4/26/2023 Seattle - Clarkston 325 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4398.jpg)
Home as we left it, Seattle
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In traveling positions, Seattle
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Garden next door, Seattle
Today we embarked on our big road trip across the country to visit friends and family in Colorado,
to attend Gabriel's graduation in Michigan, to visit my Mom and Sarah and Roger in New Hampshire and
to visit high school friends in Maine and/or Massachusetts. We will of course do some birdwatching
along the way including a visit to Magee Marsh in Ohio to see migrating warblers and stops in Idaho,
Illinois and Montana to attempt to add a handful of species to my North America life list.
I prepared an
itinerary
a few days ago. Our only deadline is to be in Michigan nine days from now to join Darchelle's
family for the graduation, but that deadline constrains us to keep moving for the first third of our
trip, hence the itinerary. Driving to Michigan via Colorado will require that we average about 350
miles per day, but with Darchelle doing all the driving, we don't want to tackle much more than that
on any individual day. Nonetheless we want flexibility to alter our route or linger a little longer
than planned if we find a place particularly intriguing so we won't be booking motels in advance.
We will just take our chances when we pull into town at the end of the day. Given that we can neither
camp out nor sleep in the car that approach is not without risk, but like I said, we will take our
chances.
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White-crowned Sparrow, County Line Ponds, Othello
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Black-necked Stilt, County Line Ponds, Othello
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Bassett Park, Washtucna
Our priorities today are to reach Clarkston in the southeast corner of the state by nightfall and to
pick up a last few year birds in Washington along the way. With 236 species, we are in third place
in the eBird ranking for the state but that won't last long; close to 100 species will show up in
Washington while we are away so we want to get as many as we can before we head into Idaho and
beyond.
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Cooper's Hawk, Lyons Ferry State Park
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Red-tailed Hawk, Washtucna
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Rivertree Inn, Clarkston
That turned out to be eight species by the time we settled into the
Rivertree Inn + in Clarkston at 8:30 PM. We found Swainson's Hawks
near
Royal City L+,
three new species at
County Line Ponds L+, three more at the
Washtucna sewage treatment ponds L+ and White-throated Swifts along the
Snake River L+
Unfortunately we failed to find the rare Snowy Egret at Swallows Park. It had been
there for several days but apparently was not home this evening.
4/27/2023 Clarkston WA - Jerome ID 422 miles (
link to here)
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Osprey, Swallows Park, Clarkston WA
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American White Pelicans, Swallows Park, Clarkston WA
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Great-horned Owl, Swallows Park, Clarkston WA
In the morning we drove back over to Swallows Park but did not find the Snowy Egret. Later we learned
that it was seen that day, though perhaps not at the park. Too bad we missed it, but Darchelle had
wanted to see the Great-horned Owl by the parking lot, and succeeded.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4434.jpg)
Salmon River, Slate Creek ID
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Tundra Swans and Greater White-fronted Goose, Salmon River, Slate Creek ID
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Jacob's Ladder rapid, North Fork Payette River north of Boise ID
Crossing over into Idaho we felt that now we were really on the road. Heading south towards Boise
we followed the
Salmon River L+ up to Riggins, which I did not recognize despite having visited twice back in
June 1981, both times after kayaking the Middle Fork. Continuing south up into the mountains we
entered a broad flat valley which in Colorado would be called a park and started a checklist near
New London +
when we spotted a large brown heron-like bird and realized that it was a Sandhill Crane in breeding
plumage. They are usually gray when we see them in Washington. Descending the Payette River into
Boise, we stopped along the road at a fearsome-looking stretch of whitewater and texted a photo to
Daniel who immediately identified it as Jacob's Ladder. Apparently it is famous.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4453.jpg)
Bruneau Dunes, Bruneau ID
I had two sights I wanted to see near Boise -
Melon gravel + and
Bruneau Dunes +. We didn't have time to detour to Melba to
look for melon gravel bars, which in any case are not that different in origin or appearance
from the boulder fields east of Ephrata in Washington.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4498.jpg)
Bruneau Dunes, Bruneau ID
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A1697.jpg)
Cliff Swallows, Bruneau ID
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Crest Motel, Jerome ID
The huge sand dunes near Bruneau are a different story. The
last time I visited +, back in 2010, David and I hiked to the
top of the tallest dune but this time I sat in the car and watched Darchelle ascend one of the
smaller ridges. It was reminder of how much we have lost.
Our motel, the Crest in Jerome, smelled worse than any other place we stayed during the entire trip but
at least it was cheap.
4/28/2023 Jerome ID - Price UT 449 miles (
link to here)
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Swainson's Hawk, Hansen ID
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Swainson's Hawk, Hansen ID
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Swainson's Hawk, Hansen ID
In the morning we drove east and south through
irrigated farmland L+ in the Snake River plain to the South Hills,
encountering more Swainson's Hawks than I would have expected in that habitat. As we turned onto
Rock Creek Road L+
two Red Crossbills flew over us towards a small pond in a gravel pit but we could not relocate them.
Crossbills were what we were looking for, Cassia Crossbills in particular, which frequent Lodgepole
Pines high in the mountains of Cassia County in southern Idaho. Recently separated from Red Crossbills,
they would be a new life bird for us.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4536.jpg)
Rock Creek Road, Cassia Co ID
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Sharp-shinned Hawk and Turkey Vulture, Cassia Co ID
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Upper Rock Creek Road, Cassia Co ID
Dramatic scenery arose around us as we followed Rock Creek Road up into the South Hills. Dark basalt
colonnades framed slopes of arid grassland glowing golden in the morning sunlight. Canyons and ridges
begged to be explored. Sadness overwhelmed me, pain so acute as to be almost intolerable. I think it
had been building since we embarked on the trip and this morning it came to a peak. I could not now
and would never again hike these hills, survey the views, discover the birds, photograph the flowers,
learn the flora, collect the rocks and generally immerse myself in the myriad variations of terrain
and habitat through which we were and would be traveling. Now I just sit in the car and look out
the window. It is hard to settle for so little, and hard this morning to imagine ever being content
with it.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4553.jpg)
Diamondfield Jack Campground, South Hills, Cassia Co ID
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A1956.jpg)
Northern Goshawk, South Hills, Cassia Co ID
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A2018.jpg)
Red-naped Sapsucker, South Hills, Cassia Co ID
At an elevation of about 6000 feet we began to encounter snow, and
birds L+. One of the first was a Dusky Grouse which clambered up a bank
and into the woods before I was spot it. We passed a
ski area +, apparently closed for the season despite a couple
of feet of snow still on the ground, and a mile or so after that reached our destination, the
entrance parking lot of the Diamondfield Jack Campground and ground zero for the Cassia Crossbills.
The sky was very blue, the snow very white, the trees very dark and the two raptors overhead, very
pale. We immediately thought Goshawks but they were just Red-tails, as usual. A few minutes later
though, another raptor soaring high overhead actually was a Northern Goshawk, an exciting bird for
those of us from Washington who rarely see them.
The crossbills were a bit anticlimactic. We saw one in the top of a Lodgepole Pine; it appeared to
have a large bill; we could not get a photo; we counted it as a Cassia.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A2175.jpg)
Black Pine Mountains (9300'), Cassia Co ID
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Burrowing Owl, Curlew Valley UT
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Burrowing Owl, Curlew Valley UT
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Long-billed Curlew, Curlew Valley UT
Our Idaho missions accomplished we picked up lunch at
Nostalgia Coffee in Burley +
and ate in a park along the Snake River before heading into Utah. Anticipating that we might not be
able to get many Utah birds during our brief visit, we exited the freeway at the first opportunity
and followed the
Highway 30 L+ west across the Curlew Valley. It was a good move. we picked up
our first 20 species for the state including a Burrowing Owl and appropriately, a Long-billed Curlew.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4590.jpg)
Nostalgia Coffee, Burley ID
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Wasatch Front near Ogden UT
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The Greenwell Inn, Price UT
We drove south past Ogden and Salt Lake City as the sun was setting on the Wasatch front. We had
planned to stay in Spanish Fork but missed the motel district in the dark and ended up driving
another hour to Price where all of the motels seemed to have closed for the night. Darchelle called
all around and when she finally found a room at the Greenwell, we were both grateful.
