Rambles to Rails

 Little to report as the dull winter rambles on.  It is one of the quieter winters we have had for birds, so we have mainly been out just for exercise!

I have been rambling around locally.  Some redpolls are here and there.  A walk at Wilkesport a few days ago revealed a couple.

I have been to Reid CA a couple of times and it certainly was not for birds!  Hardly any.  I happened to notice a flicker sitting very quietly in a tree.  Unfortunately the usual weather was at hand so lighting was horrible.

The pair of Pileated Woodpeckers is still there, always nice to see.  However they do not want to be photographed.

Yesterday morning was a rare day (for more than two months) where we had clear skies!  The afternoon clouded up though, so it was too good to be true.

I have had quite a few Pine Siskins coming to the yard lately.

The nuthatches also take advantage of the feeders.

With not much to cover lately, I will divert to some local history....again!

I have an interest in railroads and railroad history.  Recent events led me to look into the story of a steam locomotive (CNR 7470) that once worked in Wallaceburg.  I just realized that it is 100 years old this year!  It is close to my heart as I remember this engine sitting in Wallaceburg on the old Canada and Dominion Sugar Company property in April 1966.  I was only three years old (!) when my father took photos of it with me at his side.  The top of my head in the lower left corner, cut off.  I still have the original negative which does shows my face!

 

 It was sold to a couple of different owners and eventually moved to Sarnia where it sat for about two years.  Nothing ever transpired though, until it was sold to Dwight Smith the spring of 1968.

Dwight Smith, who eventually formed the Conway Scenic Railway with partners in New Hampshire, made preparations for transport.  As the photo shows, a man was dismantling the engine in prep for travel in 1966.  I suspect my father knew it was leaving Wallaceburg and wanted to get a photo. 

My initial interest in the engine was back in 2012, when I was looking at the old photos my father took.  I thought about it and wondered what ever happened to this engine.  I went to the internet and simply typed in “steam locomotive 7470”.  Instantly, several things came up showing that it still existed and was working as a tourist attraction with the Conway Scenic Railway in New Hampshire.  I could not believe it!

I wrote to Conway Scenic and sent the photos.  Paul Hallett, Operations Manager, responded and was quite pleased to receive the photos and said operating 7470 was “the BEST part of my job”.  At the time, 7470 was still in running condition, but he said if I ever made it that way, he would personally take me into the roundhouse to see the engine.

Not long after 2012, the 7470 went into the shop for restoration.  It came back out in 2019 to steam again!

The 7470 has a storied history starting with its construction in Montreal in 1921.  It was built as a “switcher”, a smaller type of locomotive that is used in yards for switching or moving rail cars.  It worked all over Ontario, and eventually spent its last years in Wallaceburg shuffling coal or sugar beet cars at the sugar factory.

 

Recently, I was referred to a story of 7470, well worth reading.  Here is the link:

https://issuu.com/wiseguycreative/docs/mwv-vibe-fall19/s/161701

 It covers the history of 7470 very well and provides a nice colour photo of it at Wallaceburg (the exact same location as the B & W photo above).  

Interestingly, after Smith bought it, plans were to go to the east coast via the States.  It was sent over to Michigan, but things changed and it went back to Sarnia then across Ontario on its way to the east coast of the US, ending up in Maine.

One can find several YouTube videos on the internet of 7470 operating on the Conway Scenic.  What a thrill to see it in action!

Here is one:

Conway Scenic 7470

One Last CBC-Weather Skunked Us Again!

 Yesterday, January 3 was the Skunk's Misery Christmas Bird Count.  It is usually the last one that birders in this area participate.  It was the fourth one I did this year.

As usual the weather was terrible! The long-range called for sun, but it was quite the opposite.  But that is the way it has been the last month or so--usually opposite to what is forecast.  We got a good covering of snow overnight, drizzle and fog in the afternoon.

I covered some of my usual area around Thamesville, starting at the bridge on Victoria Road.

There were few birds as I walked the old cemetery.

After a bit of driving I stopped by the Tecumseh Monument park east of the village.    It was the wrong time of year to look for Smoky Rubyspots along the river's edge so I did not venture down!

