We meet at the Ballpark in Gillies Bay at 10:00am.
Last week we drove south towards Davie Bay, then turned left just past Eagle Creek heading up hill almost to Thompson Road. This is all familiar ground as we have several lakes and viewpoints in this area and can reach Thompson Road from several different directions. For this hike we followed much of our usual route to Thompson Bluffs, but took a different fork on the Mystery Lake road and had lunch on a rocky bluff on the north side of Broken Logs Lake. We first visited this lake, the south side that time, quite a few years ago and did not return until September last year when we found a way through the forest to reach the north shore. We had a couple of very loud bullfrogs to serenade us while we ate lunch.
On the way back down to Thompson Road after lunch we disturbed a mother Blue Grouse with some very young chicks. The mother flew up onto a nearby tree leaving the chicks on the ground to fend for themselves. Their best protection from predators is probably to keep stock still and try to blend in with the vegetation, something their plumage helps them to do very well. I was able to slowly approach one of the chicks that had decided it was best to remain perfectly still while I photographed it several times. Much to my surprise it suddenly opened out it's tiny wings and flew rapidly to a low branch where it made a less than perfect landing. And I thought it was much too young to fly!
JD.
A very young baby grouse trying to blend in with it's surroundings.
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