Taking advantage of an opportunity

Wren, my dog, and I had some work to do near Blue Ridge Road recently and we took advantage of it to check out part of the Boreas Ponds Tract – a nearly 21,000 acre parcel which the state purchased in 2016. It has only recently been open

Gulf Brook Road, the main access to the Boreas Ponds Tract, is closed during the week beginning Wednesday, Sept. 12, while DEC completes ditching and repair work on the portion of the road between the Fly Pond Gate and the Four Corners. Due to the operation of heavy equipment at the work site and the frequent trips by dump trucks hauling in road material, the road will be closed for public safety reasons. The road will be open to public motor vehicle access each weekend from 5 p.m. Friday through sundown on Sunday.

DEC will be closing Gulf Brook Road often during the week in the next couple of months as it completes road work, constructs parking lots, and undertakes other access projects identified in the Vanderwhacker Mountain Wild Forest Unit Management Plan. Current status of the Gulf Brook Road will be posted on the DEC's Backcountry Information for the High Peaks Region.

for many forms of recreation – such as hiking and birding.

While there are a few ways to enter the tract, the easiest is along Gulf Brook Road, a gravel route that winds through deciduous and mixed forests and past a few parking areas before ending at the final parking lot 3.2 miles in. And so we took this access, first signing in as we entered the area. Not far along, I had to slip off the road into one of the handy parking places so a couple large DEC trucks could get past us on the narrow road. They were evidently working on the road farther ahead, perhaps part of the plan to allow increased recreation access to the tract. After all, the management of the entire area is currently being debated

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Birding along the route

However that gets worked out, the tract will offer excellent birding, and I quickly began to find birds as we drove and made stops along the road – starting with an Eastern Phoebe near the sign-in booth. Soon I had added Red-eyed Vireos, Blue-headed Vireos, Blackburnian Warblers, Black-throated Green Warblers, Black-throated Blue Warblers, American Redstarts, Northern Parulas, Chestnut-sided Warblers, Cedar Waxwings, Hermit Thrushes, Winter Wrens, and my first Magnolia Warbler and Nashville Warbler - both of which sang from the patches of conifers along the way. I also found two small groups of Wild Turkeys – hens with their growing chicks – and a short distance farther along the road, a Broad-winged Hawk hunting from a low perch.

We eventually reached the last parking area and I readied my pack for a hike. We didn’t have time to hike the 3.5 (7 miles round-trip) miles to the dam – an excellent trip for anyone who has the chance – but we did have time to poke around and explore a bit further.

Hiking a few miles

And so we set off on foot along the road, happy for the shade on what was a rapidly warming day. Wren nosed her way along the path and I listened to the birds, even as I heard the constant drone of deer flies which harassed us for our entire hike – at least we weren’t lonely! Despite this distraction, I found more of the same species we had noticed along the drive in, and I also quickly added Purple Finches, a few Scarlet Tanagers, a Brown Creeper, Great Crested Flycatcher, and a Rose-breasted Grosbeak, among others.

I also noted patches on the road where the DEC crew had done some work, and a short distance farther I found a divot in the road which had filled to form the chosen puddle of a green frog, and the tiny pool was quickly losing water in the heat. With the puddle drying up and the chance that those big trucks would soon be heavily bouncing down the road, I scooped the frog up out of the warm water and carried it down the hill hoping we’d find a stream at the bottom of it which could provide the frog with a safer and more permanent water source. My hope was soon realized, and Wren and I scrambled down the rocks along the stream where I released the frog and Wren took a long drink.

A bit further along the road I also found a small garter snake and I took a few photos before it slithered across our path. I also tried to take photos of the many white admiral butterflies which led us along our hike, although getting them to sit still enough for me proved to be a challenge.

While the hike was great, we eventually needed to turn around for lunch and to get out of the heat. The view of the High Peaks from the dam at the Boreas Ponds themselves is fantastic, but it would have to wait for a return trip. A calling flyover Common Loon reminded me that I’d also like to carry a lightweight canoe in to paddle the waterways sometime too. And so we hiked back out – adding a Northern Flicker and a Pileated Woodpecker to give us five woodpecker species on our hike. We stopped again at our frog stream so Wren could take another long drink. We wound back along Gulf Brook Road and headed for home, eating lunch as we went.

Summer and early fall offer excellent birding and hiking in the Adirondacks. Now is a great time to plan your trip — visit our lodging and dining pages to help you do so.