Devilish Trails Lead to Blood-colored Birds
July 24, 2008
Article in: Birding
Devil’s Lake State Park near Baraboo, Wisconsin is the most visited in the state, and may very well be the most gorgeous. The best views require a rough hike that gains large amounts of elevation in a fairly short stretch. Perhaps it isn’t the lake that is the Devil’s, but the trails.
By the time we reached the top, dripping of sweat and trying to catch our breath, we were rewarded with a blood-red Scarlet Tanager, serenading us (or telling us to leave his hilltop).
Scarlet Tanager
In a momentary lapse of proper birding judgment mixed with hopefulness, we mistook a overzealous Chipping Sparrow for our long sought-after Worm-eating Warbler (can you say nemesis bird?). This diabolical sparrow was probably laughing the entire time as we descended the rocky hills.
Despite Devil’s Lake being extremely popular and a bit evil, the views will take your breath away (or what’s left after reaching the top).
American Crow
Yeah…it was steep
