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

Monday, September 23, 2019

Was Monday Better?

Bill's report was early tonight.  There have been clouds all day.  Let's see what he says.... I haven't read it yet -

Soddy Mountain, TN hawk report
 Mon., Sept. 23, 2019

Time on lookout: 0930-1500 = 5.5 hrs.
Counter: Bill Haley

Weather report:
0930: Clouds 80%, wind SW 1-4 mph, temp. 65F, visib. 40K, baro. 30.11. 1000: Clouds 85%, wind S 1-2. 1100: Clouds 70%, (clouds started to break up @ 1030, but are now being replaced by darker, continuous cloud cover), wind S 2-5, temp. 68F. 1200: Clouds 85%, wind SW 2-8, temp. 72F. 1300: Clouds 90%, wind SW 2-10, temp. 75F, 1400: Clouds 80%, wind SW 5-10, temp. 81.

Raptors by hour:
0930-1000: 0
1000-1100: BW 8
1100-1200: SS 1, BW 1
1200-1300: 0
1300-1400: 0
1400-1500: 0

Total raptors: SS 1, BW 9

You've heard the old saying, "You should be careful what you ask for, because you might get it." At the end of yesterday's post. I wished for clouds today. Cloud cover when I arrived was broken, with blue openings, so looked promising. Spotted the first TV's at 1038, and first BW four minutes later. Eight more in the next 19 minutes. Then the heavier cloud layer moved in and shut down what was promising to be a good flight. Only other countable hawk was a SS 50 minutes later. Nothing after 1150. While some blue showed up around 1400, it quickly filled in and didn't generate any more migrants, so I left at 1500.

Reporting: William G. (Bill) Haley, Jr.
 
Bill will continue to man some hours this week during his vacation.  I certainly hope he gets rewarded for his efforts. 
 
He will
KEEP LOOKING UP!!!
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