For more than 10 years, the Sax-Zim Bog has been welcoming thousands of bird watchers per year.

Now, birders will really feel welcome.

The Sax-Zim Bog Welcome Center, an educational facility and gathering place for birders, is near completion.

By mid-December, the new $100,000 welcome center will be finished.

"It's the gateway to the bog," said Sparky Stensaas, Friends of Sax-Zim Bog executive director and founder. "People can come to the welcome center to get oriented to the bog, talk with a naturalist and pick up a map. It's also a good place for people to come to talk about the birds they've seen."

Since 2004, the 300-square-mile Sax-Zim Bog near Meadowlands has become one of North America's most popular bird watching areas.

During winters, Great Gray, Northern Hawk and Boreal owls can be seen. It's also prime territory for Red Polls, Pine Grosbeaks, Northern Shrikes, Rough legged Hawks, Crossbills, Bohemian Waxwings, Snow Bunting, and other species.

"We call it the 'Arctic Riviera,' because this is where birds from the north spend their winters," said Stensaas, a 1985 University of Minnesota Duluth biology graduate. "It's a magic mix of bogs, open hay fields, abandoned farms, upland and a ton of voles, which are food. There's nothing like this east of Winnipeg in the north."

Construction on the welcome center, funded by private donations and grants from various foundations, began three years ago.

The center stands on one-acre of St. Louis County leased land.

Last year, 2,421 people from 27 states and several foreign countries, visited the off-the-grid center.

However, it's likely that perhaps up to 1,500 additional birders visited Sax-Zim Bog, but not the center, said Stensaas.

From its aspen siding to its tamarack interior, the center was built will local materials.

Completion of the center includes expanding a gift shop, lengthening an existing three-loop snowshoe trail, adding a year-round naturalist position, and installing additional bird feeders around the center.

Bird feeders are located throughout the huge bog. Owls and other species can also be spotted in locations not near feeders.

A kiosk outside the center, along with maps, show birders where various species of birds can be seen within the bog.

With winter a prime season to spot birds that fly south, the center is open daily from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. from mid-December through mid-March.

"Having this center has made a huge difference," said Stensaas. "I see it as kind of an outpost. I think eventually, we'd like to be open more."

To get to the center from St. Louis County Highway 7, take Arkola Road (St. Louis County Road 52) 5.5 miles west to Owl Road (St. Louis County 203). Turn left on Owl Road and go 1.7 miles south.

IRRRB provided a Culture and Tourism grant to support development of the Sax-Zim Bog Welcome Center.

Pictured above: Sparky Stensaas, Friends of Sax-Zim Bog executive director and founder, says the Sax-Zim Bog Welcome Center will be a valuable gathering place for birders.