New Year's Day at Pocosin NWF

It is our custom to visit a Carolina destination on New Year's Day. This year, we chose the Pocosin National Wildlife Refuge. During a phone call this past November, a botanist at the refuge office indicated the number of snow geese migrating through the area generally peaks between Christmas and New Year's, so we headed to Pungo in an effort to see the twenty, thirty, or sixty thousand birds that reportedly stop by for a visit.

A bit of a mistake.

Eastern North Carolina has been blessed with an abundance of rain in recent days, and within the refuge, one travels around on a series of dirt roads. We knew it would be muddy, but after twenty-four hours without precipitation, we assumed the water had run off and our Durango could maneuver the resulting caked path. For the most part, it did. Unfortunately, the canals and lower-lying areas were flooded, and in places, the water stretched across the road. One large puddle blocked our way to the observation platform on Hyde Park Road.

We turned around and tried an alternate route, but nearly got stuck in what turned out to be thick, sludgy mud at the obscure west entrance. The trip wasn't without its merits, though. We saw an abundance of birds, and a couple of deer who seemed to be as curious of us as we were of them.

And finally, a few snow geese. Unfortunately, they were fairly high in the sky. The smudges you see on the photo is most likely muddy water:

Pocosin NWR is a great place to view wildlife--when it's dry, or if you have the proper vehicle and a winch. Before you visit, contact the office for road closures, and before hitting any Carolina trail during hunting season, check to see if hunting is permitting on the lands. If so, wear orange.

From Pungo to Mattamuskeet: Chasing Waterfowl of the Pocosins

It's November (though we're still trying to figure out how), which means the Pocosin lakes on the Albemarle-Pamlico peninsula will soon be filled with thousands of mergansers, wood ducks, Tundra swans, and at least three snow geese.

Eager to see the symphony of flight, we traveled to Pungo Lake to see what was out there. Unfortunately, as with our last visit, the south entrance at Hyde Park Road was blocked off. More unfortunately, the road running perpendicular was also barricaded. More on that later.

There was no sense turning around until we met our objective, so we set the GPS to Lake Mattamuskeet and headed east...and didn't see a single duck. Not one. Nor did we see any swans or the feather of a snow goose. But Mattamuskeet being Mattamuskeet, there was still beauty to be found in her waters and along her shores, including a doe that seemed as curious about us as we were of her:

October at Mattamuskeet

Because we intend to return to Pungo next month, I called the Pocosin National Wildlife Refuge to ask about the road closures. The admin connected me to the refuge's botanist (Botanist? Goodness, I could have kept her on the phone all day) who informed me the entrance at Hyde Park Road is always blocked. Worse, the dirt road that runs perpendicular is a private road, so we're not at liberty to use it to travel around the refuge.

The botanist, Wendy, I believe, did inform me the observation platform on the south side of Pungo can be reached by turning on Pat's Road from Hwy 45, then right on the first dirt road and left on Hyde Park Canal (north of the barricade). Take a good map or GPS—and four wheel drive—if you attempt this route.

Wendy also mentioned she spotted thirty Tundra swans that morning. Finally! More are sure to follow in the near future. That alone thrilled me, but then she mentioned she planned on taking an aerial survey of the surrounding fields to see if other birds had slipped in unnotice.

Aerial survey? I wonder if they need someone to tag along to take photos....

Pungo Lake (Part II)

(To read Part I, click here)

Main Entry: po•co•sin*
Pronunciation: pah-KOH-sen (my spelling)
Etymology: probably from Virginia or North Carolina Algonquian
: an upland swamp of the coastal plain of the southeastern United States

Like Phelps Lake, Lake Mattamuskeet, Alligator Lake (aka, New Lake) and the three lakes in Croatan National Forest, Pungo Lake is a pocosin lake, which means it's surrounded by thickets consisting mainly of short bay trees and shrubs with Latin names I can't pronounce. To give it a decidedly southern touch, Magnolia virginiana, or Sweetbay magnolia, grows in the midst.

In addition to being a pocosin, and possibly a Carolina Bay (the lake is elliptical like a bay), the 12,000 acres of what's referred to as the Pungo Unit is also a haven for wintering waterfowl. Thousands of ducks, geese, and swans—and I mean about 50,000 more than the number that just popped in your head—winter at Pungo. I understand that during the warmer months, black bears can also be spotted when they leave the protective confines of the woods to feed.

That's why, when the Navy decided to build an Outlying Landing Field within miles of the Pungo Unit, coastal NC residents went berserk. And I mean berserk in a good way. A grassroot organization instantly sprang up to defend the waterfowl. NO OLF signs appeared in store windows and in front yards. The case went to court. After a long fight for the birds, the birds won. In January of 2008, the Navy changed its mind.

