Green Leaves,Wildflowers, Song Birds, Squirrels And A Bald Eagle On An April Afternoon In The Susquehanna Wetlands

Unlike December, January and February, which seem to last forever, April, and the other months of Spring and Summer  seem to pass so quickly. And a  five  mile hike on frigid day in January seems to take so much effort and last forever while a 5 mile walk in April seems effortless and never long enough.   It was a beautiful Friday afternoon and I decided to spend it in the Susquehanna Wetlands  about 20 miles from my home in Luzerne County in Northeastern Pennsylvania.  I soon  witnessed how quickly nature advances in Spring and how pleasant it is walking through  the woodlands in April.

The access gate to the wetlands trail head  and parking lot was finally open when I arrived at the wetlands.  I still stopped at the ponds  near the gate before driving to the parking lot. I often see wood ducks, Canada geese, great blue herons and other water fowl on the ponds. There were no birds or wildlife on the ponds on Friday but I was treated to a beautiful scene of lush green trees with puffy white cumulus clouds above.  I love Spring.

I drove to the parking lot and, before hiking into the wetlands, took my usual walk to the banks of the ancient Susquehanna River. Again, I enjoyed the lush green trees along the river banks,  which weren’t there on my hike a week ago.

I loved  walking into the wetlands when many of the trees  are displaying their first rush green leaves of the season.

On the ground of the trail were hundreds of  marsh blue  violets,

the lush green leaves of the skunk cabbages,

and patches of azure bluets that added  to the beauty of this Spring scenery.

There wasn’t much bird or other wildlife activity as I walked through the lush green woodland  in the mid afternoon sunshine.

The only birds I saw or heard where some swamp sparrows in the reeds along the trail.

I walked to the Water Fowl pond,

and found only one of the pair of Canada geese  that are nesting here. It was in almost the exact same spot as when I saw it a  week ago. I am sure  I may see fluffy yellow goslings here on my next visit to the wetlands.   There were no other water fowl on the pond.

I now  walked toward the river lands area of the nature preserve, about a mile from the Water Fowl Pond.

I was again reminded how quickly the Spring passes when I saw high bush blueberry,

and pink azalea buds.  I loved when the pink azalea bloom. My dad would always take us in the woods near his boyhood home in early Spring to gather these pretty pink flowers. He called them “honey suckles”. They always bring back many warm memories.  Sadly, they only bloom for a few days.

It was late afternoon, and there is usually  not much bird activity, but I did see a yellow rumped warbler,

and a few blue gray gnatcatcher along the trail. Both of these birds are migrants either passing through or nesting in the wetlands.

I continued my hike through the wetlands, seeing some more Spring wildflowers,  including these wild oats,

Spring beauty flowers,

Labrador violets and

wild strawberries.

I also saw the colorful new leaves on many of the trees, shrubs and plants. . These leaves  looked pretty,  but beauty can me deceiving, they are poison ivy leaves.

 And, I saw another reminder of the quickly passing  Spring, the dandelion flowers have already gone to seed.

May apple or mandrake flowers  will soon be blooming in the wetlands.

I walked back down to the river, hoping to see a bald eagle, belted kingfisher, or red tailed hawk.  I have seen all of these birds perched on tree branches along the river. There were none on this hike.

I then walked under the ancient oak trees along the river, through the new trails in the old farm  field,

and then into the river lands.

More cumulus clouds formed in the now late afternoon sunshine.

This made for a postcard like scene along  Lake Took-A-While.

It was late afternoon and there was now a lot of bird activity along the lake.

I did see a few song sparrows and

American goldfinches  both year long residents here.   The male goldfinches changed into their bright yellow Spring feathers.

There were some American robins, this one was look like it wain the lake or canal for some reason.

There were also some migratory birds,  the colorful yellow warblers,

and and the warbling vireos. It was nice to hear their songs again.

I walked to the far end of the lake,

and began my hike back to the wetlands.

On the way I saw this eastern phoebe, a small flycatcher, that captured some sort of small insect.

There were also few gray squirrels scurrying along the trail,  some resting on a branch watching me walk past,

and these two,  a couple peeping out of their nest in a hollow tree trunk.

As I was leaving the river lands I had one more exciting bird sighting,  a bald eagle soared overhead.

It is always a special hike when I see these majestic birds. Here is a link to a photo gallery on my blog web-site with more photos of the birds I saw on my 5 mile hike in the wetlands. Susquehanna Wetlands birds April 24 2026.

I walked back into the wetlands,

seeing a few painted turtles enjoying the late afternoon sun. A few frogs could be heard in the reeds .

I finished my five mile hike late in the afternoon. The  sun was lower in the  west and cast some shadows  in the now green wetlands. As always in the Spring and Summer, the evenings are almost magical in the wetlands and other woodlands of  Northeastern Pennsylvania.

I try and  spend as many hours I can outdoors in the warm months, they will go by all to quickly for me. Here is a link to a photo gallery on my blog web-site with more photos from  my 5 mile hike in the wetlands. Susquehanna Wetlands   April 24 2026.

 “There is no glory in star or blossom till looked upon by a loving eye; There is no fragrance in April breezes till breathed with joy as they wander by.”  William Cullen Bryant

“April is like a secret whispered in the woods, a hush of green and bustling life.”    Sarah L. Wildes