The Importance of the Road
I texted a friend in late April, maybe early May, letting her know what a drain it was on my psyche to have my car unavailable for so long. Trouble with transmission and tires had me trapped. Add to that, the little responsibilities of life - getting to work, getting groceries, helping friends, visiting family. It was with great joy that I hit the road on May 19th. Fresh off of a 40-50 page chapter on technology for an agriculture textbook, I was ready to be back on the road.
I don't take this for granted. Okay, sometimes I do, but at times like this, I feel bad for the times that I take it for granted. It's a monthly "vacation" in a sense, although I live a life without real days off - freelance writing, combined with hosting work means that nearly every day is accounted for, even when I *am* on the road. And these "vacations" are only rarely more than a three-day weekend - always in my car. Always in the state.
They support my mental and physical health goals and are always something I reference as I keep looking for a company to make an honest writer out of me someday.
Hood Park
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| Cliff Swallow |
I think March was the first time that I didn't stop immediately at Hood Park. I'd seen plenty of the wintering birds in Walla Walla County (where my year list was now 75 species - half-way to 150!), and no rarities had popped up in Hood Park. But in May? May?? Arriving at 10 A.M., I wanted to stop as early as possible in the county, so that I could hear any singing bird singing. That early-as-possible stop is Hood Park, just over the Snake River, where it empties into the Columbia.
.. and Yellow Warblers (76) were singing. Go ahead and put that at the end of every sentence for nearly the rest of my May blogs. There's a few of them out there. I started along the pond and marsh, pulling up several new birds, including Common Yellowthroat (77), Lesser Goldfinch (78), and Brown-headed Cowbird (79). Somehow, I had never come across a Great Blue Heron (80) until this stop! That's the kind of things that happen when you're blowing through a county kind of quickly from month to month. Wood Ducks (81) were found in the pond itself.
Continuing around to the Snake River, I came across all of the swallows. Well, to be fair, I didn't see any Tree Swallows, but I did have Violet-green, Cliff (82), Northern Rough-winged (83), Barn (84) and even a Bank Swallow (85), working to quickly run up my year list.
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| Northern Rough-winged Swallow |
American White Pelicans (86) were picked up here, and at several stops in the county during the day. I also had a heard-only Osprey (87).
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| Pelicans |
Spotted Sandpiper and Killdeer were expected shorebirds, but as I started turning back away from the Snake River, a slightly marshy area had two American Avocets (88). What beautiful birds!
McNary - Lake Road and Quail Trail
It'd be silly not to make a stop here in May! I had seen reports of Wilson's Phalaropes, and teal species that I was missing. From the observation platform on the north side of Lake Road, I picked out some Black-necked Stilts (89), and got some better looks at a pair of Osprey.
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| Osprey with lunch |
Mixed in with other waterfowl I'd seen already during the year, I found some Cinnamon Teal (90) in bright breeding plumage.
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| Yellow-headed Blackbird |
Yellow-headed Blackbirds were calling noisily from the shores of the slough, and a few California Gulls (91) and Caspian Terns (92) flew overhead.
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| One of many Cinnamon Teal |
Crossing over Lake Road, I parked and walked the Quail Trail. I came across an elusive Bullock's Oriole (93). They always seem elusive. I do have pictures of this species from other years, but the overwhelming experience is that I hear them chattering out of view - tucked into the deep foliage of a deciduous tree.
I spent a lot of time in the duck blind, looking at ducks, trying to turn some teal into Blue-winged Teal. I could not. Pulling out my scope, I scanned the shore to see if I could find one tucked in along the edge. Instead, I pulled up some phalaropes. I shot some pictures, since I was quite out of practice on identifying phalaropes - assuming that I'd later find that they were Wilson's. But they instead turned out to be Red-necked Phalaropes (94), from my pictures, and also seen by others that day.
Peninsula Unit
Just down the road, and part of the McNary complex is the Peninsula Unit. Grassy fields, marshy ponds, and trees lining the Columbia? Sounded like a good place to find some birds.
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| Would love to know what flowers I had here |
First thing out of the car, I heard songs. I heard some that were very familiar (Yellow Warbler, which eBird says I've added to over 200 lists), and some that are heard less often, but which are familiar after my brain catches up (Bullock's Oriole, just 70 times I've reported this one), and then one that I couldn't place, because I've heard it so few times (Lark Sparrow - species 95 for the year - 21 lists with Lark Sparrow in my records).
