White-winged Scoter was at Eleven Mile Reservoir. Two female Surf Scoters were found a Spinney Mountain Reservoir.
In the afternoon, I drove south on Highway 9 looking for proper habitat to set up my "listening stations". I finally found suitable habitat up Smith Gulch Road, not far from Deer Haven State Trust Lands. One Northern Saw-whet Owl was found up Smith Gulch Road. Throughout the night, I moved the "stations" three times, so nine locations (at least two miles apart) were surveyed.
October 25th
I slept most of the morning (getting to bed around 8:00 am). Drove through Temple Canyon State Park (Fremont County) just to prove to myself that there would be few birds. Flycatchers and Vireos should and were long gone by now.
In the afternoon, I drove up the Shelf Road to set up my "listening stations". There is much BLM Land north of Canon City. During the night, I again moved the stations three times (therefore surveying nine locations). It was my most successful night with 3 Northern Saw-whet Owl sightings at two of the locations.
October 26th
Around 2:00 am in the morning, I passed the Crags Campgrounds (Teller County) and decided to check it out. The habitat is not the best for Saw whet Owls and none was found. A Northern Pygmy-Owl however, was quite noisy.
After visiting a friend in Woodland Park (Teller County) and was ready to head for home. Instead of driving up the busy and boring Interstate 25 (through Colorado Springs and south Denver), I turned west back toward the Park County Reservoirs.
Today I found no scoters at the three reservoirs. Strange, in previous years, the scoters would "hang around" for days or even weeks before moving south. The weather has been quite nice except of one day, perhaps they preferred to take advantage and fly in good weather?
The highlight today was a pair of Tundra Swans at Spinney Mountain Reservoir. Winds were outrageous. Many ducks could have hidden in the high waves?
I was enjoying the owling every night and decided for one last night of it. This time picking the San Isabel Forest southwest of Antero Reservoir. Before dark, I drove back into Buena Vista for a late lunch and to get cell phone service (to check back in with home).
As a side note, my new ATT service was to provide emails on my Cell Phone. Over the last few days, I had sent 3 emails, which later I discovered never, were received. New service is no better than the old one.
I again missed Pinyon Jays in the Buena Vista area; where have they gone? Chaffee County and Buena Vista is usually quite good for them. A few Juniper Titmice and a flock of Bushtits were at the B.V. Overlook.
I tried another 9 locations for my "listening stations"; however, this night no owls were curious enough to make an appearance.
I was headed home, but Bryan Ehlmann said he would like to drive down and search for Northern Saw-whet Owls and make an attempt to find a Spotted Owl. What the heck, I stayed the night in Buena Vista.
October 27th
I met Bryan Ehlmann and Gary Weston at Antero. No scoters, 2 Tundra Swans (Spinney Mountain Reservoir), left my car at Antero Reservoir and headed for Cripple Creek.
We looked around Cripple Creek and Teller City for Rosy Finches; finding none. At dusk headed down the shelf Road. One Northern Saw-whet Owl was relocated (do not know for sure if it was a different bird as it was near the same location as a few days ago).
North of Canon City, we turned east and drove up Phantom Canyon Road. Winds were whipping down the Canon (could not measure as I had left my Anemometer in my car. A three hour search did not turn up any Spotted Owls (or any owls).
Too tired to drive back to Antero Reservoir, we returned to Canon City.
October 28th
After only a couple of hours of sleep, we again drove up Phantom Canyon Road. This time we did hear a Spotted Owl! As a protected species, we cannot write down the location.
After sunrise, we continued North and then west to Antero Reservoir. No Swamp Sparrows were found a Lake George (too late in the year?).
No scoters were found in brief visits to the three Park County Reservoirs. The pair of Tundra Swans had moved from Spinney Mountain Reservoir to Antero Reservoir.
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