Some of the Birdfreaks (Jennie and Dakota from Ohio and Mom/Dad [Grandma/Grandpa] in Illinois) traveled to Maine this June. Birds, mammals, snapping turtles in the road mixed with a whole lot of natural wonders and history made this a memory-building experience!
The rest of the drive to Maine included driving around Lake Champlain, visiting the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, looking for Moose (fail) and a tour of Vermont’s State Capitol building. Did you know that Montpelier has a Youth Birding Program? Nice!
Montpelier, Vermont
We decided to check out the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum in Vergennes, Vermont. We learned about boat building, early explorers, shipwrecks and saw a working replica of the gunboat Philadelphia II. The campus and exhibits were very well done and I would recommend this museum to anyone interested in U.S. history.
The Philadelphia II
The number of Ospreys we saw? – Incredible! They had completely disappeared from Vermont because of DDT use. Intensive monitoring and management has brought these birds back successfully. It’s hard to imagine a world without this fierce “fish-hawk”. We passed an area with six platforms set up – and each one had a nest!
Eddie Captured this Osprey Photo in 2008
The scenery was spectacular. We drove through the Green Mountains and wished for more time to bird…but on to Maine!
Green Mountains
Dakota “climbing” in the Green Mountains
Osprey’s are my favorite bird. Loved your pictures of Maine. I miss the east coast where I am from. My father and I used to listen to the whippoorwills at night during the summer. Recently wrote a post about my surprise spotting of Osprey in Flagstaff, Az. You might enjoy it.