4/29/2023 Price UT - New Castle CO 378 miles (
link to here)
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Greasewood flats east of Green River UT
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Arches Entrance, Moab UT
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Black-throated Sparrows, Moab UT
In the morning we drove south through a broad arid valley with naked in-your-face geology in all
directions and I kept wondering how old it all was, not so much the rocks themselves as the
landscape - the mountains, the cliffs, the mesas, the flat valley floors - and how this dramatic
landscape developed. Lots of questions, no way to ask them. We stopped briefly east of Green River
to look for birds but found few. At the entrance to Arches National Park we stopped again and
considered taking the scenic drive but did not have reservations. Darchelle photographed Sparrows
from the parking lot instead.
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Looking east down the Paradox Valley, Bedrock CO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A2387.jpg)
Lark Sparrow, Paradox Valley CO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A2276.jpg)
Brewer's Sparrows, Moab UT
During the summer of 1978 when I worked on the Peregrine Falcon Recovery Project in the Paradox Valley of
far western Colorado, I never did the half hour drive over the hill to Moab, nor did I ever hike up
into the La Sal Mountains which loomed snowy and cool on the western horizon every hot dusty
afternoon. It is too late now to do the hike but today we at least did the drive. I showed Darchelle
where we used to camp and where the Peregrines used to nest on the sandstone walls high above the valley.
They probably still nest there but we were unable to find them during our brief inspection of the
cliffs. The place hasn't changed much, just a few more fences and signs.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4682.jpg)
Dolores River exit from the Paradox Valley, Bedrock CO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4707.jpg)
Dolores River Canyon, Bedrock CO
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Gateway Rock, Gateway CO
We followed the Dolores River north out of the Paradox Valley. The valley runs east-west but the
river flows south to north directly across the middle of it - hence the paradox. The explanation of
the paradox is that the river was there first. It had already incised its meandering course into
the surrounding orange sandstone - you might say its route was set in stone - by the time the valley
began to open up over a disruptive bed of buoyant salt. The salt apparently exerted enough upward
pressure to lift the sandstone 1000 feet or more and fracture it so that weathering and erosion
could do the slow work of creating the valley. Who knew common salt could do that, right?
BTW, how exactly did those incised meanders, so characteristic of rivers flowing over the flat-lying
bedrock along the west slope of the Rocky Mountains, begin and persist as the land underneath them
slowly rose? Did the banks of boulders and soil accompany the river throughout the whole process?
How long does it take for a winding river to carve a canyon 500 feet deep? How old are rivers
anyhow?
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4749.jpg)
Thumb Rock and Driggs Mansion, Unaweep Canyon CO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4744.jpg)
Unaweep Canyon Information
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The Lodge at New Castle, New Castle CO
Leaving the Dolores River at Gateway Rock, a spectacular island of angular sandstone where
Peregrines also used to nest and probably still do, and where our ondometer hit 100000.0, we drove
up into
Unaweep Canyon + another geology mystery. Unlike other canyons, which cut through moutain
ranges, Unaweep Canyon (
map photo +)
between Gateway and Grand Junction extends up over and down the other side of the Uncompaghre Ridge.
U-shaped in cross section, it looks as though it was carved by a glacier but traverses a mountain
range which has no other evidence of glaciation. Forty-five years after I first wondered about
that, I found
this article + which proposes an explanation of the canyon's origin.
The story begins in the Permian period, prior to the deposition of the Mesozoic strata which
currently blanket the Colorado Plateau, when a river carved a canyon into the crystalline rocks of
an ancestral Uncompaghre uplift. Fast-forward 200 million years. About 5 million years ago the
Gunnison River, then as now flowing northeastward along the north margin of the Uncompaghre Ridge as
it began to rise again, turned to the southwest following the trace of the ancient canyon. Over the
next 4 million years the river eroded up to 4,000 feet of Mesozoic sedimentary rocks to exchume the
Paleozoic canyon. About 1.4 million years ago landslide dammed up the river at the west end of the
canyon, forming a lake which rose high enough that the river found an alternate route north from the
east end of the canyon. Sediment deposited after the formation of the lake filled the canyon to a
depth of more than 1,000 feet giving it the level floor reminescent of a glacer-carved valley.
Anyhow, when we arrived in Grand Junction we found all the motels fully booked. Apparently the city
was hosting a statewide lacrosse tournament. Go figure! We had to continue east to New Castle to
find a place to stay.
4/30/2023 New Castle CO - Boulder CO 200 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4760.jpg)
Awaiting lunch with Sally
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4768.jpg)
Lunch at Sally's
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Hanging out with Sally after lunch
We had arranged to meet my cousin Sally for lunch and we did not have far to go so we slept in. That felt good
after two long days and late nights. Sally fixed a delicious meal featuring bean soup with salmon (for me)
and mushrooms (for Darchelle). We ate in her driveway, more pleasant than it sounds, and heard so many
birds that we did a checklist.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4793.jpg)
Selfie with Sally
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4802.jpg)
Mountains north of Loveland Pass
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4811.jpg)
Silas and Salwa's back yard
We both really enjoyed our visit with Sally and vowed that we would stay in touch, so easy to do
via Facetime we agreed, and yet five months from now we will still not have done so.
On our way to Boulder we drove over Loveland Pass; it was much more scenic than the tunnel. We looked
for Ptarmigan on the snowy slopes but spotted only snowboarders and hikers with dogs. Down in Boulder
spring had arrived with leaves emerging on the trees and dandelions flowering in the median strips.
As soon as pulled up in front of Silas and Salwa's house we heard a Blue Jay call so of course we did
a checklist, noting that both Silas and Blue
Jays are relatively recent transplants from back east.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4816.jpg)
Salwa and Silas
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4818.jpg)
Remnants of dinner
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Our room at the Basecamp Motel, Boulder CO
The evening was warm enough that we were able to eat outside under the apple tree in their backyard.
Salwa served an appetizer, a soft cheese which she had made, and Silas served steak and vegetables
which he had grilled. For dessert, Salwa brought out a custard tart with fruit on top. It was all
very good and I regretted not being able to eat more but I eat so slowly that everyone else was
finished while I was still working on the steak. When the stars came out we moved inside and talked
for another hour or more in the comfort of their living room while I continued to nibble.
5/01/2023 Boulder CO - Limon CO 190 miles (
link to here)
Billed as a boutique hotel for the budget-minded traveler, the
Basecamp + was the most expensive place we've stayed so far
and did not even have a fridge in the room. Not only that, but I found the bed quite uncomfortable
and slept poorly. In the morning we went out of our way to visit a coffee shop named for Stephen
King's epic novel
The Stand which we listened to for over 40 hours last year around this
time. The coffee was good and the hand pies even better.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4832.jpg)
Lunch with David and Monica, Denver
I think it has been 9 years since I last saw my close college friend David
S, when we drove out to
Aurora Reservoir L+ on a chilly January afternoon to look at a
couple of rare gulls. Since then we have let our friendship lapse but today we reconnected over
lunch in his backyard. David, or maybe Monica, fixed me salmon and it was delicious but once again
I left too much on my plate because I can't eat and talk at the same time and sadly, we left my
leftovers behind. But it wasn't about the food but about the conversation which I am sure involved
geology, about which David is never at a loss for answers and I am never at a loss for questions.
Regarding our friendship, we just picked right up where we left off, and hopefully we will be better
about staying in touch going forward.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4842.jpg)
Pike's Peak from north of Colorado Springs
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4865.jpg)
With Liz at Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs
From Denver we drove south on I-25 to Colorado Springs to meet my longtime friend and former
girlfriend Liz N at the
Garden of the Gods +, a spectacular city park where I used to birdwatch and
paint when I lived in Colorado Springs during the late 70s. As we approached town, Pike's Peak
was shrouded by a spring storm which cleared in time for us to see the view I painted during my
independent study in painting under
Bernard Arnest + in March of my senior year in college. I never
did get the foreground right on
that painting.
