The Jayfisher and the Rock Turtle

The weather arrived perfect with blue skies, temperature near 70 and a light wind, the predicted rain would hold off for another day.  We put in on the Lieutenant and paddled upriver and although the small launch area was close to being full of vehicles, no one seemed to be around.

By the time we reached the boulder swamp, which was well submerged with the tide nearing high, we had been regularly sung to by many unseen Marsh Wrens and quite a few bolder Red Wing Blackbirds.  We spotted a Jayfisher while passing through the swamp as we headed up the last half mile of the Lieutenant.  An Osprey in that area flew sentinel on us, circling and scolding until we left the nest area.  On our way back out the behavior was repeated and I figure that it must have some hatchlings in the nest.  Back at the Boulder Swamp, I spotted a rock turtle and S told me that she had just seen a Driftwood Heron.

With the high water, an exploratory run into Mill Brook was required.  There is an Eagle nest near the mouth, but it is a hard one to spot and we missed it on the way in.  The brook was in fine shape with enough water to get over the shallows.  There was a beaver dam in here, but it has been blown out.  Upstream of that was a fallen tree that I'd never managed to get past.  But, someone has cut a passage - probably last year by the look of the cuts.  We get another 200 yards before it turns to wading depth.  I'll come back on my own and see if I can get up higher to where there is an old mill pond.  Someone doing the work of cutting through that blow down is sign that there might be some paddling up there.

On our way out I spot the Eagle nest - it was a hard spot.  We don't see any activity, but this is about time that young Eagles can be left alone while the adults hunt (I'd seen the adults earlier this year).

We pass too many kayaks coming in as we head out.  I don't know how they get anywhere dipping their paddles like that.  They probably don't get anywhere.  Our timing was good.