I’ve been offering Good Birding advice on these pages for more than a dozen years. For additional good birding, here’s some further guidance: leave the country.
I suggest a two-nation vacation. I refer to two Canadian islands that are closer to Maine than Canada. Heeding my own advice, I’ve spent a big chunk of time on Campobello and Grand Manan in the last three weeks.
If these islands are closer to Maine than the rest of New Brunswick, why are they part of Canada? Because that’s what the British and American diplomats decided, more than 200 years ago.
As the War of 1812 ended, both sides agreed on the St. Croix River as the international border, extending the line out the channel through Passamaquoddy Bay — with Lubec and Eastport on one side, Campobello and Grand Manan on the other.
Unfortunately, they didn’t draw the line out as far as the big Atlantic puffin colony on Machias Seal Island. Both countries still claim that island, 209 years later.
From a birder’s perspective, all the birds on Campobello and Grand Manan are also in Down East Maine. It’s merely different scenery. Really good scenery. International scenery.
Campobello is easy to reach. From Lubec, it’s just a 60-second drive across the International Bridge. Produce your passport or a good excuse at the customs gate, and the island is yours to explore.
Start at Roosevelt-Campobello International Park. It was once a summer retreat for President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s family. Spend a few minutes touring Roosevelt Cottage. Spend a few hours in the rest of the park. There are so many good birding spots, I don’t know where to begin.
Yes, I do. Start at Eagle Hill Bog. The boardwalk through this bog is extraordinary. It has interpretive signage, unusual vegetation and copious birds. It’s like the Orono Bog Boardwalk, but with a plant mix more akin to Newfoundland. I’ve visited so many times, I’ve lost count.
Other hot spots include Herring Cove, Lower Duck Pond, Liberty Point, Cranberry Point, Upper Duck Pond and Friar’s Head. You could look up all these places online and get more information at the Roosevelt Visitor Center. Or you could just go straight there, and not spoil the surprise. All of the roads connecting all these landmarks are easy to walk and lively to bird.
Head Harbor Passage runs between Campobello and the mainland. The tidal turbulence stirs up so much food that whales, porpoises and seals crowd into it. The abundance of seals has even attracted the attention of great white sharks lately. Seabirds gather by the thousands.
For good looks into Head Harbor Passage, I recommend the piers in Welshpool and Wilson’s Beach. For great looks, nothing beats the expansive view from East Quoddy Head at the north tip of the island. It’s an “Oh, Wow” kind of place. I’d describe all this more, but then I wouldn’t have time to praise — Grand Manan!
This quiet island is eight miles across the channel from Lubec, but it’s only reachable by ferry from Black’s Harbour in New Brunswick. Even the 90-minute ferry ride is awesome for birding.
It’s refreshing to know you can “get away from it all” without having to go far. Grand Manan hasn’t changed much in the 30 years I’ve been birding there. Calling the island “quaint” is an injustice. The hiking, biking and boating opportunities make it a much livelier place than its quiet appearance would suggest.
On the eBird list of the top 100 birding hot spots in New Brunswick, the top four spots are all on Grand Manan. Castalia Marsh tops the list. More birds, including more rare birds, have been seen here than anywhere else in the province.
Sit for a while next to the two lighthouses at the north end of the island, Swallowtail and The Whistle. Birds normally found at sea often come in close here. So do whales.
I always investigate Dark Harbor, especially on gloomy days when it looks darker. I spend hours birding the beach, ponds and nature trails at Anchorage Provincial Park. Inevitably, I take at least one whale trip with Sea Watch Tours.
I ride the free ferry to White Head Island for a day. I save the best weather for the spectacular cliff-side hike along Southwest Head. There are so many extraordinary places to visit and bird, a full week is not enough.
On second thought, forget I mentioned it. Maybe these two islands should remain my little secret. Who needs a crowd?