With Liz at
the
Garden of the Gods L+ we rolled around easy trails between the orange crags, taking selfies and
attempting to photograph the swifts crowding into crevices in the rocks. The trails are new since
my last visit, as are nearly all of the swifts.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A2833.jpg)
White-throated Swift, Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A2665.jpg)
Black-billed Magpie, Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A2940.jpg)
White-throated Swifts, Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs
Photographing swifts is not easy but Darchelle managed to get a few good shots. We followed Liz
over to her house for supper, which she served on a folding table in the driveway since her house is
not accessible. Liz gave Darchelle a tour of her house then brought out the
Garden of the Gods painting
which I almost completed but forgot to photograph back in 2014.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4900.jpg)
Liz in her kitchen
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4902.jpg)
Liz with Garden of the Gods painting
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4917.jpg)
The Safari Inn, Limon CO
With a long day scheduled for tomorrow, we decided not to spend the night in the Springs but instead
drive east to Limon. Our stay at the
Safari Inn + was memorable only because we lost our room key and had to pay
five dollars for it in the morning.
5/02/2023 Limon CO - Kansas City KS 526 miles (
link to here)
We drove across the Great Plains today from the short grass prairie of Colorado to the edge of the
eastern hardwood forest in Kansas City. I had prepared for this crossing by stocking up on
audiobooks before we left to Seattle but intrigued by the changing landscape and engaged in looking
for highway birds, we never found time to listen to them. We didn't find the time for photos
either, once we left the Colorado-Kansas border.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3263.jpg)
Great-tailed Grackles, I-70E rest area, Goodland KS
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A2977.jpg)
Great-tailed Grackle, Limon CO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3016.jpg)
Common Grackles, I-70E rest area, Goodland KS
Leaving Limon we were impressed by the size of the grackles. Both Great-tailed and Common Grackles
are rare in Washington but are apparently common around towns on the high plains. At a rest area
just over the border in Kansas, we found male Great-tailed Grackles displaying for the females, who
appeared less impressed by their poses than we were. The Common Grackles on the other hand were just
looking for lunch.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4928.jpg)
Back pond, Burlington WTP, Burlington CO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3086.jpg)
White-faced Ibis, Burlington WTP, Burlington CO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3144.jpg)
Loggerhead Shrike, Burlington WTP, Burlington CO
Enticed by the opportunity to pad our Colorado list before leaving the state, we detoured a mile
south of Burlington to visit the wastewater treatment plant. Our view of the ponds was somewhat
obstructed by a dike along the road so we were eyeing a gravel access road prominently signed "No
Unauthorized Vehicles" when a white pickup truck pulled up next to us. Darchelle explained that we
were birdwatching and were wondering if it was possible to drive in behind the ponds. "Follow me",
the driver replied.
He turned onto the access road, stopped, got out of his truck and walked over to us. Although we
talked with him for perhaps 10 minutes, I unfortunately don't remember now what he looked like or
much of our conversation. My impression was that he was in his late 40s and reminded me of a police
officer, perhaps because he told us he was one. He also volunteered that he was the city dogcatcher.
Although he had some connection with the Pacific Northwest, he had been in the Burlington area for
quite a while, long enough to notice the growing population of Great-tailed Grackles and an
occasional very large snake. We appreciated both his historical perspective on local natural
history and his parting instruction that if anyone stopped us, tell them he said it was okay for us
to be there.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3113.jpg)
Western Meadowlark, Burlington WTP, Burlington CO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3392.jpg)
Wilson's Phalarope, I-70E rest area, Goodland KS
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3031.jpg)
Vesper Sparrow, I-70E rest area, Goodland KS
The
Burlington WTP
ponds L+ proved well worth the hour we took to tour them. Our species count of 29 was our
highest since leaving Seattle and included our only White-faced Ibis sighting of the year. We found
lots of Wilson's Phalaropes and Vesper Sparrows and increased our Colorado list by 20%. Twently
minutes later and 20 miles to the east we kicked off our Kansas list with 26 species at the
I-70 eastbound
rest area L+ near Goodland, where we again found Phalaropes and lots of sparrows along with the
above-mentioned Grackles.
5/03/2023 Kansas City KS - St Louis MO 310 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4937.jpg)
A late supper, Kansas City KS
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4945.jpg)
On the terrace with Gina and Tasha, Kansas City KS
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4946.jpg)
Darchelle, Gina and Tasha, Kansas City KS
Mary and Larry M had graciously offered us their home in
Kansas City for the night though unfortunately they were out of town. Mary even made granola for
us. We arrived late, ate a bit of granola for supper, slept in and ate more granola for breakfast.
Darchelle's friends and former students Tasha and Gina dropped by in the morning. We sat outside on
the terrace and talked (I
noted birds L+) until Gina's parents came by then we moved inside and visited
some more. We dodged a bullet there because Gina's mother had a bad cough but we did not catch it.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4961.jpg)
Redbud flowers, Kansas City KS
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4968.jpg)
Laffoon Road, Cleveland MO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3556.jpg)
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Holden MO
It was approaching midafternoon by the time we hit the road but before leaving the neighborhood we
photographed a few Redbud flowers. We had begun seeing small trees covered with deep pink flowers
around the same time we had begun seeing bedrock again, outcrops of layered yellow sandstone
somewhere near Hayes. I had assumed the trees were Redbuds but wanted to make sure.
Instead of hurrying east out of Kansas City to make up for lost time, we expended several more hours
birdwatching along
secondary roads l + about 40 miles southeast of the city. It was a beautiful spring
day and recently arrived migratory songbirds were singing and foraging all afternoon in patches of
woodland between the farm fields. About a third of the 35 species we encountered were new for us
but the bird we were particularly excited about was a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher. The previous day
one had been discovered in Westport Washington, the first one to show up in the state in at least
five years, and we were missing out on seeing it. We checked eBird and discovered that one had also
recently been reported not too far off of our intended route, so we were headed in that direction
when I spotted one on a utility line along
the road L+. When we turned around for a better look it
had disappeared but we waited a few minutes and spotted it again in a distant tree. By playing
calls we managed to lure it in for our closer look and a photo.
5/04/2023 St Louis MO - Berrien Springs MI 393 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4979.jpg)
Inside the Wayside Motel, St. Louis MO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_4998.jpg)
Outside the Wayside Motel, St. Louis MO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5005.jpg)
Blackburn Park, St. Louis MO
Given our late departure and birding excursions yesterday afternoon, we did not intend to drive all
the way to St Louis, let alone to our original destination of Springfield Illinois. Shortly after
dark we stopped about 70 miles west of St Louis but all of the nearby motels were fully booked. We
continued on to St Louis and the Wayside Motel which we selected for its proximity to Blackburn Park
where Eurasian Tree Sparrows had recently been reported. Close cousins to the common House Sparrow,
they have nested in the St Louis area for decades but I have not had the occasion to stop in St
Louis to look for them since I was in college, when I couldn't be bothered to do so, so they never
made it onto my life list.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3675.jpg)
White-throated Sparrow, Blackburn Park, St. Louis MO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3783.jpg)
Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Blackburn Park, St. Louis MO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3719.jpg)
Blue Jay, Blackburn Park, St. Louis MO
We found Eurasian Tree Sparrows as soon as we pulled into the parking lot for Blackburn Park but
failed to get a decent photo so drove around to the other side of the park where the trails looked
more accessible. Darchelle got me out in the wheelchair and we strolled around the grounds. The
park consists mostly of mowed lawns and shade trees but birds were plentiful and we accumulated
a decent list L+
along with a few photos. We left Missouri with 56 species on our state list, of which 20 were new
for the year
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5024.jpg)
Funks Grove Nature Preserve, Funks Grove IL
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3734.jpg)
Eastern Bluebird, Blackburn Park, St. Louis MO
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3869.jpg)
Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Funks Grove Nature Preserve IL
In part because we devoted so much time to birding stops in Missouri, in Illinois all of our
birdwatching was along the interstate except for one late afternoon stop at
Funks Grove
Nature Preserve L+, where highlights included singing Eastern Towhees and a beautiful
Rose-breasted Grosbeak.
