Helen Carlson Sanctuary

I'm going to make this post short and sweet. For the last couple of weeks there has been some wicked humidity around here. There is no air conditioning where my computer is and I don't have a laptop. I can barely tolerate staying at the computer for more than ten minutes in weather like this so here goes my ten minutes worth of blogging.

There is a place called the Helen Carlson Nature Sanctuary in Portland. If you are interested in making a visit to the sanctuary, you can get the information you need here. A boardwalk was built around this bog some years back but it is often flooded over due to the work of beavers. I recently found out that a new observation platform was built at the sanctuary. I went to check it out this past weekend. The bog is located on South Road in Portland. If you are facing the bog, there is a trail along the left side that leads to the new platform.

It has quite a few twists and turns to it. It seems to have been engineered to handle flood situations.

There is a nice view from the top deck. I believe that an afternoon visit would offer more attractive lighting because I was facing the sun as I looked over the bog on this muggy morning. I've never had any unusual bird sightings at the bog. I've never seen any particularly rare birds at the bog but I've had some nice sightings. Green Herons, Wood Ducks, and Hooded Mergansers are three that come to mind.

There are a lot of interesting plants at the bog including two types of sundew, a carnivorous plant that catches its prey in sticky, spatula-like leaves. I'd like to find one of those when I get a chance. I came across this turtle along the path that leads to the platform. If you get a close look at his face, he seems to have a bit of an attitude problem. By the way-is the turtle in this photo a Painted Turtle? If so, it looks it has nothing more than a coat of primer so far.

What kind of mushroom is this? I'll bet it's poisonous. It seems like red mushrooms are usually poisonous

I followed a trail that was across the street from the bog that I had never taken before. It led me right out to the powerlines which are always worth checking out for interesting birds.

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There is one particular bird that has been driving me crazy this year. I have heard Eastern Wood-Pewee singing on numerous occasions over the last month or so but I haven't been able to catch one in the act. Just before reaching the powerlines, I spotted this Eastern Wood-Pewee singing its signature song. You know a bird is really giving its all when the tail starts rattling around during the song.

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Can you identify any of the birds singing in the background?