Straddling the border of Carbon and Lehigh Counties atop the Kittatinny Ridge (Blue Mountain) is an overlooked gem. Looking south from higher vantage points in Carbon County the prominent "hump" on the Blue Mountain is Bake Oven Knob. It is located about equal distance from both Ashfield and Andreas.

The "Knob," like the better-known lookout, Hawk Mountain, is an excellent and local area to observe migrating hawks, eagles, falcons, vultures, geese, and even hummingbirds and monarch butterflies.

My first trip there was in mid-September 1975, the day after I used my first-ever teaching paycheck to buy a used 35 mm camera. I was going to try to find a great spot to get some fall photos and always wanted to get to the "knob." After arriving there I met a number of hawk watchers who informed me that I probably picked a great birding day. Broad-winged hawks, sharp-shinned hawks and ospreys were streaming overhead and in front of us. In the next few hours I saw nearly 2,000 "broad wings," a few dozen sharp-shinned hawks, a dozen ospreys, and my first look at a migrating bald eagle. I was hooked.

I met Donald Heintzleman, the official counter who began the annual count there. He was impressed with my identification skills, and after a few "test days" there with him he was confident enough to assign me as an official counter. Since then I have made a few hundred trips there, taken my eighth-grade students there on field trips, and accompanied Dave Hawk's Lehighton Area High School environmental classes. It's a great outdoor classroom.

The "Knob" and Hawk Mountain were once well-known hawk shooting locations. Hunters found that instead of shooting skeet (clay birds) they were challenged trying to hit the "sharpies" and falcons that were making diving runs at the owl decoys placed there. Soon after, various laws gave protection to birds of prey, the hawk numbers slowly rebounded and these sites now became outdoor labs. Most hunters today realize the importance of protecting them and wouldn't even think of shooting a raptor.

Don started the record keeping there in 1961, and today the count is still officially continuing under the leadership of Dan Kunkle, Director of the Lehigh Gap Nature Center. Kunkle, volunteers, and an intern each fall man the mountaintop daily from Aug. 15 until the Sunday following Thanksgiving. You can see their results posted daily on the website Hawkcount.org. Once at this site, find the drop down for all the sites, type in Bake Oven Knob and then you can find daily, monthly and yearly information. Check this posting daily and watch the awesome results, even if not there in person.

As you read this article it will be the peak of the broad-winged hawk migration season. If the optimum weather conditions occur, you too could observe the spectacle of thousands of "broadies" circling and streaming overhead, seeming to never stop. Broad-winged migration peaks mid- to late September. About the time the broadies have passed farther south, "sharpies" take the stage, peaking in early to mid-October. After that, the larger red-tailed hawks take center stage.

In the late '70s and '80s, glimpsing a bald eagle migrating past was rather rare, but today the bald eagle numbers have increased, and the past 3 years have averaged 329 a year. In fact, this year's intern, Chelsea Johnson, recorded 21 eagles on Aug. 31 and 15 on Sept. 8.

If you wish to find the Knob, take route 895 and travel 1.8 miles from Ashfield, left onto Germans Road. Travel 1.1 miles to Bake Oven Road, turn left onto the road, and after a long, winding uphill ride, you'll reach the summit of the Blue Mountain. On your left will be a rather large parking lot and the Appalachian Trail (marked path to follow) is in the eastern corner of the lot. I will give you three advisories though. Bake Oven Road in East Penn Township is a dirt road, and even though maintained, thunderstorms will create many ruts which low clearance autos will find challenging. The second is if you choose to walk the trail to the "Knob," it's about a 20-25 minute rocky, steep climb. And last, some very disrespectful individuals have spray-painted graffiti on trees and rocks. Keep an eye out for these vandals and notify the Pennsylvania Game Commission with any helpful info.

Please note that the climb isn't critical. On many days, pull out your lawn chairs and sit in the parking lot. A good flight can usually be seen from that vantage point as well.

If you do climb to the summit, you'll need to determine which side of the mountain to watch. On north or northwest winds, sit on the north side (facing Carbon County). On days with southeast, east, south, or southwest winds, sit on the south side of the lookout. You will find a great group of birders to help you on the lookouts or in the parking area itself. I cannot guarantee a record hawk watch day, but a day after a cold front passes in early October, a crisp northwest breeze may afford you a day of watching hundreds of sharp-shinned hawks, falcons, ospreys, vultures, eagles and probably dozens of Canada geese flocks.

If a coastal storm or hurricane passes by, the day after it clears, you may have a phenomenal hawk migration. If the migration doesn't pan out, the view and scenery of Carbon County alone will be worth the trip. Hey, get out there and enjoy.

Today's nature quiz question: Geese fly in a typical "V" pattern. Why is the one side of the flock usually longer than the other?

Last week's trivia answer: The common merganser is the only one of those four ducks that catches and eats fish.

Contact Barry Reed at breed71@gmail.com.