Illinois was also the first state in which we drove on toll roads using the Pay-by-plate system
to pay the fees. In Illinois, as in the other states with toll roads, we forgot to pay the toll
online in time, and when I later attempted to use the
the past due toll site + to pay our toll, it had no record
of our passing.
5/05/2023 Berrien Springs MI 3 days, 30 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5025.jpg)
Late Thursday evening arrival
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5052.jpg)
Friday family supper
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5028.jpg)
Visiting with Marcos
Despite our late arrival in Berrien Springs Thursday evening, Richard and Donna were still up so Darchelle
wrapped me up in the electric blanket and I visited with them while she unpacked the car. They had
flown in that afternoon so were still on Washington time. Ricardo's parents had arrived a few days
earlier. Susan and Marcos drove over on Friday morning and spent the weekend, giving us the opportunity
to get to know Marcos better. I particularly enjoyed our conversations, though regrettably do not remember
much of what we talked about.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5033.jpg)
Gabriel with this grandfather
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5057.jpg)
Gabriel with his parents
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5105.jpg)
Gabriel with Auntie Dash, Sunday afternoon
The occasion for the family gathering in Michigan was of course Gabriel's graduation from Andrews
University. Concerned about COVID, Darchelle and I did not attend the indoor services but watched
the graduation on the phone over closed circuit TV while sitting in the parking lot. Afterwards
Darchelle mingled with the graduates and their families on the lawn while I watched from the car.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5068.jpg)
Darchelle and I with Redbud, Sabbath afternoon
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5072.jpg)
Gabriel with Daniel
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A3931.jpg)
Red-bellied Woodpecker, Berrien Springs MI
Being only peripherally involved with the festivities, I sat outside in the yard birdwatching on both
Saturday L+
and
Sunday L+
afternoons, accumulating a
yard list L+ of 36 species. Darchelle took a nice photo of
one of them.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5114.jpg)
Gabriel with me
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5116.jpg)
'House concert Sunday afternoon
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5168.jpg)
Post-wedding photo with parents
Sunday afternoon after the graduation Gabriel and several friends gave a house concert, playing
classical pieces on piano, violin and clarinet. I had a front row seat just a few feet from the
musicians. It was pretty amazing!
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_0015.jpg)
Darchelle with flowers
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5351.jpg)
Darchelle and Alicia
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5364.jpg)
Family home, Berrien Springs MI
The house on the Hillcrest Drive has been home at various times for Darchelle, for her sister Alicia
and her family, including Gabriel, and for her parents. Now that Gabriel has graduated and Ricardo
and Alicia rent it out on AirB&B this is probably the last family reunion there.
5/08/2023 Berrien Springs MI - Paw Paw MI 99 miles (
link to here)
After a pilgrimage to Baguette de France to pick up sandwiches for lunch, we got back on the road again,
although only to drive to Susan's house in Paw Paw today. On the way out of town we stopped to say goodbye
to her folks then took a detour down to
Kesling Preserve L+ on the Indiana border just inland from
the lake. I particularly wanted to visit that spot because it was the last stop of my
Warbler Safari with Ed Newbold back in 2014 and we had heard Yellow-throated
Warblers there. I thought we had heard cuckoos there as well but I guess I was mistaken about that.
Anyhow it began to rain shortly before Darchelle and I arrived and the mosquitoes were bad in the
flooded bottomlands along the creek so we stayed in the car and listened out the window with Merlin.
Merlin picked up a Louisiana Waterthrush song and although Darchelle could hear it out her window, I
could not distinguish it so she played the recording for me and I counted it. It was our only one
of the entire trip.
Continuing across the border to Indiana we did a quick
checklist L+. We added 18 species for the state but our new total
of 21 still left Indiana as the state with the lowest species count of the entire trip. Rain again
precluded photos.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5369.jpg)
With Susan and Marcos, Paw Paw Michigan
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5455.jpg)
Supper at Susan's, Paw Paw Michigan
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5458.jpg)
Supper at Susan's, Paw Paw Michigan
5/09/2023 Paw Paw MI - Oregon OH 188 miles (
link to here)
Susan fixed us a breakfast scramble with avocado along with stuffed French toast before leaving for
work. We watched birds
out the window L+ and picked up our 49th species for Michigan for the trip, a
Ruby throated Hummingbird. Marcos lingered to help us out of the house, a tricky operation
involving a tight right turn while stepping down out of the front door. We could not have done it
without him. He sent us off with a prayer around 11:15 and we drove about three hours east across
Michigan and south to the
Pearson Metropark L+ just east of Oregon, a suburb on the east side of Toledo.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5474.jpg)
Birders are welcome at Pearson Metropark, Toledo, OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5479.jpg)
Wild Geranium, Pearson Metropark, OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A4052.jpg)
Magnolia Warbler, Pearson Metropark, OH
Pearson Metropark is a 600 acre multiuse park containing an old-growth remnant of the Great Black Swamp,
a forested wetland which once spanned Northwestern Ohio from Lake Erie to the Indiana border. Gravel trails,
easily navigable with the wheelchair except for occasional puddles in low areas, meandered through a
diverse mixed-age hardwood forest which despite extensive standing water was nearly free of mosquitoes.
I doubt that would be the case a little later in the season. I don't remember which bird was the featured
attraction there, perhaps a Cuckoo, but we did not find it although we did come up with 37 species
including 8 warblers. I felt we did pretty well considering it was the middle of the afternoon. Darchelle
even got a few photos.
Our options were limited by the time we began our search for lodging but we found a comfortable if pricey
room at the Towneplace & Suites by Mariott. Darchelle bought take-out at a nearby El Sol Azteca and we
ate into our room while watching
Ted Lasso + on Darchelle's laptop.
5/10/2023 Oregon OH 42 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5495.jpg)
Entrance to Magee Marsh, Oak Harbor OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A5490.jpg)
Eastern Screech Owl , Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A4719.jpg)
Orchard Oriole , Magee Marsh OH
Darchelle has for a long time wanted to to see a big fallout, which is when a large number of
migrating birds all stop at once in a small area to feed and recover before moving on.
Magee Marsh Wildlife
Area + at the southwest end of Lake Eyrie is one of the best spots in North America for that and
the middle of May is the best time to be there, but it depends on the weather. Today was not an
ideal day and our arrival time of early afternoon was definitely not the ideal time. We managed to
find
46 species
l+ including 9 species of warblers but it was not the experience Darchelle was looking for.
On the other hand, we did manage to avoid the crowd. Since it had been a slow morning most of the
birders had gone elsewhere for the afternoon.
That is not to say that the boardwalk was empty. The boardwalk meanders about a third of a mile
through wooded wetland and is famous for offering close views of warblers and other migrants so it
is almost always busy during the migration season. We encountered numerous knots of people but the
way was wide enough that we rarely had difficulty getting by with the wheelchair. Everyone we met,
with the possible exception of an occasional photographer focused on his target, was friendly and
helpful, eager to share that they had seen and where they had seen it, or to identify a bird which
was too distant for my unaided eye. It was my kind of birding though, and we more often found
ourselves pointing out and identifying birds for the other birdwatchers. That was fun!
