First Barge of the Season
The average date for the first barge of the spring to pass through the Hastings lock and dam # 2 is March 22nd. Because of the early ice-out on Lake Pepin, the first barge of the spring headed upstream past Wacouta on March 8th.
Beaver Cuttings
On a previous post dated November 20, 2016, I reported observing a considerable amount of fresh beaver activity on the north side of Wacouta pond. Despite all the cuttings, I was unable to locate a lodge and feed pile that would provide living quarters through the winter. On my winter cross country ski tours in the area surrounding the pond, I was still unsuccessful in locating any such evidence of their lodge.
Beaver Dam
It wasn't until a couple days ago, that I was able to solve the mystery, Evidently as winter approached, the beaver left the pond and traveled over land a couple hundred yards to Bullard's creek. Once entering the creek, they worked their way upstream approximately 3/4 mile to near the intersection of Highway 61 and Goodhue County Highway 21. There one can observe a large 5 foot high dam holding back a significant amount of water from Bullard's creek.
Second and Smaller Beaver Dam
On the upstream side of the County Road 21 bridge over Bullard's Creek is another smaller dam holding back water draining from a large peat bog wetland area. The upper part of this peat bog is where a 40 acre solar garden is being proposed. It makes one wonder how heavy equipment will be able to negotiate this water-logged bog?
Pasque Flower
Today March 24th, I climbed up nearby Barn Bluff to see if the Pasque Flowers had started to bloom. These are some of the earliest spring wildflowers in our area and I tend to find them blooming in large numbers by April 10th. Because of the mild winter we experienced, I was not surprised to find a few already in bloom in the prairie on the south side of the bluff. If the forecast is right, the 50 degree temps predicted for next week should bring out large numbers of these beautiful flowers.
Red Winged Blackbird
Avian signs of spring include sightings of red-winged blackbirds, robins and turkey vultures, In the past several years, we tend to observe our first vultures within a day or two of March 20th (the first day of spring). This year our first sighting was on March 23.
Robin
Turkey Vultures
Turkey vultures winter in the south where carrion is more plentiful. With the approaching warmer weather the arrival of vultures is truly a welcome harbinger of spring.