2017 January 16, Monday, Birding Trail Sites #7, #11, #16

Hubby and I traveled to Waterloo in hopes of seeing a Bald Eagle. We met a couple from Hartsell at birding site number 11, they had binoculars and a camera with a large telephoto lens.
We sighted at least two Bald Eagles, soaring high in the sky, not close enough to get a good picture.

Bald Eagle

We did see a lot of small black ducks and a few cranes.

We traveled back to Florence stopping at Dairy Queen (for the $5 deal) for hamburgers, fries, coke, and ice cream.
I substituted a side salad for the fries and I ordered a banana ice cream with real slices of bananas.
When we finished we rode to the Rock-pile Recreation Area birding site number 7 on the northeast loop which is located at the base of Wilson Dam.

Waterfall

At the Rockpile I walked to the nearby waterfall. Several families and couples were visiting the waterfall.
Near Wilson Dam and along the locks I saw thousands of small white birds.
We saw several families with their children on the nearby playground.

We rode through Muscle Shoals turning left onto the old hwy 20, which took us through Leighton.

William Leigh founder of Leighton 

William Leigh founder of Leighton 

We stopped at the historic marker of William Leigh the founder of Leighton and his gravesite.
The founder of Leighton was named in honor of the Reverend William Leigh, son, and grandson of Revolutionary War veterans. He was born in Amelia County Virginia, Oct 4, 1790, and moved to Alabama in about 1823.
Leigh settled nearby at Jeffers Cross Roads and became a large landowner, pioneer merchant, postmaster, and La Grange College trustee. He was a charter member of Leighton Masonic Lodge No. 43 and served as Grand Master of the Alabama Masons (1833-1835). Leigh was a Missionary Baptist preacher for 63 years and served as pastor and leader in the Muscle Shoals Baptist Association. In 1836, he donated land and helped build a brick meeting house in Leighton for joint use by the Masons. Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, Cumberland Presbyterians, and others.
William Leigh was the first postmaster of Leighton (1824-1847) and with William Gregg, operated a storehouse at the crossroads under the firm name of William Leigh & Company. He ran unsuccessfully for the state legislature on the Whig ticket in 1840. In 1847 Leigh sold his store, 1800-acre plantation, livestock, and 30 slaves and moved to Kentucky. He soon returned to Alabama, living in Moulton for a few years before moving to Florence where his wife served as a matron at the Florence Synodical College. Leigh died there in Florence, on July 31, 1873, and was buried here in the Leigh family graveyard. The Masons erected a monument at his unmarked grave in 1931. The old brick church that he helped build a century earlier was razed in 1948. 

We rode through several small towns on our way to the Wildlife Refuge in Decatur. Bird Site #16.
We walked down to the view area from the visitor center, where we saw thousands of Sandhill Cranes, and thousands of ducks but only one White Whopping Crane.

Thousands Sandhill Cranes

I was hoping there was an open area to view the cranes but the viewing area was enclosed so all the pictures I took of the cranes and ducks were behind glass.
We walked to the swamp area where we crossed over on a wooden bridge.
We walked to an open field where we watched several Sandhill Cranes fly away into the distance and I took several pictures.

Sandhill Cranes

The sun was setting as we walked back to the visitor center. Inside we stopped to ask questions and to view the animals. (nonliving)
The sun was beginning to fade when we left the visitor center and was dark before we arrived home.

We spent the day traveling from Florence to Waterloo, back to Florence, to Muscle Shoals, to Leighton, Town Creek, Decatur, Athens, and back home. We visited three birding trails where we saw a variety of birds. It was a very enjoyable day, perfect weather and we did not rush.

Neither of us wanted to stop for a meal, so we came home and I put on a pot of oatmeal.