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A4386.jpg)
Prothonotary Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A5506.jpg)
Black and White Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A4442.jpg)
Yellow Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
A few warblers nest in the marsh, among them the Prothonotary and Yellow and perhaps also the Black
and White. They were singing and easy to find. The Prothonotary has to be the star of the marsh;
showy, colorful, loud, and unusually tame, they were hard to miss. Not so the migrants, which were
not singing, at least not in the middle of the afternoon when we were out there looking for them,
and were often difficult to spot and track in the dense foliage.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A4238.jpg)
Nashville Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A4268.jpg)
Blackburian Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A5022.jpg)
Swamp Sparrow, Ottawa NWR OH
On our way back to our motel we drove the
Ottawa NWR Wildlife Drive L+ through marshes, fields and
woodlots near the lake. With Merlin's assistance we identified our first Sedge Wren of the trip
and with Sibley's assistance we enjoyed close-up views of an Ohio Virginia Rail and a Swamp
Sparrow.
Photographing the Rail and Swamp Sparrow (even though the rail was blurred) made for a nice
conclusion to a satisfying day. It began with a delicious breakfast of an omelette with apple
sausage, biscuits and gravy. We spent an hour this morning working on the camera configuration
and I think it paid off. Darchelle got very good photos of several species including the Eastern
Screech Owl, the Orchard Oriole and the Blackburian Warbler.
5/11/2023 Oregon OH 40 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5505.jpg)
Birdwatchers at Magee Marsh, Oak Harbor OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A5340.jpg)
Cape May Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A5298.jpg)
Cape May Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
Today was forecast to be a really big day for migrants, and while it did not prove to be
as big as predicted, it was better than yesterday. In six hours at
the marsh L+ we saw or heard 62 species including 19 warblers.
Once again, we did not arrive until after noon. We would have tried harder for an early start but we had
decided yesterday evening to stay an extra day in case tomorrow turned out to be the really big day
instead.
As we pulled up to the main entrance to the boardwalk to claim one of the handicap parking spots we
found a crowd of birdwatchers and photographers peering up into a Bald Cypress. Inquiring, we learned
that Cape May, Bay-breasted and Tennessee Warblers were currently foraging in the foliage of the Cypress.
"Get photos!" I urged Darchelle. Although we would probably see a Tennessee in Washington in the fall,
this would probably be our only opportunity to see the other two.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A5480.jpg)
Scarlet Tanager, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A5424.jpg)
Bay-breasted Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A4185.jpg)
American Woodcock, Magee Marsh OH
The Scarlet Tanager was in the crown of a tree behind us while we were watching the Cypress. I recall it
as one of the first birds I noticed as a boy in New Hampshire, maybe 60 years ago. The Woodcock was on
its nest within 10 feet of the boardwalk and within a few feet of where I
photographed one
back in 2014. It might even have the same bird.
While the Woodcock may have been the same individual (or more likely a close relative), the marsh itself
is quite different. Two years ago on August 10, a powerful storm uprooted or snapped off many of the
trees which formerly
shaded the marsh and boardwalk. I don't know how the reduced tree canopy has
impacted the migrants but for birdwatchers, the dense regrowth of the understory has made the birds
more difficult to see and photograph.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A5711.jpg)
Northern Parula Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A5830.jpg)
Tennessee Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5519.jpg)
With the Bouma family, Magee Marsh OH
It was an intense afternoon of birding so before heading back to the car we parked ourselves in one of the
boardwalk cul-de-sacs near the main entrance, probably about where the observation tower used to be.
The willow trees looked familiar, as did the collection of warblers foraging in them. During the half hour
that we rested there we spotted American Redstart, Cape May, Northern Parula, Nashville, Tennessee,
Orange-crowned, Chestnut-sided and Yellow Warblers among the willow catkins. We shared the cul-de-sac
with Sandy Bouma and three generations of her family who like us, had spent the day together birding Magee
Marsh. She knew the birds; she and I identified the songs of the birds singing around us. That was fun.
5/12/2023 Oregon OH - Syracuse NY 469 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5514.jpg)
Pond and woodland, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6113.jpg)
Eastern Whip-poor-will, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6064.jpg)
Bay-breasted Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
Today may have been the biggest day of the migration season at Magee Marsh, both for birds and for people.
Thanks to our early arrival this morning, it was our
best day L+; in 4 1/2 hours we had 73 species including 20
different warblers. The boardwalk was packed. Crowds of people collected at every interesting bird
and even between the crowds we rarely had more than 10 feet to ourselves. In one section near the
east entrance we navigated through about 50 yards of rail-to-rail people who graciously squeezed
together to allow us to pass. That was typical. People were very accommodating of the wheelchair,
most notably at the Whip-poor-will where a man with a vantage point at the rail cleared a path for
us to cut through the crowd then lifted me up from the chair so I could see over the nearby foliage
to get on the bird. I was grateful; though Darchelle and I had heard one in 2018, I had never seen one.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6168.jpg)
Brown Thasher, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5525.jpg)
Birdwatching with Greg Miller at Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6182.jpg)
Mourning Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
Before leaving Magee we decided to check out the Crane Creek Estuary trail. I don't recall what
prompted that decision. Perhaps we had tired of the crowds and the low-level anxiety we felt when
in close proximity to so many people. Perhaps we had heard a rumor about good birds over there.
Whatever the reason, we were rewarded almost immediately with decent views and good photos of a pair
of Brown Thrashers on the beach. Fortified by the thrashers we were motivated enough to persevere
across 100 yards of sandy beach trail in order to reach the dike trail.
Up on the dike trail we joined a loose group of birders which included a celebrity of sorts, Greg
Miller, the model for Brad Harris (played by Jack Black) in the movie
The Big
Year +. We did not actually speak with him but Darchelle managed to position me so as to
include both of us in the same photo. Meanwhile there was some buzz about a Mourning Warbler, a
relatively difficult bird to find at Magee Marsh. I was gratified to be the one to relocate it and
pleased that Darchelle was able to get a photo.
Hoping to reach New Hampshire tomorrow evening, we had to get going, but in three days at Magee
Marsh we had seen or heard 89 species including 26 species of warblers. By way of comparison, in
2014 Ed and I had 90 species but only 23 species of warblers. Also worth noting, our friend Wayne
S was apparently present at Magee Marsh at some point in the
past three days but somehow we missed him.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6261.jpg)
Baltimore Oriole, Presque Isle SP, Erie PA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6326.jpg)
Red-tailed Hawk, Presque Isle SP, Erie PA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5531.jpg)
Sally's Diner, Presque Isle SP, Erie PA
Andy had suggested that if the crowds at Magee were too much, we should try
Presque Isle State
Park L+ in Erie. Since it was on the way we detoured out there and poked around for a couple of
hours. The trees were beautiful but the traffic was a bit loud. The Baltimore Orioles at the nature
center feeders were brilliant. On our way out we stopped at Sally's Diner, where the decor was better
than the food.
Leaving Erie around 7 PM, we put in 240 miles before stopping for the night near Syracuse where the
first several motels we tried were full so we ended up at the overpriced but underwhelming, and now
defunct, Rodeway Inn.
5/13/2023 Syracuse NY - Jackson NH 336 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5540.jpg)
Rodeway Inn, Liverpool NY
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6340.jpg)
Song Sparrow, Liverpool NY
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6347.jpg)
Solitary Sandpiper, Chapman Rd, Whitehall NY
Seeking coffee in the morning we tried the
Hope Cafe + around the corner in Liverpool. Darchelle ordered
coffee and several kinds of Peruvian pastries while I sat in the
parking lot L+ overlooking a small stream and patch of lawn
with bushes and shade trees on either side. After Darchelle returned with the goodies we counted 19
species while we drank our coffee and ate our delicious arepas and empanadas.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5574.jpg)
Warbler habitat, Carlton Rd, Whitehall NY
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6388.jpg)
Prairie Warbler, Carlton Rd, Whitehall NY
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6435.jpg)
Northern Parula Warbler, Carlton Rd, Whitehall NY
By 3 PM we had reached the Vermont border but we only had 33 species for the state of New York
so we made an impromptu stop to pick up a few more. Turning left off Hwy 4, we followed
Chapman Road L+
for about a mile and stopped just before Carlton Road when I noticed a Solitary Sandpiper in
a little marsh along Mud Brook. After Darchelle photographed the sandpiper we turned left onto
Carlton Road and pulled over in an area of brushy habitat near the top of the hill because it looked
promising for warblers. We chose well. Right away Merlin reported a Prairie Warbler so we had
Sibley call it in to verify the ID. Merlin was right but unfamiliar with the Prairie Warbler song,
I had not noticed it. I did recognize the Northern Parula, which responded to playback by flying in
and perching at eye level within five feet of my window.
