Close Encounters of the Bird Kind

Few things are more relaxing to me than paddling a canoe on a quiet lake. So I was delighted on one mid-May Monday afternoon to find only one other canoe on 70-acre Woods Lake in the Adirondack Mountains. I was nearly alone.

Except for the loons. But no matter, loons make wonderful paddling companions.

A mated pair who have had a nest along the shores of this lake for several years were very much in evidence on this relaxing afternoon. They floated, flapped, fished, and gave every evidence of enjoying each other's company as much as I was enjoying theirs.

Loons are especially delightful when you're out on a lake where motor boats aren't allowed. Both birds and paddlers can relax. In the quiet, the wild calls of the loons echo back from the surrounding hillsides. Two birds can create a symphony.

If you move slowly and don't paddle directly toward them, loons don't seem to mind your presence, unless they are shepherding very young chicks. Canoes are ideal for this; kayaks are even better because you sit lower in the water. At times, the adult loons even seem curious about humans. I've often had them dive ahead of my boat and come up closer behind or to the side, perhaps to get a better look.

If the loons have chicks nearby, or if they are sitting on a nest (loons are very awkward and uncomfortable on dry land) it's a different matter. It's irresponsible to try to get close to adult loons on a nest or with chicks in tow. If the adults appear agitated in any way, back off and leave them alone.

I would guess I spent the better part of an hour just drifting in the canoe, sunlight glinting off the water, watching the loons go about their business. They never let me get really close, but they never moved far away either. 

Of course no day outside is complete without a little exercise, and I got mine when the wind picked up from the northwest while I happened to be on the southeast corner of the lake. The long-axis of the lake orients perfectly northwest to southeast. There wasn't any place to hide --  or any way to get home without paddling into the wind.

While the winds were calmer, I'd been sitting on the bow seat facing backwards, which helps trim and balance a tandem canoe for a solo paddler. But when the wind started blowing I was forced to go to my knees with my thighs braced against the center thwart and paddle like furiously to make any progress. Getting back to the beach took a long time and lots and lots of paddle strokes. My thighs and shoulder got a stellar workout in the process.

The loons, of course, cruised effortlessly wherever they wanted to and laughed at my clumsy human antics.

You know what? Being laughed at by loons makes for a great day outdoors.

See gulls and more

Loons aren't the only birds that let you get closer if you are moving along silently in a canoe or a kayak. My friend Steve Muskie, who takes absolutely magnificent photographs of birds uses a kayak, cameras with image-stabilized lenses, and infinite patience to capture a lot of his images.

I've had numbers of close encounters of the bird kind while out paddling. Even birds that you wouldn't normally associate with water often hang out in the vegetation along the shore. They'll let you paddle closer than you could get if you were walking and looked more like a human being and less like a floating log.

Other wildlife also doesn't seem to mind humans in a canoe or kayak as much as they might fear humans on foot. I've had beaver and muskrats swim alongside, and seen deer, moose and black bears drinking or feeding. I've also had snapping turtles swim under the boat and water snakes slide sinuously past.

It's amazing what you can see if you just get out and paddle in a quiet spot with no other people and no motorboats around. So leave the developed lakes to other folks and find undeveloped ponds, marshes, and flatwater rivers where the threat of flooding keeps development well back from the banks.

Try it sometime, especially at dawn when the whole world is quieter. You'll be amazed at how full of life the world can be.

Take flight

The Adirondack Birding Festival takes place every June. 

June is Birding Month in Vermont. Check out the Wings Over Stowe celebration throughout the month.

State chapters of the Audubon Society schedule birding events throughout the spring and summer.

• Connecticut
• Maine
• Massachusetts
• New Hampshire
• Rhode Island
• New York
• Vermont

Road tips

It had been, to say the least, an eventful weekend for this proud Papa. Two, count 'em, two brilliant, accomplished sons graduating from college, one from the University of New Hampshire, one from Hamilton College in upstate New York. 

Two long days off getting dressed up, sitting and listening, and socializing, with six hours of driving between graduations. By the time it was all over, I was in need of an outdoor escape. Fortunately, the Hamilton graduation put us within easy range of the Adirondacks, one of my favorite places to explore.

I booked two nights at Lapland Lake. This friendly, quiet, end-of-the road resort has a dozen tupas (rustic Finnish cabins with kitchens) set on a couple of hundred isolated acres. The resort morphs from a cross-country ski center in the winter to a hiking/biking/paddling/swimming destination in the summer. Guests can request a real Finnish sauna any afternoon. 

Stroll along a narrow gravel road less than half a mile from your tupa and you come to 70-acre Woods Lake. The resort has a private beach with a fleet of canoes and rowboats for guest use. Only one house sits on the shoreline of the 70-acre lake, and motorized vessels are prohibited.

Marilyn prefers reading in the shade for relaxation. As far as I'm concerned, there's nothing more relaxing that paddling a canoe on a quiet lake. The afternoon was the perfect blend of movement and stillness. She read, I paddled. Since this area is treated to reduce blackflies, we didn't even need insect repellent.