Neds Lake, Big Island Lake Wilderness Area; an Early Season Look

The trail into Ned's Lake,(in the Big Island Lake Wilderness Area) is about a mile north of our driveway. North of our drive, Kentucky Trail is a seasonal road, which is traversed by snowmobiles in the winter. It is always an interesting time to try the road for the first time in the spring. But with all wheel drive we had no problems. The road still has some packed drifts in spots, but we made it to the trail with no problems.

Blush Lake, where our home is, now is open water, and we have just patches of snow in the woods. Odd that just such a short distance North there was so much snow. The trail was covered with snow about a foot deep. It was crusted, and you could walk on top and only fall through now and again which kept things interesting, but the trail in is only about a quarter mile, and we were up for a hike.



We did not see any animal tracks, although there must be at least one porquipine nearby as we found his "calling card".






Primitive camping is available at a site near the lake, and this seems to be a popular choice for those who are not up for a long hike in and want trout.


Based on the condition of the snow, and the fact that Ned's Lake is small and well sheltered by the trees, we weren't totally surprised to see that it was still ice covered. I was surprised that it didn't appear to be breaking up at all.


The last Saturday in April is the opening day for trout, and Ned's Lake, as well as Twilight Lake, are stocked with trout by the DNRE. I think that even with the projected warm weather this next week, that ice might make it hard to fish!

Sunrise; Big Island Lake Wilderness Area

In the past five years we have been here, we have enjoyed countless sunrises from the deck. Each has it's own character, yet all are beautiful across the lake. This April, Bill photographed another very outstanding one. The colors here are not enhanced. Imagine this across a whole sky....

Then it gets better:

So bright it looked like a fire....

And Finally this...
Hope you enjoyed it, we did!

Big Island Lake Wilderness Area, MI: Birding

I enjoy watching the birds, and it has been fun to be able to see so many species from our deck overlooking Blush Lake. Spring has arrived, even though it is still snowing, we have had the return of our red-winged black birds, and robins. Our first seasonal visitors of course, were our Trumpeter Swans, along with last year's young. We heard them call as they circled and landed on the ice.

We have had some luck last spring getting photographs of some of our seasonal friends, and will be looking for the Rose-breasted Grosbeaks and Indigo Buntings. These seem to arrive later than the Evening Grosbeaks. Our Phoebe, who nests under the eves, won't be here for a bit either I hope.

This winter we have missed our Goldfinches, and have noticed an increase in woodpecker activity. The area has been under attack by the Beech Bark Disease, and many trees have snapped and died in the area in the last couple of years. I think this has increased our number of woodpeckers. In addition to our little Downy Woodpeckers, we have regular suet block visits from two pairs of Hairy Woodpeckers, and a pair of Red -bellied Woodpeckers. We have a Pileated Woodpecker who also is a regular visitor to a snapped Beech off of our deck.

We have also noticed a huge increase in flocks of Blue-Jays. I counted42 this morning, I think their numbers are also up because of increases in insects on the diseased trees.

Our "regulars" this winter in addition to the Jays, inclued Black-capped Chickadees, Pine Siskins, Red Breasted and White Breasted Nuthatches, and recently flocks of Common Red Polls.

We also have a number of Barred Owls, and a few Great Horned Owls, which we can hear call at night. The Barred Owls are very active now, and their caterwalling is something to hear. It reminds me of jungle sounds! We managed to get a shot of one who was checking out the flying squirrels who frequent out feeder at night. Another visitor of the feeder for other than the sunflower hearts, is this guy. I can't decide if it is a Cooper's Hawk or a Sharp -shinned Hawk, but he does eat regularly!

As the season progresses, if I am lucky, I will post some more photos of our Warblers and Towhees. Check back later this spring for updates!