The weather on Memorial Day weekend may have been less than ideal, but our trip to Baxter State Park did not disappoint.

As usual, we had reserved the bunkhouse at South Branch Pond campground. With a snug shelter and a wood stove, we were less at the mercy of the weather than those who had to make do with tents or lean-tos. No wonder there were so few people at the site with us!

These two factors were not what made our stay special, though. We’ve experienced some enchanted moments there.

One year we experienced what may have been a songbird “fallout.” This occurs when bad weather forces migrating birds out of the sky to seek whatever shelter they can find, as soon as they can find it. On this particular occasion, we awoke on our second day there to a stiff wind blowing off the pond, accompanied by intermittent rain and cold temperatures.

Neotropical migrants were everywhere, and seemed to be using the bunkhouse and lean-tos as shelter. They stayed close to and below the height of the buildings, foraging for insects to replenish their energy reserves. We didn’t even have to venture outside to see them; we only needed to walk from window to window to see at least four different species of songbird at once.

Another year, I stepped outside one late moonlight night, and was greeted by the hooting of a barred owl, the territorial calls and winnowing flight of at least three American woodcock (one of which landed quite close to me), and the “peet-weet” calls of a spotted sandpiper. Spring peepers provided the background music, making that night the quintessential spring night.

This year, I awoke early Monday morning and took a walk down to the outlet stream with a few of my fellow campers. There we had a delightful surprise: a pair of Canada geese with four yellow, downy goslings, foraging right on the lawn near the ranger’s cabin.

The parents’ devotion to their young was obvious; they were the epitome of watchful protectiveness. Keeping their youngsters between them at all times, they slowly moved across the mowed area above the pond, then began to angle down the slight rise toward the stream. I chuckled at the site of those little goslings waddling along, wagging their fuzzy little hind ends with each step. When the family entered the water, the young swam in a compact four-pack, again securely between their parents.

Upon returning to the bunkhouse, I related the incident to the other members of my group, one of whom was Sandy Knox, a long-time friend and fellow hiker who appreciates wildlife. Extremely disappointed that she had missed the spectacle, she asked me for details about Canada goose family life. She wanted to know how to tell a male and female goose apart.

I admitted I wasn’t sure, but I knew it couldn’t be by appearance; both have identical plumages. When we returned home I did some research, and found one of the sure ways to differentiate the sexes was first by voice, then by behavior.

The male has a two-part vocalization, the familiar deep “a-honk,” while the female has a higher-pitched, one-part call described as “hink.” They use these calls in a duet when greeting one another after an absence; the “honks” are so closely synchronized that they sound as if they were coming from only one bird.

Paired birds remain together for as long as each lives. The young hatch after an incubation of 28 days. During this time only the female incubates, while the male defends a territory surrounding her.

The young are able to forage and move about on their own soon after emerging from their shells, and rely on the parents only for guidance and protection – which they were receiving in abundance that day at South Branch campground.

NEWS bird columnist Chris Corio can be reached at bdnsports@bangordailynews.net