A Birding Hike At Leaser Lake In Lehigh County
I returned to a new favorite hiking spot, Leaser Lake in Lehigh County, on Sunday. It was a last minute decision. A friend invited me to join a local birding group hike at the lake early Sunday morning. 
It was sunny and cool when I arrived at the north boat launch parking lot and met my friend and the 18 folks in the group at 8 a.m. 
It was a nice group of folks led by a local birder named Frank I like to hike alone and have never participated in a birding hike, not here in the United States anyway. I have been on birding walks before but only when I traveled to Africa, South America and New Zealand. It was a new experience and I enjoyed it. The birding hike was very informal as we set out looking for birds along the blue waters of Leaser Lake. 
As we began our hike my friend, Donna, immediately spotted a tundra swan with here “eagle eyesight” .
It is late in the season to still see these beautiful birds in our area. It was swimming in the deep blue waters of the lake with a pair of Canada geese. 
Canada geese are very common in our area now as many stay here to breed. 
Our group walked along the lake seeing eastern bluebirds, downy woodpeckers, American robins, a phoebe and red-winged blackbirds, this is a male , in the tree along the lake. 
We also saw a pied billed grebe, ring neck ducks, common mergansers, a belted kingfisher and mallard ducks on the waters of a wooded cove. We discussed the birds we saw and learned a lot about the from our guide and each other, 
There were signs of Spring near the lake. I was surprised,
and delighted to see daffodils already blooming. 
The red maple trees were also budding. It was cool but a beautiful Spring morning. 
After about a mile hike we left the north boat launch and we all drove to the south boat launch parking lot. The views of the lake an the Blue Mountain in the distance are spectacular here. 
We walked into the nearby fields
were we saw turkey vultures, red tailed hawks and we were treated to a bald eagle sighting. 
It was soaring high above us but everyone and binoculars or cameras with long lenses and we all were able to see this magnificent bird.
We then walked along the shore of the lake, where a row of pine trees shaded the trail, 
and saw a black-capped chickadee feeding on, what I always thought was cattail seeds. Editing this photo at home it appears the chickadees aren’t after seeds but rather grubs or worms that live in the cattails stalks during the Winter. 
After about another mile hike we drove to the west boat launch parking lot . I was one of the last cars to leave and missed the opportunity to see a kestrel perched on a utility wire. 
At the parking lot we again walked along the lake looking for birds. I got to meet and chat with many of the fellow birders in our group. We had enjoyable discussions on our bird watching adventures and travels. As we walked, and chatted, we saw many of the same birds we saw earlier on our hikes. . Some folks in our group saw a harrier hawk. I missed this one too. I have never seen one . We walked along a cove that ends in a wetlands. The willow trees were starting to bud. 
I love seeing willow trees in the Spring. And I love hiking along the shores of this scenic lake. 
We saw more geese and some green winged teals. This is a male. These beautiful ducks are less common then their cousins the blue winged teals. 
Walking along the cove and the wetlands we saw a lot more red-winged blackbirds, eastern bluebirds, some already settling in the many birdhouses around the lake, 
song sparrows, 
and another one of my favorite birds, a northern mocking bird. 
My dad loved this birds and their beautiful songs. 
As we walked I noticed this garter snake slithering on the ground.
It must just have awakened from it’s long Winter hibernation. They are harmless and beautiful creatures. 
After another mile or so of hiking our birding tour ended and our group disbanded. We met a lot of wonderful folks who shared our love of nature. 
My friend and I decided to stay at the lake and look for a horned lark that some park maintenance workers told us they saw in a nearby Winter wheat field. We hiked back along the lake, seeing some pretty blue birdeye speedwell flowers blooming in the grass. 
We walked to the fields and looked for the horned lark. Neither of us have seen one before. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
The stubble of last years crops were perfect camouflage for a bird . However, eagle eyed Donna finally spotted it, 
and here is my first photo of a horned lark. It is a pretty bird which I have now learned is common in the farm fields of North America. 
We were both pleased to see this bird, the first time for both of us. We now headed back to the parking lot. On the way we saw, then heard a belted kingfisher flying over the wetlands.
and landing in one of the willow trees. Seeing, and photographing these elusive birds was a great way to end a great birding hike. Here is a link to a gallery on my blog website with more photos of the birds I saw on my hike. Leaser Lake birds March 26 2023.
I am sure had taken my usual solo hike in the Susquehanna Wetlands or here I may have seen more birds and wildlife. I am very quiet and patient on my hikes and this allows me to get close to the critters But I really enjoyed this group hike and may do it again. Here is a link to a gallery with some more photos from my hike. Leaser Lake March 26 2023. 
To be standing together in a frosty field, looking up into the sky, marvelling at birds and revelling in the natural world around us, was a simple miracle. And I wondered why we were so rarely able to appreciate it.”
―
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