Birding In the Mountains

July 17-24, 2019

Richard Stevens:

July 17

It was a cool 73 degrees in the foothills.  Winds were 6-7 mph.

I planned to bird Colorado's South and Middle Parks the next few days.  Eventually I returned home tired from the erratic weather, however did find some interesting birds.

My arrival at Rampart Range Road and Highway 67 was planned for two hours before sunrise.  A walk of about a mile in each direction found only one Northern Pygmy-Owl.  Both Northern Saw-whet and Northern Pygmy-Owls have been found in the past.

After sunrise, I heard the distinct drumming of an American Three-toed Woodpecker.  A male was eventually observed do just that at the northeast corner of the intersection.  A male Williamson's Sapsucker flew across Highway 67 approximately 0.2 miles east of the intersection.

I stopped and walked around Stoney Pass Road and Wigwam Creek and relocated one of the Red-headed Woodpeckers previously reported.  In past years, this location has had Red-headed Woodpeckers, American Three-toed Woodpeckers and Williamson's Sapsuckers at the same time, not today. A pair of Green-tailed Towhees fluttered about the same area.  

On the drive here, I noticed a small ball of feathers along Sugar Creek Road (Jefferson).  It was a Northern Pygmy-Owl not well hidden in bush below an evergreen tree. 

I hiked up the Cheesman trailhead to the reservoir.  No Three-toed Woodpeckers were found today. Pine Siskins, White-breasted and Red-breasted Nuthatches, a Townsend's Solitaire and a couple of Common Ravens were observed during the walk.

Owling along Trout Creek at Highway 67 was a bust.  A thunderstorm had rolled in several hours before my arrival.  In my experience, owling after a thunderstorm has produced little success.

July 18

Temperatures reached 97 degrees which is quite high for the mountains.  Hot winds of 12-13 mph blew in the warm air.

I wandered around the Manitou Experimental Forest (Teller) between midnight and sunrise.  My owl count was only two Flammulated Owls.  One was an historical location in the Forest.  A second owl was found along Teller CR 782.

Manitou Lake did not add much to my trip list.  Highlights were a male Williamson's Sapsucker and a Plumbeous Vireo.  Other birds included Gray Catbird, Dusky Flycatcher, Veery, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Pine Siskins and four Red Crossbills.

Mueller State Park (Teller) was more interesting.  I spent the day hiking to the north end of the park.  Grouse Mountain overlook (no grouse) to Buffalo Rock to Cheesman Ranch to Rule Creek Pond and back.  In all, the hike was 12.8 miles.  I was too tired to take on the south trails this trip.

Highlights were a Northern Pygmy-Owl just north of the end of the north drive.  Two American Three-toed Woodpeckers and a Williamson's Sapsucker were along the drive from the Visitor's Center to the north end.

July 19

The 97 degree high continued for the second day in a row.  Winds of 12-13 mph did not help.

I camped near the Crags Campgrounds (Teller) and got up early to do some owling.  The only owls found/heard were two Northern Pygmy-Owls.  One just south of the Campgrounds and the other about a half mile north of the Campgrounds.  Another highlight was a male American Three-toed Woodpecker feeding a young male (trail south of the Campgrounds). The usual mountain birds were found around the Campgrounds; however, nothing unusual caught my attention.  I did not attempt the entire Crags Trail this trip (approximately 4.8 miles one way).

The majority of the day was spent hiking the Horsethief Park trail.  Traditionally it is a great hike for woodpeckers.  The Horsethief trail is 3.9 miles one way to its terminus. Several side trips include the 0.5 miles to Horsethief Falls (no Black Swifts encountered this trip) and Pancake Rocks trail 2.4 miles to its end point.  I had too much energy today and covered the 14 miles.  The hike is superb but somewhat strenuous.

Highlights: two American Three-toed Woodpeckers along the Horsethief Trail and another pair along Pancake Rocks trail near the Falls intersection.  The hike is worth of the trip just for the views!

Inclement weather and a tired body stopped any owling this night.

July 20

Hot temperature and winds continued in the mountains.  The high was 86 degrees with 13-14 mph winds.

I spent late into the morning at Michigan Creek Campgrounds along the Georgia Pass Road (Park County).  After the last few days, I planned little hiking.  Nothing uncommon was found at the Campgrounds.  Warblers were quite scarce this trip.

A drive to Jefferson Lake (Park) did not find any uncommon birds.  So, I returned to Michigan Creek Road.  The only locations that I have found White-tailed Ptarmigan in the area are French Pass, which would have required a 7 mile hike, and Mount Guyot.  

While the Mount Goyot hike is only approximately a one mile hike off Georgia Pass Road, it was not possible to drive to the trailhead due the extremely snowy winter/spring of 2019.  Several hikers I talked to guessed it would be seven miles round trip to get to the final mile hike up Mount Goyot; I passed.

