Some books have a powerful influence, as the book "The Road" and the poem "Howl" pretty much inspired the hippie generation. Some movies may change how we look at others such as "12 Years a Slave" or "Philadelphia". For me, after I watched Kevin Spacy play Lester Burnham in American Beauty, I ran everyday for two weeks straight. But I digress, mostly we are entertained.
I know who I am, and I know what I like, so I read about things I am already interested in. Usually I read about sports, history, and fishing. I have stacks of guide books and hiking trails. I have maps and pinpoint the trails I read about on the map.
My friend Brian suggested I read the book "The Big Year" by Mark Obmascik. The book follows three obsessed birders on their individual travels across the U.S. in an attempt to see as many species of birds as possible. One of the birders already had the record for the most North American species seen in a year. He went back to see even more so his record would be unbeatable. The other two fellows, of course, are out to beat his record.
In the book is a brief history of competitive bird watching in America. There are a couple other books mentioned about the sport (see photo above).
All three men travel to various parts of North America at the appropriate seasons to see birds. They criss cross the nation several times. It is amazing considering how big the continent is that they bump into each other more than once. I loved the book and had it read within 24 hours of first picking it up. There is a movie based on the book. It is good. The names are changed of the three main characters. It stays mostly true to the book, but Hollywood does take some liberties that were rather unnecessary.
Half way through reading the book I ordering two others from Amazon to read when I was finished. I bought "Kingbird Highway" by Kauffman and "
Wild America" by the famous Roger Torey Peterson. Both books follow travelers across the country questing to see birds. Peterson and his travel partner James Fisher were already famous naturalist when they travelled. Kauffman was a nineteen year old high school dropout that loved birds. Personally , I enjoyed Kauffmann's book more.
What does this have to do with my original question? Well obviously, I feel these three books may have influenced my life. No, I am not going on a "big year". I do not plan on taking a year off to bird. Although I admit, I dream about traveling for years at a time A LOT! I have become very interested in birding again. I have gone a couple of times this winter to see the winter birds and have enjoyed myself tremendously. I had not really done any serious birding since 2010. In those five years, I fished a lot, then started hiking. I moved away from birding because it took time from fishing and gas from New Hampshire.
I have said before that my calender year usually ends up with a theme. It happens organically. I'll find a new challenge and ride it as long as I can. The year I went striper fishing the first time, that is all I did that year. A few years ago, I started trout fishing, so that spring I went as much as I could while still making time for carp and stripers. Other years have been about New Hampshire, vacations (and little else because I was saving or having post vaca blues), bass fishing.
I can see it coming, that I will spend a lot of time this wear with binoculars around my neck I have daytrips already mapped out (because that's the dorky shit I do). I'm looking into three and four day weekends in Maine and Cape May, NJ. I don't know if I will get to those spots this year, but they are new to my bucket list, and certainly feasible.
The problem? Guess when birding is at its best? Answer: the same time fishing is at its best! The weeks from mid-April till Memorial Day are the best weeks to fish all year. I am out every single day fishing and it still doesn't feel like enough time. I cherish those weeks. I fish for stripers, carp, trout, and carp some more, in April and May. I honestly wouldn't trade a day the first two weeks of May for Christmas.
You know what else is going on then? Spring migration. Most birds are heading north that same time period. To see a lot of birds,I'll have to take time away from what already feels like to short of a season.
I do have a plan. I will fish on weekdays I am off from work and bird on Saturdays. This will workout pretty well on both fronts. My fishing spots have less people on weekdays. I can carp fish with my friend Dave on my Thurs/Fridays off from work. When I have Saturday off I will go birding. There are two positives to that. First I can go to birding hotspots north of Boston (like Plum Island) without having to deal with weekday commuter traffic. Secondly, as opposed to fishing, the more people the better. Having two people looking for a rare bird doubles your chances. As someone far from an expert, it is wise to bird with those that know far more than me. As opposed to secretive fishermen, birders want people to see the birds. They are more than helpful.
So as if I didn't have enough outdoor hobbies, it looks like I have one more. Sometimes, I just can't stop myself. I never should have read that damn book! Thanks Brian!
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