US-MI-Tahquamenon+River+Mouth

Also see Tahquamenon Falls State Park
 * =Birding in Michigan=

Chippewa County
=Tahquamenon River Mouth= Paradise, Michigan 49768 Tahquamenon Falls State Park web page Tahquamenon Falls State Park map Tahquamenon River Mouth Campground web page

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Tahquamenon River Mouth
Coordinates: 46.5549281, -85.0312936 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Tips for birding Tahquamenon River Mouth
The mouth of the Tahquamenon River provides an exciting variety of birding opportunities. Spring migration often brings many warblers to shrubby areas around the river and sewage lagoon. This area is known to provide some of the best warbler birding on Whitefish Bay. The river can be viewed from several points in the rustic campground as well as on the north shore along Tahqua Trail. From these places you can spot waterfowl on the river, osprey, and bald eagles, as well as an occasional river otter. In the evenings, American bitterns can be heard on Marsh Island during late spring. Marsh Island also provides breeding habitat for species such as swamp and song sparrows, common yellowthroat, yellow warbler, and red-winged blackbird. It is not uncommon to see moose in the rivermouth vicinity along both highway M-123 and Tahqua Trail. From Birding at Tahquamenon Falls State Park

About Tahquamenon Falls State Park
Tahquamenon Falls State Park encompasses close to 50,000 acres stretching over 13 miles. Most of this is undeveloped woodland without roads, buildings or power lines. The centerpiece of the park, and the very reason for its existence, is the Tahquamenon River with its waterfalls. The Upper Falls is one the largest waterfalls east of the Mississippi. It has a drop of nearly 50 feet and is more than 200 feet across. A maximum flow of more than 50,000 gallons of water per second has been recorded cascading over these falls. Four miles downstream is the Lower Falls, a series of five smaller falls cascading around an island. Although not as dramatic as the Upper Falls, they are equally magnificent. The falls can be viewed from the river bank or from the island, which can be reached by rowboat rented from a park concession. The island walk affords a view of the falls in the south channel.

This is the land of Longfellow's Hiawatha - "by the rushing Tahquamenaw" Hiawatha built his canoe. Long before the white man set eyes on the river, the abundance of fish in its waters and animals along its shores attracted the Ojibwa Indians, who camped, farmed, fished and trapped along its banks. In the late 1800's came the lumber barons and the river carried their logs by the millions to the mills. Lumberjacks, who harvested the tall timber, were among the first permanent white settlers in the area.

Rising from springs north of McMillan, the Tahquamenon River drains the watershed of an area of more than 790 square miles. From its source, it meanders 94 miles before emptying into Whitefish Bay. The amber color of the water is caused by tannins leached from the Cedar, Spruce and Hemlock in the swamps drained by the river. The extremely soft water churned by the action of the falls causes the large amounts of foam, which has been the trademark of the Tahquamenon since the days of the voyager. From Tahquamenon Falls State Park web page

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