SITE DESCRIPTION

SITE DESCRIPTION:
"The Soddy Mountain hawk lookout is located in southeast Tennessee on the eastern face of Walden's Ridge (the Cumberland Escarpment) in Hamilton County, a short distance north of the town of Soddy-Daisy, TN. It lies at the eastern terminus of Jones Gap Road atop a bluff overloooking Hwy. 111 and the beautiful Tennessee River Valley to the east. The hawk lookout location is state-owned land, and there are currently no restroom or eating facilities nearby. Hawk watchers are advised to bring their own folding lawn chair, sunscreen, a hat, and drinking water, as well as binoculars and a field guide. Caution should be used at all times, especially if children are present, as there is no fence to prevent a fall off the nearby 75 foot bluff. The hawk lookout proper is level ground." *

No Shelter is available, and parking is on a level below the lookout grounds. The climb to the watch site is up a steep bank about 8' high. Other helpful tools might include an umbrella or spotting scope, although on a good day, you might not find time to use either.*

Courtesy of William G. (Bill) Haley, compiler and author of the brochure, Soddy Mountain Hawk Lookout, produced for TOS.

Red-tailed Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk
Falconer Mr. Johnson's Red-tail

Sunday, October 23, 2016

Sandblasted!



 
Oct. 22, 2016 report:
(Saturday)
There was some major erosion going on at the Soddy Mountain hawk lookout today. A strong northwest wind of 10-20 MPH this afternoon, with some gusts even stronger, sandblasted me pretty well at times. It blew harder today than yesterday, sending sheets of fine sand skittering along the ground and around my feet. Typically winds from a western direction are not conducive to good hawk flights at Soddy Mountain, as they seem to blow the hawks off the ridge. We tend to do better with winds that deflect off the eastern face of the ridge.

You've gotta play the hand you are dealt. I arrived at 9 am. Wind was calm at that early hour, but it picked up within the hour. It was clear with temperature of 49,  barometer of 30.14 and excellent visibility of 65K. 

Saw a Sharpie fairly soon after I got there, and it looked promising, but it dove down to the north ridge. Darn! Not countable. Was this a bad omen?

Got a Sharpie at 9:40. Wouldn't get another until 12:20. Picked up a couple more in the 2:00 hour. The hawk watching was much slower than I would have liked.

By far the best sighting of the day for me came at 10:45. Two Red-breasted Nuthatches flew into one of the small pines at the edge of the bluff, less than 15 feet away. I got my best look ever, with both cute little nuthatches right together and filling my binocular view!
 


Two adult Bald Eagles went south at 11:37. Also noteworthy was another kettle of 26 migrant Turkey Vultures  at 1:07.
It was a day with a lot of empty clear blue sky. I did get a few clouds, up to 15% at 10 AM, but they went away fairly quickly. I decided to leave at 3:00 to go home and plant a couple of blueberry bushes and get some yard work done. I'll be up there around 12:30 tomorrow,  hoping for more hawks.
 
Today's totals:
Turkey Vulture - 31
Bald Eagle - 2
Sharp-shin - 4
Red-tail - 1
__________________
Total Raptors: 36
Reporting: Bill Haley
___________________________________
 
 
Thanks Bill for the report! And for continuing into late October putting in the hours, while you
 
KEEP LOOKING UP!!!!
 
Jimmy and Cynthia Wilkerson
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