Big Eddy visitors often enjoy spending a relaxing evening sitting in the Adirondack Chairs and gazing out over the Eddy. As the sun sinks low, one of our non-human summer visitors can often be heard calling over the West Branch. 

The Common Nighthawk spends the winter in South America and returns to the Katahdin region in mid-May. Nighthawk populations have declined as a result of habitat loss and increasing use of pesticides which impact the large insects that are a major part of the Nighthawks diet.  We are fortunate that the population remains healthy around Big Eddy. This section of the West Branch offers many open ledges that are the preferred nest sites this ground nester.

Keep your eyes and ears on the sky this summer when you visit the Eddy and you may be treated with the peenting and Vroom of our resident nighthawks. These birds are known for being crepuscular, meaning they are most active at dawn and dusk.