Add to this, it's not a distinctive song. Hold up and hear me out here! There are a few bird species that have songs that fall into this category of "combination of clear notes, buzzy trills, etc", complex songs that contain some similar elements, but differently arranged. Who would I lump in there?
There are likely others, but these are ones that have been on my mind this year in Southeastern Washington. You know what I'd love to see? A scan of my brain when I hear any of these. I could compare it to a brain scan when I hear something like... a Canyon Wren, an American Wigeon, or a Barred Owl... birds where I don't need to think at all.
OR a scan of my brain when I hear things that are not necessarily complex, but which are trickier to sort out - Fox or Lincoln's or Golden-crowned Sparrow call notes, any warbler "chip", or the birds in The Trill Complex (Wilson's Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Dark-eyed Junco, Chipping Sparrow, Orange-crowned Warbler). These birds aren't doing anything quite as complex, so you're just kind of "tasting" the sounds to separate them. The brain absolutely feels like it's going to a different place in all of those situations!
After getting that sorted out, (and after also hearing Black-headed Grosbeak - 96!) I kept driving the dusty road, and came across two dusty-road specialists - two kings asserting dominion over this particular dusty road:
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| Western (bottom left) and Eastern (top right) Kingbirds |
97 and 98 for the year! The birds . . . all birds do this, and I wish I could explain this to them. . . as I'm driving, the car gets closer, and they fly farther up the road, and perch again. Rinse, lather, repeat. I've often thought that evolution will eventually bring us a better-adapted bird, one that makes a *single* flight to a point behind the car, and then it's done. After five or six rounds of "Oh no! I think I see a car coming! Run!!", I thought I could break the cycle by increasing my speed. Maybe if I passed the birds, they would just give up and duck in behind me? We did this for a little ways (Western Kingbirds can achieve speeds of at least 25 miles an hour, incidentally), before the bird called it a draw, and flew away from the road.
I finally reached a nice spot where I could follow a short little trail right up to the riverside. An Osprey pair circled overhead as I climbed over the last log to get to the rocky shores of the Columbia. Looking south, I saw birds just passing out of view around a corner and realized which direction I'd be walking! It was, incidentally, a beautiful day, and a treat to be on the Columbia again. It's been a central feature of several past blogs (Douglas, Chelan, Klickitat, Southwest Washington). It's interesting to think that, by the time I wrap up this "project", I'll have had focused years along the entire length of the Columbia. Franklin, Benton, Grant, Okanogan, Lincoln, Ferry and Stevens Counties are all laying ahead of me!
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| American White Pelican is the official sponsor of today's birding |
For today, the Columbia gave me a Walla Walla bird that I had hoped for in a mid-May trip, Blue-winged Teal (99)!
I watched the pair in the scope, and enjoyed a light breeze, watching pelicans coast overhead. It leaves one feeling that there's likely nothing that could be done to improve the day.
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| This bird knows how to pump its own gas. |
GREAT EGRET! (100)
Sorry. It's a running joke dating back to my Southwest Washington year. Great Egrets have been higher coded birds, indicating that they are rare, but have been increasing in abundance each year as more and more of them move north from Oregon. So, at the start of that year, I was pretty jazzed when I came across a Great Egret, and even the next ten. . . before I realized that they're quite comfortably moved in. At that point, though, the excitement and reverence for the Very Rare Bird had to continue. And so it shall here in Walla Walla, where they are listed as common.
Dodd Road and thereabouts
I had a few fun targets in mind as I turned onto Dodd Road. I add "and thereabouts" because the Tyson Blood Ponds are a short turn off from Dodd Road, but I've usually treated them as a single list when I do it on eBird. I'd been here in previous months with Tricolored Blackbird on my targets list. On this day, with a massive truck behind me and nowhere to pull off, I saw one perched close to the road's edge (101). The red shoulder patch was lined with a huge white band below. I would have loved a picture, but I would not have loved Death by Truck.
Another bird I was hoping to find was Barn Owl. There had been several reports with photos from Dodd Road. I could not think of where those might have come from, until I arrived at the little embankment along the road. Here again, I wish I could camera better. What a challenge! Taking a picture of owls sitting inside a dark hole on a bright day, with lots of brightly lit blades of grass waving back and forth in front of the hole, dragging the focus of the camera away.
