Washington Island Wisconsin campground

[float5]

I spent ten days at the Washington Island campground which has been nicely improved by owners who bought it in recent years. I was busy trying to make Indian baskets at the great Sievers School but was still at the campground enough.

The owner spent 100 hours digging a pond with a machine and then lined it. Huge floats are there for the kids.

[float5]

The owners are boarding this horse but the campground also has equestrian camping.

Schoolhouse Beach on the island is one of only a handful of beaches in the world with this kind of smooth round stone.

I like the island for the fields of grass.

Original settlers were Icelandic and other Scandinavians so that there are a few such buildings around, brought over piece by piece.

[float5]

One of the lilac businesses on the island

The beach

Someone keeps Norse horses and I think this is one of them.

[float5]

Wild turkeys with young

Choctaw basket

You birders, some kind of crane?

[thoer]

Looks like you are having a great time Cathy. It is always beautiful up there.

[Mucram]

Originally Posted by float5

Wild turkeys with young

Choctaw basket

You birders, some kind of crane?

Sand hill cranes

[Steve Clark]

Originally Posted by Mucram

Sand hill cranes

Sound the trrrrrumpets! Mucram knows his cranes!

[float5]

Originally Posted by Mucram

Sand hill cranes

I would have never guessed this as I thought that their bodies were much longer and tan, not blue. But then I missed the migration in Nebraska. Thank you both!

[Brian B-P]

There are variations in appearance between subspecies of sandhill cranes, but what makes identification easy is that there are only two species of crane in North America, and the other one - whooping cranes - are white and very rare. So... when you see cranes, you can pretty safely bet on them being sandhills!

I've never seen whoopers in person, and I've only seen sandhills on the ground in the Northwest Territories and in Texas... but we see (and more often hear) them overhead every spring and fall here. A hundred or so flew over yesterday, but they won't fly over by the thousands for a while.

[rbryan4]

Originally Posted by Brian B-P

...what makes identification easy is that there are only two species of crane in North America, and the other one - whooping cranes - are white and very rare.

Correct. Whooping Cranes are rare, but not in the estuaries, bays, and intracoastal waterways along the Texas Gulf coast. In fact, the Matagorda Madness fiberglass rv rally (held every December) provides an excellent opportunity to see them, along with several other striking species, like Flamingos.

The rally even provides the opportunity for a half day kayak trip along the bay and side channels, primarily to get up close and personal with all sorts of birds. It's quite enjoyable, and (usually) a calm and easy paddle as well.

[float5]

Originally Posted by Brian B-P

There are variations in appearance between subspecies of sandhill cranes, but what makes identification easy is that there are only two species of crane in North America, and the other one - whooping cranes - are white and very rare. So... when you see cranes, you can pretty safely bet on them being sandhills!
.

Thank you for pointing that out. I probably have almost never seen cranes, mostly see herons and egrets. I have, however, seen rare red-crowned cranes, in Japan. They are white and black. So now I will know that I am seeing Sandhills.