Snow And Ice Are Not Two Of My Favorite Things: A Decemeber Hike At The Susquehanna Wetlands

 

If you’ve been following my blog, you would know I am not a fan of winter anymore.  Snow cold, ice, and short days are not a few of my favorite things . They used to be, a long time ago. When I was younger,  I would sled, ski, ice skate and enjoy walking in the cold, snow and ice.   Well, I am not young anymore, and it’s a lot harder  walking  on the snow and ice.   However,  I don’t crawl into my house , like a bear or groundhog,  and hibernate for the winter.    I try   to make the best of it.  So I returned to the Susquehanna wetlands early Saturday morning. About 4 inches of snow fell at my home in Hazle Township last Tuesday. I guessed, and hoped,  there would be less snow in the wetlands since  they are at much  lower elevation then my home

I was right and there was only about 2 inches of snow on the ground when I arrived at the wetlands . As usual,  in the Winter,  I park at the ponds near the  access road entrance since the  road is gated and  closed until Spring.

In addition to the snow, I was surprised to find the Water Fowl  ponds to be  totally covered in ice. We had some unseasonably cold weather, but I did not think they would be totally ice covered this early in December.

The ice on the ponds meant the wood ducks and other water fall would have moved south for the Winter.   I will miss being  greeted with the whistling of the wood ducks flying off as  I approached.  On Saturday I was greeted by the loud   singing of a couple Carolina wrens. I love hearing their cheerful songs, especially in the winter.

I walked to the access road and  I walked  the 1/2 mile to the parking lot and wetlands trail head. Here, I heard and saw a small flock of white throated sparrows foraging  in the woods, and,

this male cardinal perched  high in tree top.

I also saw this squirrel sitting in a tree.

On my hike the previous week I commented how the leafless trees were brown, gray and dreary.

  I pointed out some of the very few green plants and leaves still growing  along s the access road. This week there was  were even less   green along the road.  The snow covered the garlic mustard and Dame’s rocket leaves.  Only the autumn olive,

and Amur honeysuckle shrubs had a few green leaves  clinging to their branches.

There were still a lot of oak leaves clinging to the trees along the road.

I walked to the parking lot and down to the Susquehanna river, which was low. It was a winter wonderland like scene. It was pretty but  I missed   green lush canopy of leaves on the trees that  along the river banks.

Along the river I saw two birds I don’t see in the wetlands in the Spring and Summer, a yellow bellied sapsucker,

and a brown creeper.

The yellow bellied sapsucker usually does not stay in the wetlands  in the Winter, is probably passing through from it’s Summer home,  and may soon be migrating south.

The brown creeper also spends its Summer further north but may spend  the Winter in the wetlands. They forage up the trunks of trees and their feathers  blend in with the trees trunks.

Walking into the wetlands I was glad there was only about 2 inches of snow on the ground.   A vehicle drove through the wetlands, probably one of the maintenance workers, making a trail for me to follow. I don’t like trudging through the snow anymore.

Like the ponds neat the entrance road, the canals were frozen too.   I didn’t expect to see any heron or ducks on the waters. However, in the past, I have seen  river otters and mink frolicking on the frozen canals. I hoped to see one on this hike, but I didn’t.

I did see another  northern cardinal,

as I walked through the reeds and cattails on the path to the Water Fowl pond.

I also saw a few song sparrows, 

and American goldfinches in the reeds.

These, and other Winter resident birds feed on the many remaing seeds and berries  in the wetlands including border privet,

common greenbrier.

 bittersweet nightshade,

winterberries,

and gray  alder tree  seeds.

I walked to the frozen Water Fowl pond hoping to see a bald eagle or a hawk but their was no bird activity at all near the ponds.I next  walked on the snow covered trails toward the river lands section of the nature preserve.

It is so different walking on the snow  in the cold, quiet and lifeless wetlands than in the Spring and Summer months.

Well, it wasn’t totally lifeless, I saw red bellied woodpecker,

and white breasted nuthatch foraging for food in the tree tops,

Although the snow wasn’t very deep it was still slippery in spots and it was not easy walking. I didn’t mind falling on the snow and ice in my younger years but , as I recently learned, it is not fun anymore either.

I saw a flock of dark eyed juncos, or snow birds, that migrate from the northern forests to our area in the Winter.  Here is a link to a gallery on my blog web page with some more photos of the birds I saw  in the wetlands.  Susquehanna Wetlands birds December 6 2025.

I continued through on the trail though the wetlands,and toward the river lands.  I had walked out about a 1 1/2 . I usually continue on and walk along Lake-Too-Awhile. However, I turned back for two reasons. First, after a recent illness, I was told to take it easy so I was cutting my hike short. And second, I had to be at Bloomsburg University for 11:30 to attend my niece Brooke’s Speech Pathology White Coat ceremony.

I was running a little late , so I quickly walked back through the snow.  And , of course, I now heard and saw a lot of birds, including pileated wood peckers and a hermit thrush. I didn’t have time to stop and try and get photos of the birds.

I was cold when finished my 3 mile hike. I brought a change of clothes but t wasn’t easy changing in my Jeep. It was cold and dreary  but I enjoyed my Winter walk in the wetlands, not as much as a Spring, Summer or Autumn hike, but it was  better than sitting  inside my home. I’ll continue hiking on the cold, windy and dreary  days of Winters, but I will be counting the days until Spring. Here is a link to a gallery on my blog web page with some more photos from my hike in the wetlands. Susquehanna Wetlands  December 6 2025.

“A lot of people like snow. I find it to be an unnecessary freezing of water.”
― Carl Reiner