Algonquin Part IV: Mizzy LakeTrail

The next day the unsettled weather continued. Dark clouds moved through, bringing small pockets of rain, while the sun peeked out from behind the clouds from time to time. While my Dad, Sharon and Ashley were having their showers and breakfasts, Doran and I drove over to the Mizzy Lake Trail. We drove up Arowhon Road to the old rail bed and entered the trail via the Wolf Howl Pond. On the way in I saw a group of Yellow-rumped Warblers, an American Redstart and a couple of White-throated Sparrows. Across the pond I heard the whistle of a Broad-winged Hawk somewhere up in the trees. A few meadowhawks, Four-spotted Skimmers and Chalk-fronted Corporals accompanied us along the path.

A Day in Quebec, Part I: Monty’s Bog

On June 18th, fellow OFNC members and butterfly enthusiasts Rick Cavasin and Larry Neily and I journeyed across the Ottawa River in search of butterflies and other wildlife around Luskville and the northwestern section of Gatineau Park. We had three specific destinations: a bog on private property (which we had permission to visit) known informally as “Monty’s Bog”, a marsh in Gatineau Park near Lac La Peche, and a meadow near the Luskville Falls parking lot at the base of the Gatineau hills. We were following in the footsteps of a group of fellow enthusiasts, including Peter Hall and Chris Lewis, who had made a similar trek a few days earlier. The goal of the outing was to find the rare and local Bog Fritillary. Monty’s Bog is the only known location in the Ottawa District where this butterfly can be found, and it has a short flight season of only a couple of weeks in mid-June. Larry and I also hoped to see the Elfin Skimmer, the smallest North American dragonfly, which Chris had described in her trip report as being the most common odonate on the bog.