Moosehead Lake = Fun!
We recently spent a week up in Moosehead Lake in Maine - from start to finish we had a blast! I had planned this trip as a surprise for Lorraine for her birthday! We packed up the car with Lorraine’s plein air painting gear, my camera gear, binoculars, clothes, and whatever else we thought we might need and off we went! I asked her to plug in Greenville, ME in the GPS and off we went! We had a very easy ride up - we left on a Tuesday and no one was on the road.
I have divided this post into three sections - Lorraine’s plein air day, my birding outings, and a guest star at the end! :). Just an FYI - once I returned home I found out about a photo contest for the Down East magazine and decided to enter some wildlife photos from our trip - I thought - why not? I’ll let you know which ones I entered…
Lorraine’s plein air day….
I had arranged with Jenn, the owner of the Inn, to take us up in an ATV to a gorgeous spot on one of the trails on the property that I had walked up to on previous mornings. I normally help Lorraine schlep all of her painting paraphernalia when she wants to plein air paint but this spot was too far for us to do that so… an ATV was the perfect solution! Not only was this spot gorgeous but it also had a screened-in gazebo for a great spot for a rest and a picnic lunch. We met Jenn at 9:00 and off we went along the trail that I walked early each morning. The ATV had an added bonus of having front and back seats so that I was able to hop a ride in the back seat too which I had not expected - So come along as we ride up on the trail!
Lorraine is set up and ready to go!
Three hours after we left in the ATV and Lorraine had been painting non-stop it was time for a break and our picnic lunch!
Here it is at the end of her time painting that day. She will post the painting once she finishes it up at home. We then packed everything up and our ATV Uber came to pick us up! :). We had so much fun doing this - we were at that spot for 5 hours! Lorraine slept very good that night…. very well deserved!
My morning outings…
were absolutely beautiful. Some mornings were very quiet but even on the quietest mornings I could hear lots of red-eyed vireos and common yellowthroats. On two mornings in particular it was as if all of the birds that had been hiding from me decided to greet me! I had found more than a couple of great spots to set up and wait and hope… and on those two mornings I was more than rewarded! Both of these mornings started out foggy and then the sun burned through so brilliantly it was breathtaking…. I hope that you enjoy seeing these precious little feathered creatures…
I was focused on a tree a little further way where I saw all kinds of fluttering happening when this little common yellowthroat decided to say - is this close enough for a portrait photo? :). I entered this image to Down East magazine…
Right after that shot I saw a gorgeous ray of light between the branches of a very full pine tree to my right and captured this shot when this little one landed - in the perfect spot! I have also entered this one… If any of you think this is a Nashville Warbler instead of a Common Yellowthroat please let me know- thank you!!
After these two shots I picked up and moved a little further down the path to a spot that I knew would be lighting up just beautifully. As soon as I rounded the last little curve in the trail this beautiful sight was right there looking at me!
After that shot she moved into the meadow and I lost sight of her… so I picked up again and the we spotted each other again!
I also submitted this one…
As if all of this wasn’t wonderful enough…. this was our sunset from the Inn… The color of the sun was incredible… the locals told us that the sunsets had been amazing for the previous few days as the haze from the fires in Canada and out west had drifted into this area which made for very dramatic other-worldly sunsets…
My other very full morning outing found me back at the meadow waiting for the world to wake up around me. Once again it was foggy but was slowing burning off and I could tell that it would be another gorgeous sunrise once it burned through. Since I had seen that doe the previous day I was of course hoping to see her again….so I set up and waited and then all of a sudden I saw this… this darling fawn had been sleeping in the tall grasses of the meadow and had unfolded her sleeping legs to stand up and look around! I never would have seen her if she hadn’t stood up… just incredible how much is out there that we never know about, hear, or see. What an incredible way to start the day and to give thanks…
As soon as the fawn was on her way the sun burst through and it seemed like every bird was singing! I was taking one shot after another morning along the edge of the meadow.
I have so wanted to see a black-throated green warbler all summer…. and look who showed up for me??
I then saw a flutter to my right up a little higher in another pine tree and captured these other two black-throated green warblers!
I moved a little further to my right…. and….!
I picked up and went over to a stand of trees that I had spent time at each morning because I had seen the tiny glimpses of Northern Parulas….. and this morning because everything was working like magic I found this one taking a little rest on this branch!
And the magic kept happening…. I went a little further to see this one in the wide open!
It was past time to quit and head back to have breakfast with Lorraine, when I was walking back through the woods when right smack in front of me this incredible inch worm appeared… seeming to be suspended in mid air! The end to an unforgettable outing!
The guest star of the trip…
For my last surprise for Lorraine I had hired a guide to take us at the end of the day on our next to our last day in search of moose! Tim met us at 4pm and drove us deep into the woods, in the absolute middle of nowhere, along dirt roads that he knew like the back of his hand. He has been guiding for several years and is a great person and we all hit it off immediately. We told him not to stress if we didn’t find one… but we felt his pressure because he so wanted it to happen for us…. He took us past his favorite bogs… the air was filled again with haze from the Canadian fires so the landscapes had an unreal feel to them… all very beautiful but hard to capture in an image and hard to describe…
After we passed this spot… he took us deeper into the woods with the sun fading…. and we kept going and going…. He told us he knew where to turn by looking for specific trees like a city person knows to turn when they see a certain building… you get the picture… we were very deep into these woods on back country roads… and then we will never forget coming around a slight curve and looking to our left to see this stunning image! We jumped out of his van as quickly and quietly as we could and made our way to the edge of this bog…I immediately starting shooting shot after shot!
In the van I had been holding my camera off of its tripod in order to be ready at a moment’s notice… so when Tim had Lorraine and I get out of the van I went out without my tripod. As soon as we got to the edge of the bog it seemed to me this female moose (Tim estimated her to be 2-3 years old) did not care one bit that we were there. I knew that I needed/wanted my tripod. I whispered to Tim and asked him if he would grab it out of the van for me - he did and it made all of the difference for my shots as the three of us were in her presence for a total of 37 minutes!!! Absolutely incredible…. I have entered each of these 5 images of the moose to Down East. Tim estimated that she was 30 yards away from us when began watching her and ended up 12 yards away from us when she decided to head back into the woods after having her fill of greens… just amazing! Tim kept a very keen eye on her so that we could relax in her presence and so that I could concentrate on photographing her - what a gift!
After this shot Lorraine grabbed my phone and took this shot of me without me knowing it…
And then she took this video - I am thrilled that she did! Tim whispered to us that we were in his 10% club - I said, what is that? He said that we are close enough to hear her eating the greens at the bottom of the water! We had no idea moose only have lower teeth - they have no upper teeth. They use their lower teeth to grab hold of greens and scoop them in their mouth to eat… So turn up the volume and hopefully you can hear the sounds of this beautiful female moose while she is eating…. thank you, Lorraine!
And then she kept getting closer to us while we stayed as quiet as possible - she was just eating away! These last shots are when she was about 12 yards away from us - an absolute dream come true !
With a smile in my heart I leave you with this last one… thanks for coming along…