Having visited East Coulson Swamp a time or two, I arrived with certain expectations for our outing. I know that the trail is in a heavily wooded area and deep forest isn’t necessarily where you’ll find the most birds. I thought we’d see mostly wildflowers – spring ephemerals – with a smattering of forest birds. What we encountered was perhaps the exact opposite. My suppositions seemed to be on the money when we arrived.

Ovenbirds, notorious forest dwellers, could be heard singing in several locations. After the obligatory group photos our first steps down the trail revealed a carpet of Trilliums and a handful of other wildflowers notably Bellwort.

But as we penetrated the dense woodland the flowers petered out to be replaced by migrating birds in unexpected abundance.  While not precisely dripping from the trees, we heard and then saw a smorgasbord of Warblers. This was enough to slow our progress as every few steps we peered into the treetops attempting to identify and document each winged jewel. These little birds make frustrating subjects for the photographer. In constant motion, they seldom stop moving long enough to focus the camera.

They’re often high in the canopy, backlit and requiring some acrobatic postures of those seeking to capture their observations. Fortunately they’re quite vocal, betraying their presence with their sweet songs. Patience is key. Eventually a determined photographer will get a few, brief moments of cooperation where these tiny birds will allow themselves to be photographed, usually in an awkward pose high overhead. 

Our halting progress suited me well enough. The joys of advancing age have brought me creaky joints and faltering stamina. It was nice to have ready excuse to stop for rest without admitting to my increased limitations. With so much gray hair in the club, I’m sure one or two of you can relate. This obsession by some of us with the surprising avian display ultimately caused our group of naturalists to fracture. Some of us fell far behind in our quest to hoard every observation while the other half forged quickly ahead, no doubt with the optional second destination as motivation. This left me in the awkward position of trying to write a trip report without being aware of what 50 percent of our party had gotten up to. Hopefully our experiences are representational of the larger whole. 

Many of the birds we encountered were never actually seen, or observed only poorly. Ovenbirds sang their “teacher,  teacher, teacher” song from the wooded depths, not even venturing out to challenge a playback of their calls. Northern Waterthrush followed suit and the melodious songs of Wood Thrushes filled the air along the entire trail. The lack of visuals did not diminish our joy at hearing their serenades. It did slow us down even more as our small party strove to see the source of such sweet music. 

Evidence of the “Great Ice Storm” of 2025 was everywhere along the trail. Heaps of collapsed trees and sawn off stumps appeared around every bend. These brush piles provided the ideal habitat for the many, sweetly singing Winter Wrens we’d encounter, proving the resilience of nature. A minor disaster for we humans is an opportunity for someone else. 

By now the lead group was nowhere to be seen. Eventually our entire posse reconnected though, when our still outbound coterie merged with the returning party providing an opportunity to compare notes. With this knowledge in hand our small crew pushed on towards the the headwaters of the Coldwater River – the East Coulson Swamp while the faster group made tracks for the trailhead and the second destination, George Langman Sanctuary. 

The path towards the wetland was indistinct and more than a bit muddy and wet. With guidance from some who had scouted out the route, we made it to the squishy shores of the swamp. By then a gentle shower had descended, not enough to deter our observations but sufficient to fog up binoculars and cover up the cameras. I spared a few moments to contemplate that this was the source for a river that eventually feeds into Georgian Bay and then it was time to make our own way back to the parked cars and the rest of the day. The route back ran through slightly different habitat, more open and less dense than the beginning of the route. This brought us a renewed variety of birds.

Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers drilled their wells in some trees while closer at hand a Black-throated Blue Warbler darted amongst the branches, daring us to try to take his photo. Our pace quickened as we neared our starting point and the Blackflies added some urgency to our steps.We managed to see a few butterflies but not well enough for photos or even a positive ID. The last of our bird sightings occurred at the trailhead. A pine Warbler, a bird we’d been expecting, trilled its song from across the road and even posed nicely for some photos.

By now the group had dwindled to a half dozen slow pokes. We’d spent too long here by now to catch up to the other group and some of us settled on another kind of outdoor attraction – Quayles Brewery’s patio  where we sipped locally brewed libations and sampled honest pub fare, contented by our slow walk in the forest and the spectacular observations we’d made there. 

In addition to birds we also saw (or heard):

Dandelions 

White Trilliums 

Red Trilliums 

Bellwort (or Merrybells)

Common Mullein 

Spring Peepers

Gray Tree Frogs 

Painted Turtles 

Butterflies, possibly Mourning Cloaks

Veiled Polypores

Here is a link to the eBird checklist for some of the group:  

https://ebird.org/checklist/S340577000

And links to the lists of the faster party:

https://ebird.org/checklist/S340509417

https://ebird.org/checklist/S340569879

This report by Bob Codd