Photo by Don DeBold licensed under Creative Commons 2.0
Blue Job Mountain and its companion peak, Little Blue Job Mountain, not only offer a fantastic birdwatching site in Southern New Hampshire, but they provide a welcome bonus during the summer months – fresh wild blueberries. Birders and berry pickers will find plenty of both on either of the two peaks, but Little Blue Job is perhaps the better choice for both.
Little Blue Job features a summit that is marked by an expanse of igneous granite and riparian fields of low bush blueberries punctuated by copses of birch and other fast growing saplings. The summit is only a 20-30 minute hike from the parking lot on 1st Crown Point Road in Strafford, NH and the trail winds through heavily forested terrain. You will expect to find typical forest birds during the hike including several varieties of woodpeckers, along with thrushes, warblers, nuthatches and chickadees. Those who can identify woodland birds by their song will be treated to choruses of dozens of individual varieties along the way.
Upon approaching the summit of Little Blue Job, the terrain opens out into fields. There is also a small spring fed pond surrounded by medium sized trees. The most common bird song here is that of the Eastern or Rufous-sided Towhee. These can be spotted singing among the scattered areas of brush and taller shrubs.
The peak is also prime raptor viewing territory. On one visit, I surprised a Cooper’s Hawk as it was tearing into the body of a Sharp-Shinned hawk that it had apparently killed just moment before. Other hawks can be seen here as well and a local land conservation club, Bear-Paw Regional Greenways, often selects Blue Job as a destination for an annual guided hawk watch that is open to the public.
There are literally acres of blueberries here, free for the picking, so expect to have company on the summit from late June to August. Many hikers here bring their dogs and those with gentle temperament are usually off leash on the trails.
From Little Blue Job, there is a path that skirts the edge of the pond and goes off to the right hand side. This leads to Blue Job Mountain, itself and the fire tower at its peak. Both peaks offer a stunning 360 degree view of the surrounding countryside. On a clear day, you can see the ocean to the Southeast and Mount Washington to the Northwest. The trip is worth it for the blueberries alone, or for the view alone. For birdwatchers, though, it is worth the hike for the chance to see a variety of hawks and other birds.
Be warned, though, it is generally quite windy at the summit and it isn’t altogether unusual to see a lone seagull blown over the peak by the sea winds. Birders interested in other wildlife will note that the area is home to black bear, moose, deer, coyote, and the usual assortment of smaller animals including wild turkey, weasels and turtles.
On the rural drive up to the parking lot, you will pass several small farms which are frequented by Baltimore orioles, scarlet tanagers, ruby throated hummingbirds, rose breasted grosbeaks, and finches, sparrows and swallows too numerous to enumerate. Alert birdwatchers will see as many species on the drive up the mountain as they do on the hiking trails once they arrive.
More information and directions to the Blue Job State Forest parking area click here.
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