Ken Brown and Ed Pullen are leading an ABC Birding field trip to the coast on the weekend of Oct 8-9. Maximum of 16 people in 4 cars, but if enough demand we could make a hybrid trip, with 12 people on Saturday Oct 8, joined by another 12 in 3 cars on Sunday Oct 9, with the Saturday participants leaving after birding on Sunday and the Saturday arrivals staying overnight on Oct 9 to bird the areas covered on Saturday on Monday Oct 10. Let’s see how many people want to come. RSVP to Ken by e-mail kennethwbrown-at-hotmail- dot-com and include your cell phone number as it’s been awhile. Please let us know if you could go on the Sunday-Monday version if demand is high.
We plan to bird at the Ocean Shores side one day, and the Westport/Tokeland side another day, with an overnight stay between. Focus on shorebirds, but some seawatch too. In years past this has been a popular and productive trip as a part of Ken’s classes, so lots of possibilities exist for vagrants plus the usual species. Details on where to meet, times, hotel etc. to follow.
28 ABCers back at the dock after a beautiful late afternoon trip to Smith Island
On Sunday August 8th we met Captain Matt Stolmeier at the dock of Outer Island Excursions Blackfish Tours to head out to Smith Island. There has been a Horned Puffin seen in that area off and on for this summer, and really the last 3 summers. For most of the trip participants this would have been a lifer, or WA first species. The weather was perfect with sunshine, flat seas, and we had a great trip. No Horned Puffin was located, but lots more birds and scenery was there as consolation prizes.
Horned Puffin, our resident breeding puffin in the Salish Sea.
Smith Island was alive with birds. The Bull Kelp beds looked massive and healthy, and a number of “Bait Balls” of birds were enjoyed.
How may species can you find?
There were lots of other alcids.
Common MurreRhinoceros Auklet, or as skipper Matt calls them for his kids, the unicorn puffin. Puffin incomingPuffin fly-by
Skipper Matt gave us extra time to explore the Williamson’s Rocks on the trip back into port, with great looks at various birds with red hard parts.
Black Oystercatchers with red bill, Pigeon Guillemot with red feed (and gape – not shown) and Heermann’s Gull with red bill. An adult Glaucous-winged (or “Olympic”) Gull with young. This marker buoy, a.k.a. the Pelagic Cormorant condo, had nests on every shelf, and the young were at varying stages of development, from quite small to nearly adult size.
Overall a great way to get together outdoors and have fun birding.
Hope is for lots more ABC trips if we the pandemic situation allows.
Richard, Mary, Kathryn and Ken near Kettle Falls Campground
ABC had a group trip, finally. With all participants immunized and able to get away on a short-notice smaller-than-usual-group trip, 8 ABCers headed for the North East corner of the state on Tuesday June 8th. Ken put the trip together with my encouragement and the group met at the usual Travelers Rest Stop at Snoqualmie Pass at 7:30 to get out birding and try for the NE corner specialties plus a few more.
Butterflies were not as abundant as expected on this trip, likely because it was not very warm. Loraquin’s Admiral here.
The big change in this trip was the addition of Jacob Miller, a young Mason County birder that Ken has been encouraging. He managed to break away from his family farm, Skykomish Valley Farms, and his enthusiasm as well as talented eyes and ears added lots to the trip. On the way across I-90 east we made a stop at the Ginkgo State Park Backcountry Trail spot to see the Black-throated Sparrow that had been sighted there the day prior. It was singing from prominent perches on the east side of the entry road, across from where it had been seen some years ago. This was lifer #1 for Jacob and some others, and a FOY for all but me, as the Pierce County second record bird on May 14 was a county first and FOY for me. Rock wrens were numerous there too and singing loudly.
White-tailed Deer are another eastern species seen in the NW corner of WA.
From here we spent much of the morning around Sprague Lake, in both Lincoln and Adams counties, after a quick stop at Peninsula Park at Moses Lake for Clark’s Grebe with several Forester’s Terns as an unexpected bonus and lifers #2 and #3 for Jacob. At the Lincoln County end of Sprague Lake we added Black Tern (#4) and Gray Catbird (#5) as well as Canvasback and a good variety of ducks and passerines including many Eastern Kingbirds (#6)
Western Tanager
On the Adams County end by the boat ramp two Black-crowned Night Herons flew past (#7) and we joked that we were hitting a rut, with between 43-47 species at every stop. We made a Grasshopper Sparrow (#8) stop in grassy fields along SR -231 on the way out of Sprague, adding Vesper Sparrows along with Swainson’s Hawks there too.