But I promise you, there's still some fancy flying going on out there:

As I mentioned in my previous post, we finally found the lake, but of course, we spotted only about a half dozen swans floating around. During an informative conversation with Gail and Steve, bird enthusiasts we met on the way to Pungo, we learned migrating waterfowl are all but gone by March. Along with a time frame to return next season, Gail suggested the best place to find those elusive snow geese is Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge, located on the Outer Banks. Indeed, a month or so before this we'd spotted a couple of white feathered fowl floating around the marshes near the Pea Island Visitor's Center before rain sent us home. In a voice filled with a sadness I've come to understand, Gail told us the number of snow geese has diminished greatly over the past decade. Once they "were all over, and walking in the road". But no more.

We spent some time there, enjoying the lake despite the high winds that day, and chatting with Gail and Steve. Then we left to find the second access road I spotted through Google Earth. We found it, but it was "Closed for Research". Since it appears a sandbar extends into the lake at that point, we'll return later and check it out.

Other Pungo facts:

• Like the trails in the Alligator and Roanoke NWRs, a Charles Kuralt Trail kiosk has been erected in this refuge. We spotted it near the observation platform. I'm just learning about this trail system, but I did find a link to a website that explains what it is and why Mr. Kuralt's name is attached to it. For more information, go to http://www.northeast-nc.com/kuralt/
• From what I can ascertain, hunting is allowed on the refuge (state rules and regulations apply). However, I've yet to find anything that indicates boating is permitted. The lake is smaller than Phelps and Mattamuskeet, and access is limited. Because it's a pocosin, the water is shallow. A ranger at the National Wildlife Refuge office estimated the lake is, on average, six to eight feet deep. So if you're hoping to spend the day on the water, this may not be the right destination for you.
• According to The Natural Traveler: Along NC's Coast, the land was once owned by a commercial farming company. Remnants of their presence is visible in the grid of dirt roads and the deep canals running alongside them. While the roads are handy, the trip can be bumpy in dry weather, and deep and rutted when it's wet. Use caution. As the NC Birding Trail reminds visitors: if it's raining, you want want to reschedule your trip for another time. I would also suggest this to those considering a trip in the middle of the summer when NC bugs are out in full force.
  
• The presence of farms inside Pungo Unit may confuse you. After all, this is a national refuge. As I've recently learned, the farms are part of the sanctuary. Farmers are permitted to grow crops, but they must leave twenty percent of the harvest behind for refuge animals. I'm sure the birds love this. We spotted plenty of them feasting on fallen grain.

After spending time enjoying the scenery, looking for birds, and chatting, we said our goodbyes. Steve and Gail left to find New Lake (Alligator Lake on some atlases) and we followed the road alongside Pungo, photographing mallards and a few other duck species as we went. Wouldn't you know it, we ended up at the same spot we stopped at last fall.
But we found the lake, and that's what's important. Another good day along the ENC coast.

Pungo Lake is a great destinations for birders and naturalists. If you're interested in seeing the lake, especially during the winter, grab a good atlas and match it up to these basic directions:

From the west: Travel Hwy 264 to Pantego. Left on 99, Right on 45, Left on Hyde Park Canal. When the pavement ends, keep on going until you hit the lake. If the road is closed like it was on the day we visited, turn left on the dirt road, travel about two miles, then turn right at the refuge sign. Turn right again at the end of that dirt road, and when you reach the dirt intersection, turn left over the stone culvert that crosses over the canal and go until you hit the lake.
Yes, it can be that confusing. Again, use caution.

For more information on Pocosin National Wildlife Refuge, go to:
http://www.fws.gov/pocosinlakes/


* http://www.m-w.com/

The Search for Pungo (Part I)

I can't give up. Even if a bout of frustration causes me to quit, rarely can I stop all efforts to achieve a goal. So it wasn't a surprise when, after our original outing plans fell through last week, I pulled up Mappoint and Google Earth and set out to find an access point to Pungo Lake.

Twice last year we tried to find this obscure body of water, and twice we failed. Once, our GPS indicated it was beside the dusty road on which we stood. Having seen it as a destination in my exploring north carolina book, as well as other resources, I knew it had to have an entrance. But where? After zooming in and scooting the image left, right, up and down on both digital maps, I found two potential access points to the lake. I set the GPS for one and my iTouch maps app for the other.

And we found it: http://tinyurl.com/PungoEntrances (click on aerial).

Pungo Lake is part of the 110,000+ acre Pocosin National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge is nestled between Highways 99 and 94, moving south from Phelps Lake, and extending to New Lake (a.k.a. Alligator Lake). Need a visual to get your bearings? Click here for a map.

