Blue Goose ~ Day 16

June 16, 2014 ~ Jamestown, ND to Bismarck, ND

I slept an hour longer than usual, waking up at 0630 and headed for Babb’s Coffee Shop in downtown Jamestown (which, BTW, had Seattle Best coffee and it was delicious) but stopped at a local supermarket on the way to buy a few things and then used the bathroom. I am learning that using a public bathroom early in the morning means I have a good chance of not sharing it, which is the goal, having my own personal bathroom for 15 minutes. 

Today I was headed for Chase Lake NWR following the birding drive map which turned out to be increasingly frustrating as the day progressed. I had no problem starting and noting the areas where certain birds could be found or heard. (Hearing a unique bird vocalization is a big thing in birding and lots of people count birds they only hear and do not see.) But as I got closer to Chase Lake, the North Dakota Water Curse kicked in, and I kept having to turn around and find another route as the roads just up and ended at a flooded pothole, continuing on the far side which did me a lot of good with no ferry present. Jeez louise….I started swearing and then researching, only to finally realize that public access is not exactly a priority at this refuge. In fact, I wonder how many people actually find their way because access is denied from “April to September” to create an optimal environment for approximately 18,000 breeding White Pelicans, their nests and chicks. Plus other nesting species which use the refuge. And that was fine with me, but the fact that road after road was under water and not navigable with no warning signage, etc., was frustrating. It’s kind of wild out here on what is called the Missouri Coteau, with gently rolling hills, a mosaic of blue water and green fields and few dwellings. The roads were gravel (thus dusty), and at one point three huge Sidumpers (trucks that tip their loads off to the side), passed me on their way to dumping fill on one of the roads that was open. There are occasional ranch or farm houses, and people who live in these counties could easily be marooned if at least some of the roads were not maintained.

But there were memorable vignettes en route to Chase Lake: an American Bittern right at the road side, a Coot with a tiny, fluffy rusty-colored cootling or chick or whatever baby coots are called, a Great Egret and Snowy Egret (the bird with the delightful description of having "golden slippers") on one of the dike-type roads dividing a pothole and only a few inches above the water, and several Upland Plovers, also in the road near the car. And Western Grebes, cormorants, all the ducks, Pied-billed Grebes, both Eastern and Western Kingbirds….an astounding bounty of birds.

Yellow-headed Blackbird in ND

Snowy Egret in ND

Upland Sandpiper in ND

Still, I can’t be the only frustrated person who drives these roads, following the birding drive map. On reading the fine print more carefully, it did mention certain areas “may be flooded” or were a “primitive prairie trail” for the last couple of miles but this would "expose travelers to how was in pioneer days" or something euphemistic like that. Fine, with a vehicle that has amphibious capabilities with 4-wheel drive and high clearance. The van, however, does not and was already bumping bottom and scraping weeds, and I was not going to get stuck somewhere, especially with iffy cell service. 

Instead I went to Medina, following the Sidumpers (whose drivers I figured knew the roads and would not lead me into water). 

Sidumpers in ND

I found an office for Water Management and Chase Lake information. No one was present but I walked in and picked up several brochures on this part of ND, most explaining how various agencies are working with farmers and ranchers, teaching them about the importance of wetland management, offering incentives and cash and help to make their land and their farming practices better for native flora and fauna. Working together instead of against each other, explaining how habitat management and farming / ranching can coexist and benefit all. For anyone whose only acquaintance with ND has been from a jet plane or from I94, I can tell you that a few days spent on the back roads crisscrossing the prairies would delight, and maybe even soothe the soul.

North Dakota near Chase Lake NWR

Since Chase Lake was fait accompli, I went to Slade Lake NWR, which I found easily enough but whose gate was closed when I got there. I drove along the northern boundary and a Northern Harrier flew very close to me. It was such a perfect late afternoon with sunshine and breezes to keep the bugs away, so I stopped on the access road to Slade and had an hour that made up for the earlier frustration. 

Another wren story:

I stopped and immediately heard a Marsh Wren, singing very loudly and very near. Over the next hour, I saw it several times. Pete Dunne says: “A skulker even by wren standards—more often heard than seen. It clambers through rank vegetation by hopping stalk to stalk or hitching itself up and down vertical reeds; also hops on the ground…One of the bird’s hallmark gymnastic routines is a variation on the ‘iron cross’ —poised triumphantly between two stalks with one foot on one stalk and the other foot of the other.” 

Since I was going to be there an hour, I just waited and watched and eventually saw the singing wren often enough that I got the camera, which is when the bird did the “iron cross” deal, singing all the while. Well, I thought, I’ll just go and find another one, since I could hear at least three of them singing back and forth. And I did…two others! And figured this is what slowing down for an hour can mean. 

Marsh Wren at Slade NWR in North Dakota

Finding a place to sleep: A wee town named Dawson had a truck stop by the interstate - not acceptable - so I drove into Dawson to reconnoiter. What a sweet little town. An old gas station was now a therapeutic massage business with the gas pumps still out front; a very tasteful B and B / cottages-for-rent place just across the street was named Dakota Outback; kids were selling lemonade down the street. It was a quintessentially evocative place, far from the madding crowd, late afternoon mellow on this mid-June evening. At happens often on this trip, I wanted to live here…the thought persisting for 10 minutes or so. Some small towns are just weary-looking but this wasn’t. It is not far from Bismarck, and if I lived in Bismarck, I would be tempted to spend occasional weekends in a Dakota Outback cottage. 

A second truck stop inspection in Steele also did not pass, so I went to a Walmart in Bismarck, parked under quaking aspen trees and slept soundly.