American White Pelicans
Stops at Reardon Pond added our first of many Bank Swallows, and at Hafer Road in Steven’s County we managed to find a pair of Clay-colored Sparrows (#9) along with the Dusky Flycatchers (#10) before heading to dinner in Colville at a Mexican place with decent food but incredibly slow service. After a 2-hjour dinner stop we got to Cottonwood Campground just after sunset, pitching tents in the last light. Singing Veery (#11) and drumming Ruffed Grouse were nice bedtime additions.
Red-eyed Vireo, one of the eastern species more often heard than seen.
It drizzled much of the night, making for damp camping gear for the rest of the trip, but the morning birding made up for it, with a mother Ruffed Grouse keeping a close eye on us as her young hid in the roadside brush on the campground driveway. Red-eyed Vireo and American Redstart (#12-13) were easily seen in camp, as well as more calling and singing Veery, and a White-breasted Nuthatch (#14). At the HQ we got our first looks at Calliope (#15) and Black-chinned Hummingbirds (#16) and then we headed around the auto loop at Pend Oreille NWR. It was not that birdy but Nashville Warbler (#17) was found on Bear Creek Road, and at lunch at the McDowell Lake Trailhead a soaring Northern Goshawk (#18) entertained and amazed all of us while Jacob had the presence of mind to carefully look at a woodpecker that we all saw fly in front of us but didn’t look away from the Goshawk, getting White-headed Woodpecker (#19) as a “Jacob only” bird of the trip. On a hike to the lake a Golden Eagle was another trip highlight.
Wood Duck
After leaving the NWR we birded Amazon Marsh. It was difficult, but finally we managed to get onto a singing Northern Waterthrush (#20) along with American Redstart and several more Gray Catbirds.
Northern Waterthrush
At Aladin Road not much was new, and we headed for Big Meadow Campground to pitch camp. It was disappointing there that every Alder tree in the usual camping spot had been cut down, and on the hike many trees required maneuvering over, under or around making the 2 ½ mile hike seem especially long. Also zero of either species of 3-toed woodpeckers disappointed. Singing Common loons and Wilson’s snipe calling and winnowing kept us entertained though.
The Big Meadow
This night was colder to camp out, but everyone survived, and after a hike alongside the lake without Three-toed or Black-backed Woodpeckers, we headed to our boreal high elevation stop of the trip with high hopes.
Bunchgrass Meadow
Bunchgrass Meadow was a new place for most of us on the trip. It is at high elevation, up a 10-mile road NF 1935 Sullivan lake Road near Ione, WA. Here is a link to the eBird list we had from there where you can also access the details of the eBird hotspot. Here we had big flocks of White-winged Crossbills, many Red Crossbills, at least 3 Boreal Chickadees, and a great experience of seeing a new beautiful place.
After this we stopped briefly at Noisy Creek Campground near Sullivan Lake and worked our way to the hotel of the trip, a really nice place called the Ione Riverview Motel. It is right on the Pend Oreille River, has good rooms and beds, a deck right by the river, and was great. A warm dry bed was just the thing after 2 nights camping.
Least Flycatcher
The next morning we headed for maybe our most anticipated stop of the trip, Calispel Lake, where my guests on Episode #100, Scott and Sierra Downes had 90 species on a recent loop. We were hoping to do that well, and worked the area thoroughly, taking 7 ½ hours to complete the loop, taking our time, looking for every bird, and finishing with a crazy 104 species as a group. I think I saw 102 of these, missing two swift species, Black seen only by Jacob, and Vaux seen by several of us. Highlights were close up Northern Waterthrush at a lunch stop by a bridge, FOY Least Flycatcher near the Jct. of Middle-fork Road, and good numbers of Bobolinks in a couple of wet fields. A family of Say’s Phoebes, 10 species of warblers (really great for WA) and a slow paced day made for great birding.
Ferruginous Hawk
Our last night of camping was at the Kettle Falls Campground, where we battled some high winds to set up camp before the wind died back at dusk, and outboard motors very early the next morning as fishermen took to Lake Roosevelt. Highlights here were found by Jacob after the rest of us called it a night. Lark Sparrow and another at least two Least Flycatchers were on the peninsula behind the marina, and we got back out to see them the next morning. Pygmy Nuthatches were in a snag right in camp, and we headed for home with more birding to do on Saturday.