I was happy just to get a few shots that showed owl shapes. Apparently, a parent and a kiddo, peering out from their nice little hidey hole. (102)
And then. Um. You see, when I'd been here before, I just remembered that while driving east, there was a turn off that meets up with the "main" dirt road that goes past the blood ponds. It all seemed clear in the snow. But now, with no snow to conceal things, I may have been briefly confused. In attempting to get on that turn off, I took a different turn off. My thoughts, in order:
1. This is the correct turnoff.
2. Is this the correct turnoff?
3. Is this a road?
4. There's a chance that this is a road, but I have serious doubts.
5. This is absolutely not a road, and I am in the middle of a field now.
So, avoid that turnoff for sure. Send me a postcard if you visit that field too! I was so excited to hit the Blood Ponds. There had been recent sightings of White-faced Ibises - a species that passes through Walla Walla annually right around this time of year. My only experience with these birds is from King County when one showed up unexpectedly a few years back. But alas! There was a train.
I tried peering through gaps in the cars at the mud, and it's entirely possible that there were no birds there on that day. But I still wonder if there were some, just obscured by the train cars. For the stop, I did find some American Coots, Yellow-headed Blackbirds, and Redheads.
Walla Walla River Delta, Take 2
I'd been here back in February, following a pair of snowy bootprints to a dead end. This is such a magical place - by all accounts and certainly based on my inability to find the path down to a productive viewing spot. Very Narnia. Very Platform 9 3/4. I didn't have a lot of hope as I pulled up this time, but there had been reports of Franklin's Gulls milling around the delta, so I thought I should take a look.
And I suppose the good news first. Sitting out on the mud, I found a little gull with a black hood. It was pretty distant, but I thought I was picking up eye rings. It took flight, and the underwing showed just a little black near the tips. Franklin's Gull! (103)
But gosh I wanted a picture. I started tromping towards the muddy area - not the delta, properly, but this little muddy cove (which, incidentally, was free of any shorebirds. I sometimes believe in my head that shorebirds eat mud, and should always be found where there is mud). Closer and closer, I finally got to the edge of the little field, as close as I thought I could get to viewing the gulls on the edge of the water. The Franklin's was apparently just out of view, obscured by trees.
I looked down and saw human footprints going across the mud. I looked further down and saw that I did not have my mud boots on. I looked back up at the sun, then back down to my phone to check the time. . . Look. I'm going to give the Walla Walla Delta its due. It may come in the fall, when all kinds of crazy things are passing through over the period of months. But for the day, I just decided this was going to have to count as a good enough visit to the delta.
Too far South
I had this vague recollection that there were White-throated Swifts nesting. . . somewhere south of here. "Why didn't you just look it up on your phone, Tim?" Well, look at that. You just hurt my flip phone's feelings. Goodness. Again, the impromptu nature of the trip - finally having the car up and running - finally having a break in the writing - I may have gone out the door without *fully* preparing!
But the drive along the Columbia was lovely. I stopped at several pulloffs, enjoying the views of the Wallula Gap, adding Rock Wren (104) to the year list.
And accidentally driving into Oregon. Oof.
It's a funny line that I've drawn. Much like the Great Egret above, this is just one of the running jokes. I can't be in Oregon. The birds down there do not count in any of my Washington State county lists. Maybe when I'm "done" birding in Washington? But that's not anything that I'm reaching soon! Thankfully, I got turned around and back into the Evergreen State before coming across any uncountable birds!
The city so nice, they named it twice
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| No lack of nice little places to sit on the patio |
I eventually landed at Wingman (Birdz and Brewz). I wondered if the title came from any connection to birdwatching. Nope! Just bird-eating at this wing-focused establishment. I brought my laptop in with me. It's just Standard Operating Procedure for me, after spending hours disconnected from the internet and the world, to check in and see if I missed anything. I saw some interesting bird sightings in Columbia County - the arrival of some flycatchers and warblers that I'd need to pursue. On the writing front, my chapter for the agriculture textbook had been reviewed and moved along to the next stage with only minor edits. Just what I wanted to hear! The food was also not bad - I went with the honey sriracha wings - made with local honey. Delicious.
Dayton
In the full spirit of last-minute planning, I arrived at the Best Western hotel in Dayton at 8 PM with no reservation. I heard the rate and went a little wide-eyed. "Just one night, please." As nice as it was to have a comfortable home base, the benefits of having a big free breakfast were also decreasing. Sticking around until 6 AM is not a big deal at all in January, but in May? June? Those are missed birds!
I settled in, and mapped out plans for the next day.
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