A Short, But Satisfying, Hike In A Dreary Susquehanna Wetlands.

When I returned from my recent visit to Guatemala last  Monday,  I  was looking forward to hiking in the Susquehanna Wetlands on the  weekend.  I was even more  grateful to return to the wetlands on Sunday after a two day hospital stay as a result of a salmonella and E. coli infection I must have picked up in Guatemala. . I was pretty sick. I was released Saturday from the hospital  and feeling much better Sunday.  After my usual early morning walk near my home I drove to the Susquehanna Wetlands in Salem Township, Luzerne County.

The gate to the parking lot was closed  for the Winter so I parked near the Water Fowl pond on the access road. It was overcast and dreary and a chilly 40 degrees when I started my hike. The wood ducks I had seen here since early last Spring were gone, as were all the migratory  birds. There were none of the  local year long resident birds or any other wildlife.  It was eerily  quite as I  surveyed the naked trees and browns and grays of late November. It was such a contrast from the lush green rain  forest I hiked through in Guatemala.

I walked past the gate and on the access road to the parking lot. Here in the shrubs and grasses along the road I usual see  many birds feeding in the colder months.

And I did on Sunday, I first saw this black-capped chickadee feeding on the seeds in a tree. This social birds accompany on my hikes on the coldest of Winter days. They usually travel in flocks. And they  also usually travel with other species  of birds.

This on wasn’t too sociable and flew off as I got closer.

On Sunday  I saw some other birds hanging out with the chickadees. I saw a small flock of female red-winged blackbirds feeding in the woods along the road.

There were also  a few white throated sparrows but they flew away as I approached too.

I walked toward the parking lot noticing  the green leaves of the garlic mustard plants contrasting the drab brown withered grass along the trail. They are edible but I was on a band diet after my stomach issues so I didn’t gather any to eat. I love garlic mustard fried in olive oil.

I had walked about  a  1/2 mile to the parking lot and then walked down to the ancient Susquehanna River. It was still low from the  drought we had here in Northeastern Pennsylvania but hopefully the recent rains and snow will raise the water level.

I walked into the wetlands and  the   in silence under the naked trees. I love this small nature preserve. I love to travel and explore other states and countriesd. I love seeing the new and exotic  flora and fauna but the wetlands have become my Walden Pond. I like hiking here during all year  to watch the circle of  season spin and the changes that they bring.  I love the  familiarity and continuity.  And, there is also always the chance to see the unexpected, as I have seen river otters, bears and bobcats here.

Well on Sunday I saw little of anything as I continued my hike.

There was no bird activity at all. I walked along the trails and the fallen leaves,

the only color being the red winterberry and

purple green brier berries.

I walked to the Water Fowl Pond,

and here I saw a large flock of  green winged teals.  However,  they quickly flew away as I approached. ‘ I began my hike toward the river lands area of the private nature preserve, about a mile hike from the Water Fowl Pond.

It was still quiet but itr was  a pleasant hike when the sun broke through the clouds.

As I was nearing the river lands I finally heard the cheerful song of a Carolina wren brighten the dreary November morning.

and was able to photograph one a couple of the wrens I saw and heard.

I also saw this American robin in a tree top.

I had hiked out about 1 1/2 miles. I was feeling a little tired from my illness so decided to end my hike and walk back to my Jeep. It was still quiet in the wetlands as I walked through the brown and grew woods.

The only greens were some intermediate wood ferns,

some Christmas ferns and

some holly leaves. There are only a few small holly trees in the wetlands. I will never look at a holly tree again without thinking of the vast holly woodlands I  hiked through on my recent visit to Sandy Hook New Jersey.

As I walked through the wetlands the silence was broken, first by the noisy cries of a couple of blue jays,

then, by the loud calls of a red bellied woodpecker.

I hiked back toward my Jeep and as I was nearing the end of my  3 mile hike I saw an American goldfinch on a tree branch,

and was delighted to see an American bald eagle perched on a tree branch in the distance. I always love seeing our National symbol on my hikes even if only for a moment in the distance.

Finally, not far from my Jeep I saw a flock pine siskins. These birds breed in the northern coniferous forest and migrate to our area in the  Fall. I first saw these  bird on a visit to New Hope,  Pennsylvania three years ago. Here is a link to a gallery on my blog  web-page with some more photos of the birds I saw on my hike. Susquehanna Wets birds November 25 2024.

I ended my three mile hike. I usually do five on my weekly visits, but I was grateful to have been able hike at all. Life is short and fragile, as is this beautiful planet we live on. I have been blessed to see so much of it, and to share some of the beauty here in my blogs. I hope to continue to do so for many years, and I  am already planning my next adventure. And I am hoping you can all join me again. Here is a link to a gallery on my blog  web page with some more photos from  my hike. Susquehanna Wets birds November 25 2024.

“We need the tonic of wildness…At the same time that we are earnest to explore and learn all things, we require that all things be mysterious and unexplorable, that land and sea be indefinitely wild, unsurveyed and unfathomed by us because unfathomable. We can never have enough of nature.”
― Henry David Thoreau, Walden:

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