If the refuge name sounds familiar, think back to the North Carolina wildfires of 2008. The pocosin forest just north of Pungo caught fire, which burned deep into the peat that makes up the forest floor. Though the wildfire blanketed the state with thick smoke (and chased us to Richmond, Virginia) I recently learned that, like the longleaf pine forest, fire is beneficial to this natural community. Many plant species that exists in a pocosin thrive from it.

But that's another natural communities blog post. For now, let's continue down the road.

The refuge, and thus Pungo Lake, is located on the Albemarle-Pamlico Peninsula. The large center "flap" on the coastal plains if you're looking at a map. On each of our visits, I'm struck by the order that now pervades a land once covered in tangled shrubs. Originally inhabited by Algonquin-speaking natives, and after years of rigorous taming, farmland, boxed off by deep ditches, creates a quilted look visible from plane windows or satellite images. Tilled rows lead the eye to a line of longleaf pines in the distance.

We had unexpected company on this trip. Following directions dished out by our GPS, we drove east on Hwy 264, then turned north on Hwy 99 in the heart of charming Pantego. After turning right onto Hwy 45, we spotted an impressive flock of large, white birds resting in the midst of winter wheat. Though we suspected we'd found more Tundra Swans--yet still hoping we'd found the elusive snow geese--we pulled off the road near a couple taking pictures beside a truck.

Yes, I have a picture, but I didn't know about it until we returned home. Therefore I didn't have a chance to secure permission to post it. Next time.

No one hauling kayaks and cameras on a Carolina trail is a stranger, so after taking pics of the *sighs* swans, we introduced ourselves to Steve and Gail, birders from the Durham area. Ironically, they were looking for Pungo.

They followed us, which, if you're a regular reading, you know isn't a good idea. Though I have maps galore and a good Carolina atlas, we often guess at a route or say "hey, I wonder where this goes". Apparently, my preparations and the routes we showed them on both machines convinced them we knew where we were going. Fortunately, it worked out this time (thank you, Lord) and before long, the four of us were standing on an observation platform staring at the gorgeous blue waters of Pungo Lake.

A Not Quite Stitched-Together View of Lake Pungo

Next Post: Pungo

Plymouth, Pungo, and Goose Creek State Park

We recently attempted to visit Merchant Millpond State Park, located in the northeast corner of North Carolina in the Dismal Swamp area, but rain changed our plans. We stopped in Plymouth to discuss options, and while eating an inexpensive but tasty lunch at the Golden Skillet located on Hwy 64, we noticed a sign for Plymouth's Historic District. That began a series of stops that, if placed on a map, would give the impression we had no idea where we were going.

Far from it. We were on the Albemarle-Pamlico Peninsula.

Let's start from the beginning. Established in the 1780's and occupied by Union forces during the war, Plymouth bears a strong resemblance to a technicolor Mayberry. Considering the friendliness we encountered, it just may be! We parked on Water Street, and after checking out a few of the local stores such as the Book & Cup, we walked down to the waterfront. Plymouth skirts the Roanoke River, and while we spotted a few private piers, we couldn't locate a waterfront park or riverwalk that would allow us to enjoy that attraction. We saw what we could by walking along Monroe Street, and then moved on.

Next, we decided to check out Goose Creek State Park, located on the south of the A-P Peninsula. On our journey there, we spotted a sign for the Pocosin National Wildlife Refuge. Us pass up a NWR? We nearly skidded down the street trying to stop.

To our pleasure, the road led to Pungo Lake, the pocosin we tried to find after our trip to nearby Lake Phelps. To our displeasure, we couldn't find the dratted thing again, though according to the GPS, it was right beside us. But the solitude of our isolated location enticed us, and we spent a half hour taking pictures of a field of sunflowerish flowers, a dragonfly, a turtle, and a harness rider and his horse. And then we moved on.

After arriving in eastern North Carolina, several people referred us to Goose Creek State Park. I have no explanation why we haven't checked it out. I suppose, given it's location I assumed we'd find acres of sandy soil and untamed brambles under sparse trees. Don't ask me why, I don't have a clue. How very wrong I was! With its tall deciduous trees and handsome longleaf pines, Goose Creek is an attractive place to visit. As often happens, we had the pleasure of chatting with a park ranger. He not only informed us the park has eight miles of hiking trails (be still my heart), but since they're situated on the Pamlico Sound, someone decided to build a small beach area for guests. Following his directions, we parked in the second parking lot and walked past tall trees laden with Spanish Moss to a picturesque cove. Mosquitoes munched on us as we went, so if you travel to Goose Creek during the warmer months, take bug repellent.

Camping is available at Goose Creek SP, as is boating and canoeing (bring your own watercraft.)