Again few birds, but the highlight was a Pileated Woodpecker across the river.  I had never recorded one on this count before. View was obscured though.

A few chickadees were working the grounds.

Kinglets and a creeper were also in the group.

I gave up quite a bit of my area this year, and drove the rest.  I guess the highlight was a huge flock (~100) of redpolls, but unfortunately they were overhead and moving. 

Very few birds, so I moved on and roamed the circle instead.

I came across a huge flock of Snow Buntings at one point.  Always neat to see as they swirl about.

Golden Eagles regularly winter in the north part of the circle. I only came across one in the distance in my travels, but the horrid weather did not help.

Numbers have yet to be finalized.

The St. Clair NWA count on Friday ended up at 89 species, an excellent total.  It relies heavily on waterfowl, and this year was no exception.  New for the count history was the Trumpeter Swan that I spotted within the wildlife area!

Wanderings of the Week

 I took the past week off work and did some wandering around.  Nothing too spectacular happened, but the weather was certainly up and down.  

Christmas Bird Counts are on the mind lately, which will certainly be different this year.  No gatherings at the end of the day, which is half the fun!  Blenheim/Rondeau is coming up on December 20, a bit later than usual due to the timing of the CBC period.

Last Sunday I headed up Sarnia way and went for a long walk at Perch Creek Habitat.  It has always been a good place for birding in the winter, but this year, like most places, is rather quiet.  Redpolls are always found here, especially along the old Blackwell Landfill site.  I did come across a small group.

A stop at Moore WMA (another good winter bird spot) was fruitless, as the valley was flooded.  A Purple Finch was a standout there.

Monday was a "do-nothing" day.  Just as well as it poured rain most of the day!

Tuesday we had some snow (not as much as forecast, but what is new?) and high winds.  I was out later on when things settled down.  In the morning I watched the yard and feeders and it was active.  Since I am usually not home during the day, it was nice to see what was around.  I saw a good variety of birds, including some Common Redpolls, a siskin and a lonely American Robin among other things.

Wednesday it was down to Rondeau as the weather had turned nice.  We found a very busy Orange-crowned Warbler on south point--that being the highlight.

Geoff Carpentier and Peter Hogenbirk found a different one near marsh trail on this day too.  Hopefully these warblers can stick around for the CBC!

A few Red Crossbills were flying overhead, while a single Evening Grosbeak was heard.

Ships were anchored in various location on Lake Erie due to the previous day's storm.  It is not often we see ships from Rondeau, but three were visible in the distance.

The campground was somewhat quiet. A Blue-gray Gnatcatcher was seen earlier in the week, but remained elusive till today when Steve found it once again.

Few sparrows.

Field Sparrow (not in a field)

We did find a "usual" Yellow-bellied Sapsucker in the campground.

Yellow-rumped Warblers are scarce this winter, but a couple are still around at least.  Would be nice to find an "Audubon's" for a change at Rondeau!

I stopped by Ridgetown Lagoons before going home.  A Ross's Goose has been hanging out with Snow Geese lately.

I knew Thurdsay would be a quiet day and had no idea where to go.  I ended up heading back to Rondeau even though the winds were very strong out of the southwest.  Nothing to note!

I found one of the Yellow-rumped Warblers.

Some Double-crested Cormorants are still around, as usual.

On these sunny days, we can sometimes find spanworm moths fluttering about.

I then headed over to Erieau to walk the rail trail which I have not been on in ages.  I met up with Steve there.  The winds were howling, but I wanted to check it out anyway.  A couple of Common Redpolls were playing in the wind.

About 850 American Coots were towards the end of Lagoon Road, not unusual for the locale this time of year.

Today, I went in a northerly direction starting at Port Lambton.  I wanted to end up at Suncor Nature Way off Modeland Road at Sarnia.  

Recently, lots of redpolls have been reported along the "way".  It took a while to find them, but it was the biggest flock I have seen yet this fall, numbering well over 100.

They were moving around quite a bit.

Hoary types have been seen here as well, and I did consider one to be that type.  Some consider it a subspecies of the Common, so we will see what happens in the future with this one!

