It was only a matter of time before the shoulder season simply vanished, like fall when winter decides to arrive in, say, October, in the Northland.
But the fall of what formerly was known as this off-season in the outdoors hasn’t really been dictated by the elements, by Mother Nature — although nature itself has played a role.
No, now it seems that there are more than enough outdoor pursuits to fill what once was a mind-numbing void for lovers of the outdoors — a time best spent indoors, waiting out the elements, the seasons.
After all, hunting is done and, even if Mother Nature is cooperative and there’s ice for fishing, February is the beginning of the end for the ice-fishing season across most of Northland Outdoors country.
But outdoors types are starting to get more creative to keep the outdoors vibe going this time of year. Last year, in conjunction with the famed sturgeon-spearing season and related Sturgeon Spectacular on Lake Winnebago in Fond du Lac, Wis., the first Spear the Fatty race was held, tapping into the fat-biking craze that almost single-handedly has eliminated this whole late winter/early spring lull in recent years.
And so the second Spear the Fatty is scheduled Feb. 13, a week after this Saturday’s 45NRTH Whiteout races at the world-class Cuyuna trails in Ironton, Minn. The annual Whiteout gathering is expected to attract hundreds of fat-bike racers, with all proceeds benefitting the expansion and maintenance of the trails that have, in recent years, also helped spell the end — or at least a severe abbreviation — to the “off-season” in the outdoors here.
Not unlike birding. Used to be that the Christmas Bird Count, which runs through the holiday season and a week or so into the new year, was pretty much it for birding events of note. But that’s changing about as fast as birding is growing. Now, instead of giving in to the elements and the shoulder season, birding and natural resources agencies and groups are banding together to provide more opportunities than ever for bird lovers.
On Tuesday, the Wisconsin DNR held an “Ask the Experts” online chat focusing on how to make bird sightings count for conservation through such projects as eBird, Wisconsin Breeding Bird Atlas II and the Great Backyard Bird Count.
In the online chat, moderator Trish Nitschke, Ryan Brady of the Wisconsin Bird Conservation Initiative, research scientist Nick Anich and Tom Prestby of the Wisconsin Breeding Bird Atlas fielded dozens of birding-related questions as birders get primed for the upcoming international Great Backyard Bird Count.
The GBBC, Feb. 12-15, is in its 19th year, so it’s been around for a while. But until recently, the Great Backyard Bird Count hasn’t been a household name. Now, agencies like the Wisconsin DNR and South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks, for example, are getting the word out through those online chats and news releases.
And participating is about as easy as riding a fat bike through the snow, maybe easier. Just count the birds wherever you may be and enter your bird numbers online at gbbc.birdcount.org/get-started/, where participants also can explore sightings maps, lists and charts as the count progresses. There is no fee to participate, and in South Dakota, SDGFP offers a free color guide to backyard birds to help in identification (gfp.sd.gov/wildlife/critters/birds/default.aspx).
The event is led by the National Audubon Society, the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology and Bird Studies Canada.
“During the count, bird watchers tally up birds for as little as 15 minutes, or for as long as they like, keeping track of the highest number of each bird species they see together at one time,” said Eileen Dowd Stukel, wildlife diversity coordinator for SDGFP. “People are encouraged to report birds from public lands, local parks and their own backyards.”
In another bird-related activity in South Dakota, the 14th annual “Eagles and Bagels Walk” is scheduled at 9 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 6 at the Oahe Downstream Recreation Area near Fort Pierre. Eagle numbers reportedly are up considerably and eagle-viewing events have been popular across the Northland this winter.
“This is a good opportunity for participants to get out and enjoy our South Dakota winter,” said Pat Buscher, Oahe Downstream district supervisor.
Or the shoulder season. If there is such a thing anymore.