I did not realize it until months later but had we turned right on Carlton instead of left,
we would within a mile have come across
the home + of
William Miller +, whose preaching about the second coming of
Christ in the mid-19th century inspired the Millerite movement from which the Seventh-day Adventist
church subsequently emerged. Despite never becoming a Seventh-day Adventist himself, Miller was one
of the most important figures in the history of the church. We would have loved to visit his
home, now a museum, and learn about his life in the area almost 200 years ago.
Our transit of Vermont took about three hours during which, with highway birding and a couple of
brief stops, we accumulated a bird list of 33 species. I had not been that way before and found the
route through the Green Mountains at Jay Peak more impressive than I had expected of that range. In
New Hampshire Google Timeline shows that we came down from Gorham through Pinkham Notch with its
dramatic views of Mount Washington but I do not remember that. We had hoped to arrive in time for
Roger's birthday supper and we did, but only because they stretched out the hors d'oeuvres in order
to accommodate us. For his birthday I gave Roger a can of
Even More Jesus and we drank it
together over dinner.
5/14/2023 Jackson NH (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5578.jpg)
Sarah and Roger's kitchen, Jackson NH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5582.jpg)
Doublehead from our room at the Eagle Mountain House
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6288.jpg)
Accessible entrance to the Eagle Mountain House
On this visit to New Hampshire we stayed at the
Eagle Mountain House + for the first time. That worked out well. Our room
faced east with a view of Doublehead over the ninth green of the golf course. The bed was
comfortable and the toilet accessible. Rick had stocked the fridge with beer and cheese for us, a
thoughtful touch he was able to pull off thanks to his connections at the "Eagle". Another
connection was the woman servicing our room, whom Eric back in the day christened "Hot Rod Sally".
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5595.jpg)
Mount Washington from Pittman Pasture, Jackson NH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5601.jpg)
With Mom in the PT room, Jackson NH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_5615.jpg)
With Mom on the porch, Jackson NH
With no need to check out, we slept in. According to our notes we showered and I cried, though we
did not note why. I suspect I was anticipating that this would be my last visit to Jackson and my
last time see Mom and Sarah and Roger in person. We made it over to the house around 1 PM, brewed
some coffee, ate some lunch. The day was sunny but cool so I spent much of the afternoon the PT
room with Mom. Once the afternoon sun reached the side porch we moved out there and I did a
checklist L+,
birding is mostly by ear.
An Ovenbird was singing down by the brook, probably within 100 feet of where I first heard and
learned that song during the summer of 1976. I was painting the house in Jackson that summer.
Having just begun birding that spring in Colorado with my girlfriend Anne, most of the eastern
woodland bird songs were unfamiliar. I made slow progress on the house because whenever I heard a
song I did not recognize I would climb down off the ladder, grab my binoculars and dash into the
woods in search of the bird. The Ovenbird was one of the first ones I found.
5/15/2023 Jackson NH (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6026.jpg)
With Mom on Sarah's deck, Jackson NH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6030.jpg)
Clouds from Sarah's deck, Jackson NH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6513.jpg)
Eastern Phoebe, Sarah's yard, Jackson NH
We passed very pleasant morning with Mom, Sarah and Roger sitting on Sarah's deck overlooking her
back yard L+.
Cool at first, the air warmed up as the sky clouded over. Sarah and Roger brought out coffee, toast,
cheese and other tasty tidbits, maybe even some leftovers for lunch, I forget. I don't remember our
conversations either, but I remember watching the Bluebirds and the Phoebe chasing insects around
the flowering fruit trees. Those two species are longtime summer residents in Sarah's yard but we
did see two species which I have never before recorded on the property - a Baltimore Oriole and a
Brown Thrasher.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6470.jpg)
Pine Warbler, Sarah's yard, Jackson NH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6532.jpg)
Pine Warbler, Sarah's house, Jackson NH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6583.jpg)
Eastern Bluebird, Sarah's yard, Jackson NH
When we heard a trilled song from the edge of the field I suspected it might be a Pine Warbler.
Darchelle played a recording to see if I was right. The warbler came in immediately, then flew
through the open door behind us into the house and perched on a flowerpot in front of the large
exterior window of the indoor greenhouse. Fortunately it did not attempt to fly out through the
glass but instead just sat there as if considering its options. We too just sat and considered
our options. I think we ended up using playback to entice it back out again after a minute or two.
Later that afternoon we watched a big Black Bear amble up the road after two Wild Turkeys out in the
field caught our attention. Seeing a bear at some point during our visit has become a tradition
over the past decade. Although the human population of the region has also increased during that
time, the bears have learned that the newcomers are more apt to feed them (albeit inadvertently)
than to hunt them.
For supper I think we had Red Fox leftovers from the night before. Rick and Gail stopped by and
showed us the ramps and fiddleheads they had just foraged. I knew about the fiddleheads, baby
Ostrich Fern fronds, which have been growing down along the Wildcat River since before the American
Elms died back when I was in high school. I didn't know about the ramps, small wild onions which
taste like leeks only stronger.
On the 16th, John and Carol drove over from Freeport to visit. I was as always impressed that the
two of them, talented and accomplished as they are, appear as appreciative of our company as we are
of theirs. Unfortunately they could not stay for supper. Darchelle was working so, left to my own
devices before Roger and Sarah arrived with (for?) beer, I experimented with voice control of my
phone. Roger (or Mom?) roasted a chicken for supper, which Roger fed to me because Darchelle was
still in a session.
On the 17th Darchelle had a couple more sessions so I played around with the phone until I became
too frustrated to continue. My voice is sufficiently addled by ALS that hands-free typing is
impossible and text from speech is illegible. At least Siri understands me well enough that I
can usually initiate and receive calls. Mom fixed lamb chops for dinner. I bit my tongue repeatedly
trying to eat them. Sarah impressed us by playing the fiddle pieces she will be presenting at her
audition for national recognition as a fiddler in Sweden next month.
5/18/2023 Brownfield Bog ME 65 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6061.jpg)
Mount Washington from the PT room, Jackson NH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6092.jpg)
Wet woodland, Brownfield Bog ME
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6106.jpg)
Dry woodland, Brownfield Bog ME
Today we went birdwatching at
Brownfield Bog L+ south of Fryeberg with Rick and Gail. The bog, now
officially known as the Major Gregory Sanborn Wildlife Management Area, lies within the prehistoric,
if not the historic, floodplain of the Saco River and consists of marshes, shallow ponds, seasonally
flooded woodlands and upland deciduous forest. It is
recognized + as one of the better places in Maine to find more
southerly species such as Yellow-throated Vireo and Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, both of which we heard
and saw today.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6642.jpg)
Yellow-throated Vireo, Brownfield Bog ME
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6700.jpg)
Veery, Brownfield Bog ME
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6715.jpg)
Chestnut-sided Warbler, Brownfield Bog ME
It was a beautiful spring day, sunny with the temperature reaching the low 60s though it felt
warmer than that. Mom and Sarah and Roger joined us; Mom and I stayed in the car while the others
walked part of the time. We continued past the parking area all the way to where the road
dead-ends at the shore of a lake. Although partly flooded and composed of cobbles in places, it
was passable and fortunately for me, not gated. The birds were active and singing despite our
mid-morning arrival and we found 53 species in four hours.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6684.jpg)
Yellow-throated Vireo, Brownfield Bog ME
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6759.jpg)
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Brownfield Bog ME
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6769.jpg)
Broad-winged Hawk, Brownfield Bog ME
The Yellow-throated Vireo was a highlight. Having not read about the bog in advance, we were not
expecting it but I recognized the song as we were driving through a patch of flooded woods so we
stopped and Darchelle was able to get photos. I think Mom also saw that one; she had difficulty
spotting some of the birds but I hope she enjoyed getting out with us nonetheless.