A Northern Shrike, always nice to see, was looking things over as well.

I was not sure what to do next, but ended up taking along walk at Perch Creek again.  I took a bit of a different route, and it paid off, as I found some Long-eared Owls!  We always have them at Perch Creek but the ones I found today were not in an expected location.  Bad lighting again!

There were only a couple of flyover redpolls here today.  

Three Northern Flickers in one spot was a good number for here.

I was home at the noon hour, so later I became bored and headed down to St. Clair NWA since the wind had died and the skies had brightened up a bit by then.

It was a good walk to the tower with lots of waterfowl to be seen.  Some Snow Geese and Cackling Geese were mixed in. At one point, the sky was littered with geese and ducks which often happens here.

I managed to hear about four Marsh Wrens along the way, not unusual for here in early winter. 

More to come....

Perch Creek Rock

If any of you 'Sarnians' know where this wedged rock is, that is where I found the owls at Perch Creek!

Birding The Last Two Days

 As I often do, I went down to Rondeau Park early Friday morning.  I did a lakewatch with Steve Charbonneau first thing.  A variety of ducks went by, but the most common was Red-breasted Merganser.

This time of year we find them in big numbers, and this day we counted almost 15,000 in less than two hours.

Most of the flocks are pure, but sometimes there are other species mixed in, so one has to be on the ball!  I recall once at Point Pelee we spotted a King Eider.

I then walked south point trail on my own.  I flushed a late Amerian Woodcock along the trail.  Nothing unusual, but a single Evening Grosbeak flew overhead.  Most of the finches have moved through, but the odd one is still around.

The campground, always a must this time of year, was next.  Shortly into my walk, I heard the soft chip of a warbler.  I knew it was not a Yellow-rumped (never saw one this day!), but soon spotted it in a pine tree.

It turned out to be a Black-throated Green Warbler!  Although it is a good time of year for a Townsend's, it was the next closest thing.  I did not have time to get proper camera settings though.

I assume it is record late for Rondeau.  The previous latest I saw was 7 November 1998 which was latest at that time.

The usual campground sapsucker was busy tapping trees.

Here is the list for Rondeau:

https://ebird.org/checklist/S76202444

After the park, I by-passed McLean's and went to the lagoons.  There was nothing new there, so I moved on to Craford Cemetery.  I met up with Allen Woodliffe who was already watching.

Not much was to be seen at that hour...prehaps first thing in the morning would have been better.  Certainly we are all "finched-out"!  A couple of redpolls did flyover the hour I was there, among other things.

Today it was northward bound.  It was a clear and crisp morning, just the way I like it!  As usual, I like to start at sunrise at my destination.  Ausable River Cut CA was the first stop.

I had hoped for a number of finch types this day, but not too many were left it seems!  Common Redpolls were at every stop today.

Some Evening Grosbeaks flew over the cut at one point, as well as a few migrant Common Loons.

A few Tundra Swans were heading to the fields.

I stopped by Ipperwash in a couple of spots.  The lake was somewhat devoid of birds at the two spots I looked out.  However, I was a bit early perhaps, as a Western Grebe was found a bit later!

A Red-throated Loon was fairly close, but no Western Grebe was visible to my eyes.

At beach 4, I did see a largish grebe flying way out.  Western crossed my mind, but I could not do anything with it.  Unbeknownst to me, one would be reported less than a hour later in this locale!

It is a good time of year to find them.  One was at Bright's Grove a couple of years ago, and I found one off Pinery 18 November 2006.

A stop at Forest Lagoons revealed a number of ducks, including about 60 Green-winged Teal among other species.

Common Redpolls were flying over here as well.

Closer to home, I stopped by McKellar Tract, Moore WMA and Nicholl's Memorial Forest and wetland.  Those locations had redpolls as well!

At Moore, a couple of Evening Grosbeaks were heard at the nearby house, but I never saw them.

At home late this afternoon, I finally had some Evening Grosbeaks stop by.  They fed briefly in the neighbours Manitoba Maple, then were gone!  The last time I had one here was 2010.

Looks like wicked weather for Sunday, so will see what transpires!