Anniversary Trip to L’Île du Grand Calumet and Fort-Coulonge Québec

May 13-14, 2024

To celebrate our 57th anniversary, we planned an overnight adventure to Fort-Coulonge, Qc, with plenty of time for birding both there and on the nearby Île du Grand Calumet.

It was a beautiful spring day. From Ottawa we went north on the Ontario side of the Ottawa River, taking Storyland Road, then crossing at Portage du Fort. Soon we were at Bryson, where we crossed onto Île du Grand Calumet. We headed south on Chemin de la Montagne to see the Bryson Dam at Chute du Grand Calumet. We could not get close, so had to be content with seeing the power house.

The birding along Chemin de la Montagne was spectacular, with many Baltimore Orioles, Bobolinks and Eastern Meadowlarks on the farm fields. We saw a Brown Thrasher, some Yellow Warblers, and a fly over Great Blue Heron.



We turned north on Chemin Murphy and entered a secondary forest with scattered houses. With our car windows down, we heard the unmistakable song of a Scarlet Tanager.



The trilliums were in full bloom. An Eastern Bluebird posed for us.



We drove as far as possible north on Chemin des Outaouais. We could see the outskirts of Fort-Coulonge across the river channel. We stopped when we heard singing Chestnut-sided Warblers. We found a boat launch with a picnic table for our lunch. Barbara saw a Spotted Sandpiper while we were eating.



After lunch, we took Chemin Barry over to the Rocher Fendu Dam. Along the way, we saw more Baltimore Orioles, and the first of many Rose-breasted Grosbeaks. A Purple Finch and some Barn Swallows added to our count. Chestnut-sided Warblers were seemingly everywhere. We were disappointed that the picnic site south of the dam was no longer available.



We drove south on Chemins Dunraven and Tancredia, adding a Savannah Sparrow and another Eastern Bluebird to our list.



We crossed off the island and drove north to Fort-Coulonge, where we easily found our lodging at the Spruceholme Inn.



Spruceholme was built in 1875 by George Bryson Jr. and his bride Helen Craig. George Jr. was a Quebec lumber merchant and political figure. His father was a lumber baron whose house, just outside town, is now a museum. The current owner, Jane Toller, who is the great-great granddaughter of George Bryson, is also the warden of Pontiac County. She built a conference centre, restaurant and motel behind Spruceholme.

We went for a walk before dinner along the narrow Ottawa River channel where we saw a Belted Kingfisher fly over and a noisy Great Crested Flycatcher posed for us. We had dinner at J & A Bowers just across the iron bridge.



In the morning, we birded the grounds, then went to the Spruceholme dining room for our breakfast. We were invited to tour all of the rooms including upstairs, which were furnished in the historical style.



After our hearty meal, we went birding at various locations in town along the Ottawa and Coulonge Rivers and parts of the cycle trail, PP&J. Again, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks and Chestnut-sided Warblers were common. We were happy to add Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, a Nashville Warbler and an American Restart to our trip list.



We decided to return to Île du Grand Calumet to check out the remaining roads, including Chemin du Rocher Fendu. We saw many Eastern Kingbirds, which, oddly, we had missed the previous day.



We saw an early Snapping Turtle on the road and our first raptor, an American Kestrel.




The Chemin du Rocher Fendu presumably led to the famous whitewater rafting rapids, but we will never know. The road got rougher and rougher and became impassible before we were halfway there. So, we turned back and passed a semi-hidden bear hunter who seemed not pleased to see us.



We decided to go home all the way on Québec Hwy 148, only stopping at Chemin Smith-Léonard in Breckinridge for a possible Upland Sandpiper. Well, there were none of those, but a couple of Northern Harriers were a great find. The fields were also loaded with Bobolinks at this sanctuary.



We headed home content with our adventures.


Complete Birds List (52 species)

Canada Goose
Mallard
Ruffed Grouse
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon)
Mourning Dove
Killdeer
Spotted Sandpiper
Ring-billed Gull
Great Blue Heron
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
Northern Harrier
Belted Kingfisher
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
American Kestrel
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Common Raven
Black-capped Chickadee
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Brown Creeper
European Starling
Brown Thrasher
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Purple Finch
American Goldfinch
Chipping Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Bobolink
Eastern Meadowlark
Baltimore Oriole
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Ovenbird
Nashville Warbler
American Redstart
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Pine Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Scarlet Tanager
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak