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Colorful birds in the mountains



Howdy!

Joe and I enjoyed our week in the NC mountains. We started in the
Robbinsville area for three nights at the Mountain Hollow B&B. It's a
great place to stay for birding. Each day we woke up to Indigo Buntings
singing and at night we heard Whip-poor-wills calling. We helped the
owner identify the mystery bird who ate bugs on her porch (Eastern
Phoebe) and the mystery bird nest with kids under the roof (probably the
same phoebe). I was delighted to watch two hummingbirds fly back and
forth across the porch (overlooking a beautiful valley in the
mountains-wonderful!) as they flew from the feeder to the trees. Their
wing beats are loud as they fly by fast! We very rarely have a
hummingbird in our Raleigh yard, so it was a treat to see and hear them
so close. Walking the neighborhood streets to an overlook of Fontana
Lake provided great birding.

A Golden-winged Warbler practically greeted us at the entrance of
Stecoah Gap. We were there with Simon on a CBC trip four years ago and
fell in love with the area. A male Blackburnian Warbler was feeding on
the ground, American Redstarts were singing and active, Red-eyed Vireos
were calling, and we watched a Black-and-white Warbler perched on a tree
limb for at least ten minutes preening. All of this was at the
entrance!! The bird song was tremendous on the trail. Scarlet Tanager,
Ovenbird, Black-throated Green Warbler, and goldfinch were some of the
other birds we heard and saw.

If you haven't been to Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest, I highly suggest a
planning a trip there. It is stunningly beautiful!! The beautiful trees,
trilliums blooming, sounds of the rushing water, and bird songs brought
tears to by eyes. A special place indeed. Saw and heard most of the same
birds. We drove along the Cherohala Skyway for a short time, before
turning around because of an approching storm.

It was great seeing a lot of you at the CBC meeting in Black Mountain.
THANKS JO ANN for the hard work you did in setting up the meeting!! I
was SO HAPPY to see and bird with BOB and BARBARA MAXWELL!! Jerome
Jackson was a wonderful speaker. Turns out he moved to Florida three
years ago (after we left), and is the current editor of Florida
Ornithogical Society's "Florida Field Naturalist." It was a treat to
meet him and talk about the birders we know in common.

Marilyn led a group of us birding in Chimney Rock. Because of fallen
trees the night before, the park opened late. We birded Lake Lure while
we waited for the park to open. It was a nice area with wonderful views
of Baltimore and Orchard Orioles, Scarlet Tanager, Blackpoll and Yellow
Warblers, Great Crested Flycatcher, and Eastern Kingbird. At Chimney
Rock we had nice views of Worm-eating, Cerulean, Black-throated Green,
and Hooded Warblers; American Redstarts; Red-eyed Vireos; and more
Scarlet Tanagers.

Tim and Laurie led our Swannanoa trip where we saw both orioles again, a
Warbling Vireo, Yellow Warbler, American Coot, Spotted Sandpiper,
Bobolinks, and a mystery flycatcher (probably a willow). We ended our
week in the NC mountains with 21 warbler species.

Forgot to mention earlier, we saw the Peregrine Falcon sitting on her
nest at Devil's Courthouse Overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway (milepost
422.4) on our way to Robbinsville. We were planning on birding the
Balsom Campground and Picnic area for Black-capped Chickadees (see
Marcus Simpson's book) on our way to Black Mountain, but had to change
plans when the fog became thick on the Parkway. Great excuse to go back
to that part of the state again!!!

Happy birding! Karen Bearden
Raliegh, NC
chickadeebirders@earthlink.net