My longest hike was up the poorly defined trail with a small parking area at 4.1 miles north of the Michigan Creek Campgrounds.  This is a traditional American Three-toed Woodpecker and Northern Pygmy-Owl location (located more or less near Johnson Creek).

In a mile hike up an unnamed hill, I finally arrived above tree line.  Two American Three-toed Woodpeckers had been observed during the hike.  A male was 100 yards west of Michigan Creek Road.  Another male was 1/2 mile up the trail.  While I was barely above tree line along the southern base of Mount Guyot, I did not run across any White-tailed Ptarmigan.

After returning to Michigan Creek Road, I walked north toward Georgia Pass for about a mile and a half.  On the return, I found a Dusky Grouse perhaps 300 yards from my car. 

After sunset, I played several owl recordings.  A Northern Pygmy-Owl briefly made a contact call (approximately 200 yards south of my car.  

July 21

Getting higher in the mountains helped escaping our recent hot temperatures.  The high today was 80 degrees.  Winds of 9-10 mph were unexpected low for the mountains.

My birding day started with a drive up Independence Pass (Lake/Pitkin Counties).  In about three hours, I was able to find two White-tailed Ptarmigan in Lake County and another in Pitkin County (all north of highway 82).  During the hike small flocks of Brown-capped Rosy Finches flew overhead (observed in both Counties).

I spent the afternoon resting my legs hiking around Twin Lakes Reservoir (Lake County).  Male and female Williamson's Sapsuckers were seen around the Campgrounds.  A female American Three-toed Woodpecker was encountered along the Interlaken Trail.

No owls were found after sunset.

July 22

Cooler temperatures continued again with a high of 80 degrees.  Winds were again only 7-8 mph.

I decided to tackle one of my favorite Lake County hikes today and headed up Hagerman Pass.  My day checklist followed a similar story to the pass few days.  Two American Three-toed Woodpeckers were observed on the trip to the Pass.  I had set up one of my "owl listening stations" on the walk and later heard a Northern Pygmy-Owl respond to the recording.

Pine Grosbeaks, Red Crossbills, Willow Flycatchers, Dusky Flycatchers, Olive-sided Flycatcher were among the birds counted on the Lake County side of the Pass.  Another American Three-toed Woodpecker was encountered on the Pitkin Side.  Clear skies for a change after dark allowed for owling.  Unfortunately, only a single Northern Pygmy-Owl was heard along Ivanhoe Creek.

I hiked within 2.4 miles of the Summit to Wildcat Mountain.  However, I declined to make the hike up.  We found White-tailed Ptarmigan during a hike 8/11/2008.  The number of stars in the clear sky was breath taking.  I sat and watched satellites cross the skies and was amazed at how many are up in space. 

July 23

Another high of 80 degrees with winds of 8-9 mph.

A Northern Pygmy-Owl called as I dropped down off Hagerman Pass (Pitkin).  Once back at Turquoise Lake and rested my legs hiking around the relatively flat trails.  

Highlights included a male Black-chinned Hummingbird and Black-throated Gray Warbler.  A Common Loon swam along the eastern half of the Lake.

A walk around Tennessee Pass (Eagle) found a Townsend's Warbler fluttered about.

I stopped by a friend's home in Silverthorne and enjoyed the barbecue!  His yard had Band-tailed Pigeons, Clark's Nutcrackers, Evening Grosbeaks, a Pine Grosbeak, and Pine Siskins.  One Brown-capped Rosy Finch stopped by for a brief visit. 

July 24

Finally a cool day with a high temperature of 59 degrees.  I did not want to leave.  Winds were 5-6 mph.

I headed up North Rock Creek at first light (Summit County, just south of Blue River Campgrounds) to the A.M. Bailey Bird Sanctuary.  Eventually American Three-toed Woodpeckers were found along CR 1350 just passed the Trailhead to the Bird Sanctuary.  Another two American Three-toed Woodpeckers were encountered along the 1/2 mile trail to the Sanctuary.

A pair of Williamson's Sapsuckers fluttered around the Aspen Grove at the Sanctuary.  Other birds observed at this interesting birding spot include Slate-colored Fox Sparrow, Wilson's Warbler, MacGillivray's Warbler, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Ruby-crowned Kinglet and Red-naped Sapsucker to name a few.

I hiked up the rocky Ptarmigan trail along the southern base of Keller Mountain for a good mile before encountering a female White-tailed Ptarmigan with two young!

After dusk, a Northern Pygmy-Owl was enticed into responding to my recordings.  No additional owls were found on the hike back to my car.

I had planned to stay out longer.  Tired and missing showers, I decided to return to Denver (by way of the Painted Bunting sighting at the Audubon Nature Center at Chatfield State Park (Jefferson).