Cochrane Trip summary

I've been home for a few days, but figured I would post some sort of conclusion to my mini-trip. I usually plan some sort of extravagant adventure in the winter months, but the disastrous state of my website and personal affairs had/have kept me couped up inside for too long! It was time to do some driving in search of bird-related goodies.

The plan was to head to Cochrane (and beyond) in search of Willow Ptarmigan. There seemed to be an influx of them into Quebec, and I had high hopes to find them in my hometown province. This species gave me the run during my 2010 Newfoundland trip, so it seemed like a fitting mini-excursion now. I also really enjoy the cold/snowy north, for reasons unknown...

Click above for a map of the roads I drove while on this 3 day marathon. The gameplan I followed was:

- drive to Temagimi on Thursday night and sleep in the car

- Wake up Friday, and check Lake Temiskiming (cobalt etc) and then drive some lesser known roads towards Cochrane.  Stay in pre-booked hotel in Cochrane.

- Saturday I checked the farmland north of Cochrane, then drove up hwy 11 and towards Abitibi Canyon (point B on the map), the farthest NW I managed to get from home. Back to same hotel in Cochrane after dark.

- Sunday I drove NE towards the Detour Lake Gold Mine. I didn't make it to the mine (becomes a private road 30km away).. But still got pretty far (the NE point of my travels) I then drove some backroads until later in the afternoon when I made my break for home. Arrived in Guelph around midnight!

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So, after all of that, no Ptarmigan. After I got home, I did note that they continued to be seen in Quebec:

(Above - The farthest NE I managed to get on my travels, half way to James Bay from Cochrane! The blue point in Quebec is the location of 2 Willow Ptarmigan reproted in Quebec on the same day!

Highlights: 

Friday - already covered earlier. Slow until I saw the Lynx.. Then found the redpolls feeding and took 1000 Hoary Redpoll pictures over  the next 5-6 hours, while freezing in my car. A major success!

Saturday - rather slow around Cochrane - checking feeders with Pine Grosbeaks and Redpolls (several Hoaries). Also managed to take the Gray Jay picture that appears at the top of the page. Crossbills, Ruffed Grouse etc. were fun. Some well stocked feeders in Cochrane were loaded with Redpolls (and numerous Hoaries)

Fun fact: the drive on Saturday to Abitibi Canyon is 75km north of Hwy 11. On the ENTIRE 150KM drive, I didnt see a SIGNLE BIRD!!! Boreal forest at its best. 

Sunday: the clear front runner was the Gray Wolf sighting, but I also managed some good boreal birds on the drive towards the mine. (Finches, Crossbills, Boreal Chickadees etc). The finale of my trip was spotting a hunting Northern Hawk Owl near Engleheart

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So yeah! A pretty awesome 3 day trip to the north. I spotted a decent percentage of the species one would expect in a place like Algonquin Park, but add in the numerous Hoary Redpolls, a Lynx, a Gray Wolf, and the excitement of birding some really unknown places  --- it really makes me wonder why more people don't go there!

Fun facts:

2310km - driven from my driveway and back. 150 liters of gas

1 - number of times I got temporarily stuck while driving. In the middle of a sheet of ice.. Wouldn't move in any direction until I put some salt down!

0 - number of snow tires on my little Toyota Echo! This car is unstoppable. 

$55/night - cost of my hotel in cochrane. It's sad when I get a better night sleep in my car than I do the hotel, but at the very least, the hotel had heat when the temps plunged to -29 C

Northern Lights - poorly on Saturday night

75 - number of times I thought about writing a diet-birding book. If you only bring lettuce, apples and crackers 150km down a mining road - you're going to eat Lettuce, Apples and Crackers and be happy about it!

My Northern Hawk Owl from the adventure. I actually had  really amazing looks, just didn't bother to put the big lens on the camera.