Bob Heitzman -- The 251 Town Birder
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115 Searsburg - Turbines in the Clouds

6/10/2013

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This passed weekend was another Birding Dawn to Dusk marathon.  I set out at 9:00am and returned home just before 10:00pm.  The marathon took me 280 miles around the southernmost towns of Vermont, thru sun, fog, cloud, and drizzle.  I surveyed 9 towns from Guilford and Halifax in the east, to Woodford and Stamford in the west.  The western towns are all in the Green Mountain National Forest... lots of forest and not a lot of people... I made sure I had a full tank of gas and a good hearty lunch before leaving Wilmington.

Searsburg was the most interesting stop during the day.  Searsburg has a very small population, is located in the higher elevations of the Green Mountains, and is home to Green Mountain Power's Searsburg Wind Power Facility.  GMP's ridgeline turbines were in the clouds when I arrived, but the droning of the turbines could be heard on the facing ridge, a mile away.  I was reminded of a never-ending, distant freight train, or the rumbling of the White River near my home; I could see how some folks would be disturbed by the continual sound, yet for my short visit it was a point of curiosity.  My survey area was 0.3 miles along VT-8, at about 2500 feet.  Despite the low cloud deck, and the accompanying drizzle, I was able to see and hear a nice assortment of bird species.

Searsburg Checklist:
Willow Flycatcher
Red-eyed Vireo
Yellow Warbler
Ovenbird
American Robin
White-throated Sparrow


 
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    I've been a life-long 'naturalist' -- interested in every aspect of the natural world.  I began birding in the early 1990s, and have been a serious birder for over two decades.

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