Surprises on the Trans-Canada Trail
October 13th, 2016
A tip on Facebook led me to a section of the Trans-Canada Trail I had never hiked before. I heard that Fringed Gentian, a wildflower with which I have rather fallen in love, could be found in abundance there, if you knew where to look. I didn't ask for details (I didn't know if he'd want to give up his secret, and besides, it's more fun to make it a treasure hunt); instead Michael and I just went to the trail and explored.
It was pretty well off-trail where we found the motherload: dozens of them, some growing in dense stands. Fringed Gentian is enormously picky about sunlight, and in the late-afternoon partly-cloudy conditions we found them in, they were all mostly closed. I promised myself to come back soon on a sunny mid-morning.
So I did, and after much poring over the site in search of the perfect photo op, I found these three lovely ladies. They were standing up against a hillside with the sun behind it, open and waiting. I waited with them until it arrived.
1680x1050 wallpaper
The abundance of limestone quarries in the area provided a clue as to why Fringed Gentian was so happy there. Limestone bedrock is one of their favorites. Other interesting wildflowers were in evidence also, including Harebells and some wild geraniums that Mike tentatively identified as Bicknell's Cranesbill. The land and flora reminded me of both Carp Ridge and the Burnt Lands.
The birding was far better than I expected. Both a juvenile Sharp-Shinned Hawk and a juvenile Red-Shouldered Hawk flew over while I was photographing gentians. Red-Shouldered Hawk is very uncommon in Ottawa, only my second ever here. Back on the trail, I was stunned to find an Eastern Towhee, another highly uncommon bird, seldom seen in Ottawa except for its small breeding population in the Carp Ridge barrens. (Sadly, my photos of these two excellent birds are not worth showing. Exposure fail.)
Across the trail from the towhee, what sounded like a sizable flock of Rusty Blackbirds was twittering in some dense spruces. I couldn't see a one of them, except for a lone sentry who perched at the very top of a spruce to look around. Rusties are uncommon, declining blackbirds who nest and forage in wetlands. Most of them breed in the boreal forest.
Palm Warbler, one of our earliest (in spring) and latest (in fall) migrant warblers. They favor spruce bogs for nesting. A small number of pairs breed at Mer Bleue bog each year.
Eastern-Tailed Blue
Sharp-Shinned Hawk
If you would like to explore this area yourself, it's in Stittsville around where Jinkinson Road crosses the TCT. There's a parking lot for trail users there.
October 13th, 2016
A tip on Facebook led me to a section of the Trans-Canada Trail I had never hiked before. I heard that Fringed Gentian, a wildflower with which I have rather fallen in love, could be found in abundance there, if you knew where to look. I didn't ask for details (I didn't know if he'd want to give up his secret, and besides, it's more fun to make it a treasure hunt); instead Michael and I just went to the trail and explored.
It was pretty well off-trail where we found the motherload: dozens of them, some growing in dense stands. Fringed Gentian is enormously picky about sunlight, and in the late-afternoon partly-cloudy conditions we found them in, they were all mostly closed. I promised myself to come back soon on a sunny mid-morning.
So I did, and after much poring over the site in search of the perfect photo op, I found these three lovely ladies. They were standing up against a hillside with the sun behind it, open and waiting. I waited with them until it arrived.
1680x1050 wallpaper
The abundance of limestone quarries in the area provided a clue as to why Fringed Gentian was so happy there. Limestone bedrock is one of their favorites. Other interesting wildflowers were in evidence also, including Harebells and some wild geraniums that Mike tentatively identified as Bicknell's Cranesbill. The land and flora reminded me of both Carp Ridge and the Burnt Lands.
The birding was far better than I expected. Both a juvenile Sharp-Shinned Hawk and a juvenile Red-Shouldered Hawk flew over while I was photographing gentians. Red-Shouldered Hawk is very uncommon in Ottawa, only my second ever here. Back on the trail, I was stunned to find an Eastern Towhee, another highly uncommon bird, seldom seen in Ottawa except for its small breeding population in the Carp Ridge barrens. (Sadly, my photos of these two excellent birds are not worth showing. Exposure fail.)
Across the trail from the towhee, what sounded like a sizable flock of Rusty Blackbirds was twittering in some dense spruces. I couldn't see a one of them, except for a lone sentry who perched at the very top of a spruce to look around. Rusties are uncommon, declining blackbirds who nest and forage in wetlands. Most of them breed in the boreal forest.
Palm Warbler, one of our earliest (in spring) and latest (in fall) migrant warblers. They favor spruce bogs for nesting. A small number of pairs breed at Mer Bleue bog each year.
Eastern-Tailed Blue
Sharp-Shinned Hawk
If you would like to explore this area yourself, it's in Stittsville around where Jinkinson Road crosses the TCT. There's a parking lot for trail users there.
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Mike
October 14th, 2016 at 7:50 am
Awesome find! And I still love the color of those gentians!
mustangsallie
October 14th, 2016 at 8:33 pm
Ditto!