Venture to Stecoah Gap 
Graham County, NC

Friday, April 24, 2009

Most of us met at Stecoah Gap that morning only to be met by a logging truck coming up the Forest Service road- not the best sight when heading out on a birding trip! Thankfully the localized logging was going on at least a mile down the trail. But it did not seem that the birds were particularly bothered by all the action going on around them. Cerulean and Chestnut-sided Warblers were singing next to the road, but the noisy traffic (that included emergency vehicles) prevented us from seeing these 2 species. As for the rest of the gang down the trail: Blackburnians were busy setting up territories and chasing each other around the forest; Black-and-white Warblers seemed to be everywhere and did I hear someone say that this was the spring of the Black-throated Green? Probably correct as this could have been the dominant warbler song of the morning. Wood Thrushes, Scarlet Tanagers and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks must have just arrived and were obvious in the barely leafed out woodlands. 

After lunch at Stecoah Gap, most of us drove through Robbinsville to Snowbird Lodge where we were immediately greeted by an immature male Red Crossbill on the feeder. After some refreshments the remaining 6 of us spent a little while at Sunrise Point enjoying the scenery where a Broad-winged Hawk and an adult Bald Eagle flew over heading north. All in all an excellent spring day in Graham County, NC.

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