This morning Kim Eckert, Mike Steffes and I unsuccessfully searched for the Purple Sandpiper that was photographed by Heidi Pinkerton at Split Rock Lighthouse State Park on March 17th. Conditions were drizzly and a bit foggy and there is obviously a lot of potential habitat in this area, so it is possible the bird is still around. We also checked the mouth of the Split Rock River at the Highway 61 rest stop and at the Twin Points boat launch about a mile south of the park.
The exact location of Heidi's sighting was at the base of the small island just to the southwest of the lighthouse. To reach this spot take the first right (not the service road) after driving by the park fee station and drive about a half mile to the parking lot at the end of the paved road. Follow the hiking path that heads northeast towards the lake. This path comes out an a beach and you can see the island from here. The island is connected to the mainland by a strip of rocks. Jim Lind Two Harbors ---- Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
