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Birding in SE Minnesota -
Western Section |
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by Bob Ekblad |
Locations
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| A highly recommended (hard-copy)
resource is Kim Eckert's "A Birder's Guide to Minnesota". He does
an excellent job of identifying the good Minnesota birding locations by
county - including those in the Southeastern
part of the state. The book is available from ABA Sales or from
the author. Go here for more
information. |
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1
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Lake Byllesby |
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(Dakota/Goodhue
Counties)
| Directions from Rochester: North
on Hwy 52. Continue past Cannon Falls and turn at the first left
on Cty 86. Make an immediate left turn and follow the signs to
the Lake Byllesby Regional Park. |
Seasonal Ratings:
| Spring |
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| Fall |
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| Winter |
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| Primary Species: Waterfowl and
shorebirds. |
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You can make a full circuit of the lake, taking advantage of
all of the access roads. The lake is often good in the fall for
migrating
shorebirds. Probably the best access is on the north side of the
lake
in Dakota County at the Lake Byllesby Regional Park. Another good
access
is off of Hwy 56 south of Randolph (and south of the bridge over the
river).
Take Sciota Trail east, turn left at the T intersection and bear left
into
the parking area for the boat landing (watch for the "No Trespassing
after
10 pm" sign). The landing is approximately 1.4 miles from Hwy 56.
Another area you might want to check for shorebirds during
migration is 12 miles further north of Cannon Falls. Turn left
(west) at Empire on Hwy 66 and proceed west for a few miles to a sod
farm on the left (south side of the road). You can drive the
gravel roads that circle the
sod farm to check out the shorebirds (look especially for Buff-breasted
Sandpipers) as well as other songbirds and sparrows in the adjacent
fields.
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2
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Big Woods State Park |
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(Rice County)
| Directions from Rochester: West
on Hwy 14. Right (north) on Hwy 56 through Kenyon and then left
on Hwy 246 to Nerstrand. Continue straight where Hwy 246 turns
right and proceed into the park. The entrance station is on the
right. |
Seasonal Ratings:
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| Primary Species: Warblers,
thrushes and other song birds. |
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The park is a good place to check for migrating warblers and
other
song birds. Park in the area just beyond the ranger station and
hike
north to the bridge. There are several trails to scout out, but you
might
want to follow the ones closer to the water, making a loop or two.
While you are in the area, you might want to drop down to Hwy
60 (4 miles) and head west into Faribault (about 5 miles) to visit the
River Bend Nature Center near the SE corner of the city. Turn
south on Shumway to Rustad and then go east to the center.
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3
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Rice Lake State Park |
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(Steele/Dodge
Counties)
| Directions from Rochester: West
on Hwy 14 to Claremont. North on Cty 1. A short distance
past the gravel pit ponds (check them on the way), turn left (west) on
the paved Cty 20 (marked with sign for the park). The park is on
your left about 3 miles down the road. |
Seasonal Ratings:
| Spring |
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| Summer |
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| Fall |
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| Winter |
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| Primary Species: Waterfowl,
waders, warblers, sparrows and other song birds. |
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The park is a good place to visit any time of the year, but
springtime is the best when migrating waterfowl fill the lake and the
woods will be
alive with songbirds. Check out the view of the lake from the
boat
landing and the picnic area (both sides of the point). Hike the
trail
along the lake shore to the east of the picnic area all the way to the
campground to get your fill of both waterfowl and songbirds.
Be sure to also check out the small wetland west of the entrance to the
park. This is the spot where 3 Black-necked Stilts were seen in
mid-May of 2004. A month earlier an American Avocet, a
Black-Crowned Night Heron and a Snowy Egret stopped at the wetland (all
at the same time) to find a meal. Shorebirds can also be found at
the wetland during migration and you may also see two or three Sandhill
Cranes hanging around the nearby fields as well. A wandering
Whooping Crane from the Wisconsin flock of released birds was found
here in 2003.
To the east of the entrance to the park is another small reed marsh
that is located just inside Dodge County at the northeast corner of the
intersection with Dodge County 20 (the north-south road is the county
line). Look for Marsh Wren and both Sora and Virginia Rails
as well as a good assortment of sparrows.
It might also be worth checking the Dodge County side of the
park at the cemetery and at the road (no vehicle access) for similar
species. Also watch for Sandhill Cranes in the area from the
blocked park road to
where the road turns after passing the farmhouse. A family of
cranes
has been seen here the past couple of years (and the Wisconsin Whooping
Crane also wandered over in this area as well).
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4
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Claremont Sewage Ponds |
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(Dodge County)
| Directions from Rochester: West
on Hwy 14 to east entrance to Claremont. Left on the first road
after the railroad tracks. Left on the unmarked trail that runs
through the farm field. Cross the tracks and park by the gate. |
Seasonal Ratings:
| Spring |
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| Summer |
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| Fall |
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| Winter |
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| Primary Species: Waterfowl and
shorebirds. |
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Although the birding here has not been as good in the past
few years (since they added more rip-rap along the "shore" line), this
can be a good place to check for migrating shorebirds and
waterfowl. Most species of shorebirds have been seen here,
including Red-necked Phalarope and even a rare Red Phalarope.
Once a rare Violet-green swallow was identified here as well.
Also check the scrubby area around the south side of
the ponds for sparrows and other song birds.
While you are in the area, you can also check out the gravel
pit area 2 miles north of Claremont on Cty 1 (check all four corners of
the intersection). The best spot for shorebirds and waterfowl
usually is the private pond NE of the intersection. There is also
a wildlife area on Cty 5 that
was set aside by Pheasants Forever that can be good for sparrows and
song birds. A mile east is another access point and parking area
where there is a fairly large pond that has attracted waterfowl and
even Black-crowned Night-Heron.
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5
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Hormel Nature Center |
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(Mower County)
| Directions from Rochester: South
on Hwy 63 to I 90. Bear right to go west on I 90. Take the
first exit after the Hwy 56 exchange just before you get to Austin
(about 40 miles from Rochester). Go to the right (north), pass up
the immediate right and continue for a half mile before turning right
into the park and nature center. |
Seasonal Ratings:
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| Primary Species: Song birds,
sparrows, warblers and some waterfowl. |
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The best birding is along the stream that flows through the
park. There are several trails that run adjacent to the stream
(on both sides)
so you can go up one side and loop back on the other.
There are some ponds on the property that are well hidden with
shrubs and trees that are worthwhile to check also. These are
easily accessed from the parking lot by heading east and a bit north
across the prairie
area. Be sure to watch for sparrows harvesting seed from the
prairie
grasses.
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6
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Big Island State Park |
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Top |
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(Freeborn County)
| Directions from Rochester: South
on Hwy 63 to I 90. Bear right to go west on I 90. Continue
past Austin and take the Hayward exit. Turn south to Hayward on
Cty 26 and then turn right (west) on Cty 46. Turn left on Cty 38
(south) and proceed into the park. |
Seasonal Ratings:
| Spring |
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| Summer |
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| Fall |
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| Winter |
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| Primary Species: Waterfowl,
especially American Pelican, warblers, sparrows and other song birds. |
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There are plenty of places to check out in this park.
The road out to the island takes you past varied habitat and provides a
good view
of the lake. Check around the parking area for land birds.
You
can either hike or drive to the smaller "island" to the north where
there
can be good concentrations of warblers and sparrows in migration.
Also check out the other road that goes straight south from
the ranger
station. This leads to good views of the lake and to a nice marsh
(the
side road back to the north).
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