Loons on Grafton Pond.

8-8-12 VERMONT: We spent a couple hours canoeing on Grafton Pond, in Grafton, NH. It’s a beautiful lake, in spite of the name, with mostly preserved, pristine shoreline and dotted with pine-covered, granite islets. It’s in the shadow of Mt. Cardigan. There were a couple dozen folks there, scattered on the islands, in kayaks and canoes. We saw nothing with a motor. The water is clear to 15 or 20 feet. There are lots of coves, some marshy, to explore. You need to be on the lookout for shallow rocks and stumps.

It is a breeding site for loons, we saw them and heard the call, definitely a looney tune. A pair of half-grown immatures were following mom around while dad was off fishing. The loons often swim with most of the body under water unlike ducks. They dive for fish, stay under a long time and surface far from where they dove down. It’s hard to say for sure, but I think we saw six or eight different birds. At the boat launch there was a family of Canada geese looking for a handout.


Common Loon, summer plumage, the red eye probably helps with under-water vision.

Grafton Pond from the boat launch.

Moma and babies, when they're little, they ride on her back. They swim deep in the water.

Thanks for the back view.

Piney islet.