Ferruginous Hawk
The way home was all about finding a few lifers for Jacob (and great looks at great birds for the rest of us) Ferruginous Hawks were found in two places, at mile post 82 on State Road 28 is a dilapidated windmill with a nest on the platform. Three chicks and a soaring adult Ferruginous Hawk gave great looks. Another two adults were seen later at Wilson Creek.
Lark Sparrow
Road W near Krupp yielded Sagebrush Sparrow and Brewer’s Sparrows, Sage Thrasher, and Vesper Sparrow. Lunch in Krupp preceded Wilson Creek where a Barn Owl was found by Ken in the canyon wall, the pair of FEHA worked the fields, and we all headed for home satisfied and happy, our state/life/year lists enhanced and feeling really good.
On the way home I spotted a Great Egret in a field off I-90 near Ellensburg, and we all got back to my place to head for home by about 6:30PM.
A great trip! Thanks to all participants and especially to Ken.
Jacob, Teri (in front), Ed, Ken, Mary, Richard, Kathryn
(Photo/Laurel)
If any ABCers are planning to go birding, and are interested or willing to have others join you, leave info in the comments below. Please leave instructions as to how you want interested persons to respond. You can just have them leave a reply to your comment, contact you off-line, or use your imagination. This is something new so let’s see how it works out. Leave feedback in the comments also.
If any ABCers are planning to go birding, and are interested or willing to have others join you, leave info in the comments below. Please leave instructions as to how you want interested persons to respond. You can just have them leave a reply to your comment, contact you off-line, or use your imagination. This is something new so let’s see how it works out. Leave feedback in the comments also.
If any ABCers are planning to go birding, and are interested or willing to have others join you, leave info in the comments below. Please leave instructions as to how you want interested persons to respond. You can just have them leave a reply to your comment, contact you off-line, or use your imagination. This is something new so let’s see how it works out. Leave feedback in the comments also.
8 intrepid ABCers headed out to see the new Cassia Crossbill species and more. I wrote up the trip report on my birding blog, here for interested readers.
A tiny part of large flock of near in Snow geese, not the one “blue goose”.
Sunday Dec 3 Ken Brown organized and led the annual Skagit and Samish Flat’s birding trip. This year so many ABC’ers wanted to come that he spit the trip into two groups to avoid a long caravan in traffic on the flats. The first group met Ken at the Smoky Point Rest Stop at 7:30, and the second group met shortly after about 8 AM and Ed Pullen along with lots of other strong birders headed out to follow Ken’s route.
First we got off on the first exit north of the rest area, Exit 208, and went left through Silvana and then left onto Norman Rd. Shortly after getting onto Norman Road at a house with several feeders a nice variety of feeder birds were seen, including a White-throated sparrow by just a few of us when it showed very briefly. A Sharp-shinned hawk was fanning its tail to dry in a nearby tree, and a merlin perched on a distant tree top. Further down Norman Rd was our second falcon of the day, an American kestrel, as well as several groups of Trumpeter swans and lots of fly-over Snow geese.
Prairie Falcon on Boe Rd
Where Norman Rd intersects Marine Drive, we went directly across to Boe Road where we had great looks at a Prairie falcon, first located by Bruce Labar, as well as American Kestrel and Merlin, bringing Ken’s group to 4 falcons (Ed’s would get Peregrine later, but Ken’s group had one in travel), as well as American Pipits, both common buteos Red-tailed and Rough-legged hawks, a Cooper’s hawk Ken located tucked in a distant tree, lots of Bald eagles, Western meadowlarks, as well as more and larger flocks of Snow geese overhead.
Subsequent stops at Thomie and Edie Roads yielded more of the same, and in Ed’s group the Willet’s (back care as always) brought us back to see a Northern Shrike.
Northern Shrike in the thorny brambles
From here we headed north to Skagit County, traveling on back roads up to Fir Island. At Wylie Slough we found 6 Greater yellowlegs, Ed saw 12 Black-bellied plover fly by, and we sorted through large flocks of Pine siskins hoping for a Common redpoll, and though Ken found one brief look at a likely possibility, none of us could pull a redpoll out of the hyperactive flocks of 250+ siskins.