Later in the afternoon Rick stopped by and gave us some fiddleheads (and ramps?) and also fixed
the pull chain on the overhead kitchen light. Sautéed in butter, the spring greens tasted of
new leaves sprouting after the snow melts. The Red Fox provided the rest of supper; I had ravioli.
After Sarah and Roger left, Darchelle and I sat in the PT room for another hour with Mom, enjoying
the warmth of the propane stove and reading (Mom), perusing her phone (Darchelle) and just sitting
(me). We said good night at the front door and Mom turned out the lights behind us while Darchelle
wheeled me down the ramps Rick set up from the porch to the driveway and pivoted me into the
passenger seat of the car. As Darchelle backed out of the driveway I looked up to see Mom peering
solemnly after us from the darkened window, only her face visible in the dim glow from our
headlights.
5/19/2023 Jackson NH (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6146.jpg)
Mom with her Maple Custard
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6169.jpg)
Mom, Sarah and me
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6164.jpg)
Meeting in Sarah's yard, Jackson NH
Forgot to mention, at my request Mom made Maple Custard for dessert yesterday evening. It was one
of my favorites from childhood.
Sarah and I met with Jackson Ski Touring Foundation today to grant them use of the property for
Alice's Alley and their ski trails in the lower field. The weather being sunny and warm, Sarah set
up a table in her backyard and we all sat around it to review and sign papers. Not until later did
we notice the ticks. After finding one crawling on my shirt, we discovered two embedded in my lower
leg and a couple more on Darchelle and Mom. I had forgotten about them by the time the bites began to
itch the next day.
5/20/2023 Jackson NH ~140 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6253.jpg)
Darchelle and me
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6828.jpg)
Broad-winged Hawk, Valley Cross Road, Jackson NH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6214.jpg)
Andy, me and Doug
Our last full day in Jackson. We did a
bird list L+ while driving over from the Eagle then spent most of the day indoors
because it was cool and cloudy outside.
Two of my childhood friends came by to visit at the same time today; Doug drove over from Farmington
and Andy walked over from across the brook. Their mothers, now deceased, were college friends of
Mom who shared her love of hiking in the White Mountains so family hikes with Andy and Doug are
among my earliest memories. Our passion for finding interesting minerals, particularly Black
Tourmaline, on the rocky summits eventually developed into a career in geology for Doug and a hobby
of cutting and polishing agates for me. Andy's father John and my father were fishing and hunting
buddies so Andy and I tied our own flies and fished for trout before we went our separate ways in
high school. Four years after high school in 1976 we drove up to Newfoundland together to visit Dad
and did a three canoe trip during which we caught one Atlantic salmon and a handful of trout and ate
them all while we waited for Dad to come pick us up. We have not fished together since.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6241.jpg)
From left, Mom, Nana, me and Gram, c. 1956
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6238.jpg)
Me and Andy at the Mouse House?, May 1955
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6220.jpg)
Me, Andy and Doug on The Knoll?, c. 1960
The house in Jackson was not only my childhood home, but also my grandmother's childhood home. Her
mother (Nana) and father (Leonard) built it in 1903 and ran it as a farm and boarding house until
Leonard died 40 years later. Mom spent summers there as the girl and moved back into the house with
Dad and me when I was a year old.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6251.jpg)
Roger and Sarah
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6257.jpg)
Sarah and Mom
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6263.jpg)
Mom with birthday cake?
That was almost 70 years ago. This evening we celebrated Mom's 95th birthday, a month early. Roger
prepared dinner - Swedish meatballs, roasted vegetables, asparagus with boiled eggs and a fancy
tart, with almonds maybe, for dessert. I don't remember exactly so am going by the photos since I
apparently had given up trying to keep voice notes on the phone. Darchelle bought her flowers, blue
Iris and crimson Peonies, I think, which she appreciated.
5/21/2023 Jackson NH - Marblehead MA 145 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6300.jpg)
Saying Goodbye on the front porch, Jackson NH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6304.jpg)
Final Goodbye in the driveway, Jackson NH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6311.jpg)
Donna's house, Marblehead MA
We checked out of the Eagle reasonably early and spent the morning in the PT room visiting with Mom
over coffee and breakfast. Aware that we were leaving in a few hours, we didn't talk about that or
anything else significant that I can recall but it was a pleasant time of just being together. Sarah
and Roger joined us after a while. Around noon we all went out to the front porch, took some photos
and hugged goodbye.
Before leaving Jackson we stopped by Rick Davis's
Farm Stand L+ up by Black Mountain to pick up some maple syrup
for Daniel. Waiting in the car, I picked up our last two bird species for New Hampshire which still
only gave us 41 for the visit.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6904.jpg)
Great Black-backed Gull, Little Harbor, Marblehead MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7091.jpg)
Common Tern, Little Harbor, Marblehead MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6980.jpg)
Common Eiders, Little Harbor, Marblehead MA
Arriving in Marblehead we found Donna's house and lingered just long enough to get organized before
driving over to
Little Harbor L+ to look for the American Oystercatcher which Donna has been seeing from time to
time around Brown's Island. We got there just in time for me to order a lobster roll at the
Little Harbor Lobster
Company + next door to the boat launch. Although more expensive than I anticipated, the lobster
roll was delicious. The Oystercatcher on the other hand was absent though we did see two more
common birds which are uncommon back in Washington, a Tern and an Eider.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6306.jpg)
Donna in her doorway, Marblehead MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A6886.jpg)
Little Harbor boat launch, Marblehead MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6328.jpg)
Dinner at Donna's house, Marblehead MA
Ali and Stacey stayed for dinner and Stacey's husband Harry joined us. Donna fixed pasta with
gigante beans in pesto sauce and I remember that it was very good but I don't remember anything else
about our evening together.
I have been friends with the three women since 11th grade though we had little contact with one
another for about 20 years after college. We reunited after Donna and Stacy drunk-dialed me one
evening out of the blue sometime in the Oughts. Since then we have shared meals, memories, marital
crises and even a little birdwatching. It continues to amaze me that I fell in with such remarkable
and interesting women back in the high school and have had the opportunity to know them through the
intervening years.
5/22/2023 Marblehead MA - Northampton MA 150 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6353.jpg)
Donna's guest bedroom
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6363.jpg)
Donna's bathroom
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6405.jpg)
Donna's dog Tito
I got up after eight (and after Darchelle) and meditated unproductively in Donna's attractive
bathroom before lingering over coffee and granola with Donna, Ali and Stacey.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7199.jpg)
Carolina Wren, Donna's house, Marblehead MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7114.jpg)
Double-crested Cormorant, Little Harbor, Marblehead MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7591.jpg)
Mute Swan, Little Harbor, Marblehead MA
We all drove back over to
Little Harbor L+ to search again for the American Oystercatcher and this
time Donna spotted it out on the rocks at the south end of Brown's Island.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6408.jpg)
Darchelle photographing the Oystercatcher, Little Harbor
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7511.jpg)
American Oystercatcher and Mallard, Little Harbor
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6435.jpg)
Donna, me, Stacey and Ali
The guys in the boatyard allowed us to drive into the yard so I could get a better view while
Darchelle took photos from their float. They were very accommodating, perhaps because they had
known the women since grade school. They also mentioned that the oystercatchers were relatively
recent arrivals to Little Harbor.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6449.jpg)
East end of I-90, Boston MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7681.jpg)
Eastern Kingbird, Westborough MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6524.jpg)
Quality Inn, Northampton MA
At 2:20 PM we emerged from the Ted Williams tunnel into downtown Boston, merged onto I-90 and began
our trip back west across the country to Seattle. We could have stayed on I-90 all the way but we
did not; after covering approximately 1% of the 3120 miles between Boston and Seattle we veered off
into a tangle of business parks and nature preserves situated in a collection of towns
differentiated by their compass directions from each other - Southborough, Northborough,
Westborough, etc - because we were looking for warblers. We had a small bucket list of warblers (a
bucket list of small warblers?) which we had not yet seen and still wanted to see before we left the
eastern hardwood forest behind.
