The circle of seasons continues to spin.   I can’t it  believe it’s November already. It seems  it was just April and Spring was starting. The years pass more quickly  as you get older.   Each year  spins by a little faster,  and I have seen a lot of years,  so they are spinning fast.  After  another weekend excursion to Sandy Hook  along the  New Jersey shore I returned to the Susquehanna Wetlands near my home in Luzerne County in Northeastern Pennsylvania  last weekend.  Later, I’ll show how that trip was related to the wetlands, First, as usual, I will share  some of the beauty I found at this wonderful private nature preserve I have come to love.

It was a cold November morning when I arrived at the wetlands early Saturday morning. The skies were mostly clear with a strong northerly wind and temperatures near freezing.  I stopped at the Water Fowl Ponds on my drive in to the parking area and immediately noticed that most the the trees were bare.   This has never been my favorite time of year. I dislike it even more now. I dread the  cold and dark months of Winter.

The ponds were still covered in the green algae and duck weed.  The flocks of wood ducks I had  seen here since last Spring were gone as were the migratory song birds. It was eerily quite as I scanned the ponds for water fowl and the trees for a bald eagle or hawk. Sadly I saw none.

I left the pond and drove to the access road and was greeted by this large buck  standing on the road. He quickly ran into the woods when I left my Jeep to get a better photo.

As I always do,  I walked down to the ancient  Susquehanna River.  We are now in an official drought here in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the river was very low.  As usual I looked or  wildlife on the river but  there was none on this cold November morning. I also reflected on the long history of the river, and especially the Native Americans who first  saw  it thousands of years ago. This summer I had visited the headwaters of this scenic  river at Lake Ostego  in New York  and it’s  end in Havre de Grace in Maryland. I also learned a lot about it’s history especially the Native Americans, and the Lenni Lanape or Delaware  who inhabited this area and much of the areas I visited this Summer.

I walked into the wetlands and found mostly bare tree branches.  The wetlands were no longer lush and green.

Only the the red oaks,

and sumac trees held onto some  of their colorful leaves.

The wetlands were quiet as I walked along the canals on  the Beaver Trail. There was no  buzzing of the insects, the croaking of frogs or pleasant songs of the migratory birds in the wetlands.

However, as I approached the Water Fowl Pond I heard and saw a downy woodpecker,

and then a few tufted titmice and this northern cardinal .  As often in the colder months,  I now saw a lot of different species of birds flocking together, I believe for protection,  and feeding on the berries  and seeds along the ponds  in the wetlands.

There  was a large flock of cedar waxwings also feeding on winterberries growing along the trail.

I often see these birds  on cold winter days feeding on the fruits and berries remaining on thee trees and plants in the wetlands and river lands.

Song sparrows,

white throated sparrows and

swamp sparrows were feeding along the trail.

I was also able to see  and get photos of both a golden-crowned kinglet, 

and a ruby crowned kinglet on my hike. These jittery birds rarely remain  in one spot very long and are difficult to photograph.

I also saw eastern blue birds, black-capped chickadees, American robins and a few yellow rumped warblers. This photo shows how they got there name. They are one of the last migratory song birds to leave our area in the Fall.

I also heard the shrill call of a red tailed hawk and saw this one flying overhead.

I walked to the Water Fowl Pond where I see ducks all Summer , but they had gone.  There were no herons or other ducks there either.

I then walked toward the river lands area of the preserve, about a mile from the ponds.

The bracken ferns,

and hay-scented ferns had withered or turned brown or yellow,

but the Christmas ferns still remained a lush color of green and will remain green all Winter.

The garlic mustard along the trail was also lush and green, in fact, I have never seen so much of it and with such large leaves. I enjoy this wild  edible green and gather it all Winter long. I picked a lot of the leaves of my dinner that evening.

I walked into the river lands and on the trail between a canal and Lake Took-A While.

