Hi,
A couple of links here that describe the birding potential and locations
in Lake County:
http://www.lakevisit.com/bird_watching.html
http://www.lakevisit.com/birding/Birding_Lake_County_Ohio.pdf
I wrote this up in late 2015.
Haans
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On Sat, Aug 19, 2017 at 12:04 PM, Bill Whan <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:
> Folks who write to this forum, or write for Ohio bird publications, often
> have valuable information about finding birds. Sometimes the information
> may be personal--you may want to share with a friend the presence of
> nesting egrets or hummingbirds--or more often you may have some valuable
> experience of the birdlife worth sharing with birders in a particular
> location.
> One thing we're missing is accounts of the birdlife of larger areas
> as well as some smaller productive habitats. How much do we know about the
> birdlife of the state parks, forests, lakes? If you know a particular area
> pretty well, have you written it up for others? A well-described area will
> attract observers, and records. I'm not suggesting you share owl nesting
> sights or anything like that, but your knowledge of the habitats in an area
> that you can write up as potential
> spots for observing birds. Sure, we occasionally get reports of odd
> waterfowl at Dogface lake, but does anyone even know about Mudpocket Pond?
> More than interesting reports of birds, other birders need to know
> about promising locales and habitats that might be close by, but not always
> well covered by observers. Surely there must be a bend in the local river
> that has an island or a reed patch, an obscure segment of a state park
> especially attractive to birds, or a remote patch of really old trees...
> Write-ups on such potentially productive spots are truly gold for avid
> birders, and it would not be all that frightening to share them with
> others....
> Just as an example, here is a write-up I did for the Wilds--famous
> for winter raptors among other things--I wrote some years ago, and which I
> didn't finish because I don't know it well enough, but you can get the idea:
> Notes on “Driving Guide to Birding the Wilds”
> Take I-70 to Zanesville, then the marked exit to The Wilds (SR 146
> east). After about 17 mi, the countryside will abruptly open up and you’ll
> see a big sign for The Wilds on the right. Turn here, on Zion Ridge Rd.
> Mostly birding by car from here.
> You’ll pass through big open country here, with lots of potential.
> The usual raptor-finding criteria apply: eagles may be soaring high on a
> sunny day, and most raptors will be perched if it’s raining, etc. Perches
> are at a premium: check dead trees on wooded margins, utility poles, hay
> bales, fence posts. Scott Road, though it appears on the map, is not open
> to the public, and is almost always gated.
> When Zion Ridge ends at SR 284, take a left. Before long you’ll see
> another big Wilds sign on the left; this is International Road. It has been
> the most fruitful stretch for golden eagles, and the prairie falcon has
> been seen here on a number of occasions. Big vistas, worth frequent stops
> to scan. The HQ of The Wilds can be reached by taking a dirt road about
> halfway along this route if the gate’s open. There is more habitat here,
> plus views of some of the exotic animals—-giraffes, elks, horses, etc.
> International Rd descends into a wooded area before it ends at SR
> 340. This is a birdy spot, with lots of different habitats visible, but not
> for open-country raptors. As of now (late Nov), SR 340 is closed just a
> quarter mile to the right—which is the direction you’d want to go—for what
> looks like culvert repairs. If it is closed when you go, it would be best
> to turn around, retrace your course, and check International Road again.
> When you get back to SR 284, take a left. You’ll go through some
> marginal countryside, and eventually intersect with SR 340 (on the other
> side of the closed section). Turn left onto 340, and proceed through some
> more big open country with lots of altitudinal changes, studded with lakes.
> As at all spots, proceed carefully, scan all perches, look for raptors in
> flight, check especially for harriers/rough-legs harassing another raptor,
> and birds soaring very high.
> Head down past the lakes and open country into some woods, and look
> for a dirt road heading uphill on the right. [If the 340 road repairs are
> done, this is not far to the right from the International Rd terminus.
> [Take this up into open country again. At the next intersection, Prouty Rd
> (unsigned), go the short distances both right and left (both are blocked
> off within a quarter mile) for prospects, especially perches on hay bales.
> Return to the intersection, continue on the original dirt road, and explore
> it and the next road both left and right. Then retrace your route back to
> paved 340, turn left, and go to SR 284 again.
> Turn left on 284 and go maybe half a mile to Rural Dale Rd on the
> left (you’ll pass Rural Dale turn to the right along the way), and turn.
> Bird Rural Dale. The first left will be the rest of Prouty Rd that had been
> blocked off to you before; check this out, especially the hay bales and any
> dead trees. Return to Rural Dale and check out other passable side roads,
> always returning to Rural Dale, for the next 2-3 miles. The hay bales and
> these side roads have been productive for the prairie falcon.
> Return to 284, and return to any of the previous areas; the birds
> move around constantly, and any place you’ve found empty once could be
> productive on a subsequent visit. This route covers all the sites where
> golden eagles and the prairie falcon have been seen over the past year. If
> you want to get there from Toledo and back in the same day, you will have
> limited time in a short winter’s day, so you may not be able to visit all
> areas, and then only once.
> Someone more familiar with the area could write a much better
> account, but this is an example of the kind of thing needed.
> Bill Whan
>
>
>
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