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

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

Dedicated To The Whole Migration

Bill Haley loves the after Broad-wing Migration hours equally, because it tells the whole story.  It is difficult every year to monitor all the post September hours, and more than most years, we simply can't help him out.  But, we love to post and support Bill for every hour data is captured for the next two or so months.  He was able to get up and send a few hours after the last hurricane past through.  Here's his email.

"Subject: 2 hawk reports

Jimmy;
I am going to send 2 hawk reports. One is from Fri., Oct. 6. I got off work early, and despite a miserable cold, I decided to give the hawk lookout a try. Had to leave after an hour and a half with a terrible sinus headache.

Fri., Oct. 6, 2017:Weather: Wind SE 2-5. Clouds: 35% @ 1:00, 55% @ 2:00. Temperature: 74-78 F. Barometric pressure: 30.16, dropping to 30.10. Humidity: 61%-55%. Visibility: 45K.
Cooper's Hawk - (1) 1:28.
Counter: Bill Haley 1:00-2:30.

Oct. 7 and 8 were cloudy and rainy, thanks to the remainder of Hurricane Nate. First break in the weather in weeks! Today - Monday, Oct. 9, was forecast to be rainy as well, so I made plans to have lunch with a friend.  Wouldn't you know - I started to see some sunshine after 10 am. Too late to change things, so it was 2:00 before I arrived at the hawk lookout.

Mon., Oct. 9, 2017:Weather: Clouds: 55% @ 2:00, 70% @ 4:00, 90% @ 5:00. Wind E 1-2 @ 2:00, shifting to SW 2-5 @ 4:00. Temperature: 85 F @ 2:00, 88 F @ 3:00, back to 85F @ 4:00. Barometric pressure: 29.96, going down to 29.95. Humidity: 68% - 58%. Visibility excellent -70 K.

Hawks by hour:2:00-3:00 - SS 23:00-4-00 - PG 1 4:00-5:00 - 0

Monarchs - 8

I felt much better today, and as I always say, any day with a Peregrine is a good day! It was a good day. The Peregrine glided right over the lookout at 3:14, making me very glad I made the effort to get up there this afternoon. Maybe there will be more to come as Nate slides up the eastern seaboard and potentially blocks their coastal route.
Counter: Bill Haley 2:00-5:00

Reporting: Bill Haley"

Adding one each of Cooper's, Sharp-shinned and a Peregrine Falcon.

Almost any hours spent will yield something traveling through, and we can expect to continue to see raptors if we

KEEP LOOKING UP!!!!

THANKS Bill.

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