There were a few folks fishing along the shore of it’s blue, cold waters.

I also saw this belted kingfisher perched on a tree  near the lake , before taking off,  and chattering over the lake as it did.

I walked along the lake  under the weak November sun. A few  clouds still floated in the mostly clear skies making for some nice scenery on my walk.

As usual aI walked to the access road on the other end of the lake, and the corn fields beyond.

I then began my almost two mile hike to the wetlands parking lot.

Along the way I saw this winter wren ,

and northern mockingbird.

I walked back  into the wetlands,

 and here I saw two species of birds I seldom see in the wetlands. First I saw a pair of yellow bellied sapsuckers.  Northeastern Pennsylvanis is the southern range of their breeding grounds and these birds were migrating south to their Winter homes in the southern United States, Central America and the Caribbean Islands.

I continued on my hike and then saw a flock of rusty blackbirds in the trees along the trail. These birds breed in Canada and are migrating to the southern United States,

They always an odd  look in their eyes.   Here is a link to a gallery on my blog website with some more photos  of the birds I saw on my  Saturday hike. Susquehanna Wetlands birds November 2 2004. 

I finished my five mile hike in the afternoon sunshine and was both glad and surprised to have seen so many different species of birds in the wetlands. I had traveled to Cape May and Sandy Hook  in New Jersey in search of migrating birds and saw more here in my backyard.

On Sunday morning I decided to return to the wetlands. It was another clear day with sunny skies and an even colder 28 degrees.  A  mist formed  above the cold waters of the Susquehanna River.  I was at the wetlands an hour earlier because of the end of daylight savings time.

A thick frost had formed on the fallen leaves.

I don’t think the turning back of the clock affected the birds and wildlife. I walked into the wetlands and  I again saw many of the birds I saw the previous day, the sparrows, kinglets,  tufted titmice and yellow rumped warblers. I also saw this red bellied woodpecker,

and this northern flicker high on the tree tops. I also saw a pileated woodpecker but couldn’t get a photo.

I followed the same route as my hike on Saturday, again enjoying the November sunshine.

As I neared the river lands I saw another flock of yellow bellied sapsuckes.

I have seen these birds in the Florida Keys and hope to maybe see these birds there next Spring.

I walked into the river lands  and saw a few more tufted titmice feeding on some crabapples

and this Carolina wren singing cheerfully in a tree.

There was also a great blue heron wading in waters along the shore of the lake.

I watched as it yawned in the morning sunshine,

until it decided to fly away.

I, again walked to the end of the lake before heading back to the wetlands parking lot.

On the way, I saw many of the birds I had seen earlier and also a flock of dark eyed juncos.  Here is a link to a gallery on my blog website with some more photos  of the birds I saw on my  Sunday  hike. Susquehanna Wetlands birds November 3  2004.

I finished my second five mile walk in the wetlands. I was again surprised with the variety of birds I saw. It was a couple of pleasant November hikes, much better than the cold dark and dreary November days we usually get here in Northeastern Pennsylvania.  Here is a link to a gallery on my blog website with some more photos  from my Saturday and Sunday  hikes in the wetlands and river lands. . Susquehanna Wetlands  November 2, 3  2004.

I was glad to be back in the wetlands after a Summer of exploring the three major rivers we are blessed to have here in Northeasern Pennsylvania, the Susquehanna, the Lehigh, and the Schuylkill. And I reflectd on my explorations on the Narive Americans, the Lenni Lanape who called this area home. I often reflected on their carefree life in the unspoiled woodlands. I am glad there are still some left, including the Susquehanna Wetlands for me to explore, enjoy and share.

““Do my brothers know the name of this favored people?”
“It was the Lenni Lenape,” returned Magua, affecting to bend his head in reverence to their former greatness.
“It was the tribes of the Lenape! The sun rose from water that was salt, and set in water that was sweet, and never hid himself from their eyes. ”   James Fenimore Cooper 

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