Our group at Wylie Slough
At Hayton Reserve we were treated to an estimated 8-10,000 Dunlin in a huge flock on the high-tide remaining mudflats. Two peregrines put on a show dueling for apparent territorial rights to the flock, while the Dunlin dazzled with evasive flocking behavior. A good variety of ducks, a Harlan’s Red-tailed hawk, 12 Greater yellowlegs and about 50 Long-billed dowitchers added to our day list.
It was getting late so we skipped the rest of the dike access areas on Fir Island, and headed for the Samish Flats. A potty stop at Bayview State Park added remarkably little action on the water, with Horned grebe, Common and Barrow’s goldeneyes, and a DC Cormorant the only new species.
The Samish Flats, with most of our time spent at the West 90, yielded more sunshine, a flock of an estimated 20,000 Snow geese with at least one nicely seen ‘blue goose”, more peregrines, kestrels, a single short eared owl flew in the distance as dusk approached but probably the most unusual bird of the day was a single Long-billed curlew in a large flock of Ring-billed gulls fairly close in on one of the muddy rivulets.
Overall a nice day was had by all, and Ed’s group totaled 82 species for the trip. (Ken can make a comment re his groups totals.)
The group Monday at the Tokeland Marina from Diane Y-Q.
Per our annual routine Ken Brown led us on a coastal birding trip, this time a Sunday-Monday rather than the usual Saturday-Sunday because Ken, Ed, Laurel, and Lisa went on the Westport Seabirds Saturday pelagic out of Westport. The highlights of the pelagic trip were Laysan Albatross, Short-tailed shearwater, Buller’s shearwater, calm seas, sunny skies, and a huge flock of seabirds trailing a fish processing boat off Willapa Canyon. There were an estimated 5000 birds, with >50% Northern Fulmar, with lots in all three morphs, and seemingly every mutation of the morphs.
Sunday we met at the Point Brown Jetty where a steady stream of Sooty shearwaters, two Parasitic jaegers, loons, ducks, and gulls were seen, but no rock-birds. This was the story of the weekend really, nice weather, good comradery, and few shorebirds. We made several stops on the open coastal beach finding primarily Sanderling, then stops at the north end of the Oyhut Game Range (nearly devoid of shorebirds but nice looks at Merlin and Peregrine falcon) where we did manage to see an American golden plover far away across the tidal ingress stream with a flock of other shorebirds. This prompted us to return to the south end of the game range to try for closer looks at the shorebird flock. We were able to get nicer looks at the AGPL but most of the peeps had moved on.
On the way back to the hotel we stopped at the Hoquiam STP, where shorebirds were surprisingly nearly absent. We had a 7 LBDO and 15 KILL as the only shorebirds, but did see 8 Greater white-fronted geese and a modest variety of other waterfowl.
We had dinner at the usual Mexican place and overnight at the Best Western Plus (the old Guesthouse) by the river.
Monday AM we awakened to fairly dense fog by the river, and were relieved that it cleared as we drove south to Westport. At the Coast Guard Station end of the marina area we had the flock of Marbled godwits, estimated at 600+, and easily picked out the Bar-tailed godwit which in its current plumage is much paler than the MAGOs and easier than usual to find. We spent a bit of time in the overgrown fields by the Coast Guard Station and Fox sparrows were singing, WEME were found, a few American pipits were on the sparsely vegetated ground area to the left of the road in, and the sun started to warm things up a bit.
From here we headed to Bottle Beach where we had 47 species, highlighted by a grand total of 1 shorebird. A single Black-bellied plover clung to a piece of sunken driftwood as the tide came in, but no other shorebirds at all were seen. We had a good time birding the upland area finding a fair variety of passerines.
We had lunch at the Tokeland Marina, where nice new picnic tables gave us views of the wintering Willets, and we looked hard for unusual water birds, really finding nothing other than the usual Common loons, and a variety of grebes, ducks, and gulls.
At Graveyard spit we did see Caspian terns and 3 Bonaparte’s gulls, but no curlew or whimbrels.
Our last stop was at Westhaven SP where we hoped for the missing rock birds, but only Black Turnstones were found which we had already the day prior at the base of the jetty.
A good time was had by all, a big group of 19 on Sunday and 21 on Monday.