First up in the bucket list was the Blue-winged Warbler, a small yellow bird which had always been
of particular interest to me because it did not seem to occur in Jackson where I first learned the
eastern warblers back in the mid-seventies. For 40 years it and its close relative the
Golden-winged Warbler taunted me from the pages of my various bird books until I finally saw them
both on my warbler safari with Ed back in 2014, satisfying encounters which nonetheless left me
desiring both better views and better photos.
Today we obtained neither. During the several remaining hours of daylight we visited four different
locations in the boroughs and added 25 species to our Massachusetts list. Number 25 was our
Blue-winged Warbler, singing at the edge of the woods behind the
parking lot of the
Red Heat Tavern in Westborough L+. Our distant view of it in flight afforded no opportunity for
a photo so we left it on the bucket list for another day.
5/23/2023 Northampton MA - Canastota NY 262 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7699.jpg)
Worm-eating Warbler, Skinner SP, Northampton MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7734.jpg)
Cerulean Warbler, Skinner SP, Northampton MA
Today was a banner day for warblers. We saw a dozen different species and removed four of them from
our bucket list. Darchelle got good photos of those four and I saw and heard each of them. And we
didn't even get started until three hours after sunrise, thanks to our late arrival at the Quality
Inn the night before.
Attracted by recent reports of Worm-eating and Cerulean Warblers, we backtracked a few miles to
Skinner State Park L+
across the river from Northampton. The park encompasses the west end of the Mt Holyoke Range, a
forested ridge of basalt and conglomerate rock rising abruptly almost 1000 feet from the surrounding
Connecticut River Valley. A narrow paved road ascending through several types of hardwood forest
to the summit of the ridge provided us with some of the best opportunities of our trip for birding
from the car. As we had feared, the road was gated but the gate was open and traffic was very light.
Despite the objections of a park employee mowing the shoulders of the road, we stopped repeatedly to
look and listen, and with Merlin's assistance and a little playback, succeeded in finding and
photographing both of the warblers. The Yellow-billed Cuckoo at the summit was an unexpected bonus.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7743.jpg)
Cerulean Warbler, Skinner SP, Northampton MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6533.jpg)
Cerulean Warbler habitat, Skinner SP, Northampton MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7749.jpg)
Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Skinner SP, Northampton MA
The Cerulean Warbler is a treetop species but thanks to the steep slopes along the crest of the
ridge, the crowns of the trees below the road were nearly at eye-level so the warblers were too.
That was nice because during my only previous encounter with them, in bottomland forest in
Michigan, they had been high overhead.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6547.jpg)
Veronica, Skinner SP, Northampton MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6538.jpg)
Oaks near Mt Holyoke Summit, Skinner SP, Northampton MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7800.jpg)
Chipping Sparrow, Skinner SP, Northampton MA
The parking area at the summit was nearly empty. Hiking trails lead from there both down the
mountain and east along the ridge. Apparently a paved trail also runs up to the summit house and
distant views but in the interests of time we did not investigate.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7817.jpg)
Ovenbird, Skinner SP, Northampton MA
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7824.jpg)
Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Skinner SP, Northampton MA
We stopped at the foot of the hill when we heard an Ovenbird singing near the road. It was not our
first one of the day - apart from Robins no bird had been more numerous - but it was our first
photo-op on the trip. The photo we obtained suffered from the low light conditions of the forest
floor. The photo of the Grosbeak on the other hand was by no means our first because they tend to
prefer conspicuous perches, but this was our best.
Our proximity to Connecticut enticed us to drive down to
Enfield L+ and do a checklist. We found a suburban street which
dead-ended at the edge of the woods along the river and Darchelle napped while I listened out the
window. I woke her up in time to se the Wild Turkeys in front of the car. The 27 species on our list
left Connecticut with the second lowest state count of the trip, but then again we only devoted
an hour to the effort.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7858.jpg)
Hooded Warbler, Guilderland Cemetery, Altamont NY
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8112.jpg)
Blue-winged Warbler, Stitt Road, Altamont NY
The second half of our day was no less exciting than the first. We stopped at the
Guilderland Cemetery L+
about 10 miles northwest of Albany to look for a Hooded Warbler and found it quite easily, singing in
the crown of a large oak tree at the back of the graveyard. The Blue-winged Warbler was a quarter mile
northeast of the cemetery along Stitt Road.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6578.jpg)
Guilderland Cemetery, Altamont NY
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7923.jpg)
Red-bellied Woodpecker, Guilderland Cemetery, Altamont NY
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8156.jpg)
Forest edge, Stitt Road, Altamont NY
I don't recall what inspired us to check out Stitt Road but as soon the trees gave way to an open
and somewhat brushy field, I recognized Blue-winged Warbler habitat. We played a few songs and the
warbler responded immediately.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8128.jpg)
Eastern Towhee, Stitt Road, Altamont NY
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8084.jpg)
Blue-winged Warbler, Stitt Road, Altamont NY
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A7978.jpg)
Field Sparrow, Stitt Road, Altamont NY
The Field Sparrow also responded to playback, which we tried on a whim because I don't really know
the habitat for that species. I have photographed it only once, in Juniper Woodland in Texas. The
Eastern Towhee is another species with which I am not very familiar since it rarely occurs in
north-central New Hampshire. This male volunteered to participate in the photo shoot while
Darchelle was taking pictures of the sparrow. She accepted his offer.
By the time we left Stitt Road we needed a motel. Darchelle had a phone appointment early that
evening and we wanted to be settled in for the night beforehand. Having burned the bulk of our
daylight birding without making much westward progress, we did not want to backtrack to motel-rich
Albany so we pressed on. We stopped at the Budget Inn in motel-poor Canajoharie only because we ran
out of time. Darchelle paid for our room before she realized how bad it smelled. For the sake of
privacy she did her phone call in the room anyhow while I sat in my chair overlooking the back yard
from one end of the concrete pad fronting the rooms.
I tried to do a bird list in the quiet of the evening but though the birds were quiet, the evening
was not. Between the freight trains rumbling by on the tracks along the Mohawk River and the
tractor-trailer trucks growling along the frontage road below our parking lot, quiet was hard
to come by. Even the clip-clop of the occasional horse-drawn carriage improbably sharing the
road with the semi-trucks contributed to the din. I settled for watching an almost-teenage girl
playing with her dog in the yard until she suddenly became aware of my presence and drifted away.
About that time a lean young man, mid-thirties perhaps, walked across the parking lot to ask me if I
needed any help. When I declined his offer he lit a cigarette and lingered to chat. He was staying
in room 6, two doors down from us, and told me that it was a decent place but he was only there
until he could find an apartment he could afford. He'd broken up with his girlfriend but was
sticking around because he had part-time construction work in town. Come fall he'd be heading up to
Buffalo to be closer to his kids who lived with his ex-wife whom he had divorced because he could
not handle her drinking. He thought maybe work would be easier to find up there too. Things were
pretty slow here in Canajoharie.
I agreed with that. Pretty slow would pretty well describe my evening so far in Canajoharie -
minutes ticking by until Darchelle would be finished with her appointment, orange sun sinking past the
sparse new foliage of the locust trees across the yard, my head sinking out of my headrest despite the
Theraband intended to constrain it. We each have our challenges.
When Darchelle emerged from our room I wished my companion luck in finding a place and he walked off
to find some supper after urging us to drop by if we needed anything. We assured him that we would
but as soon as he was out of sight we concluded that what we needed was a different motel.
Darchelle loaded up our stuff back into the car and we bid Canajoharie good-bye, abandoning our room
payment as a contribution to the local economy.
5/24/2023 Canastota NY - Avon OH 447 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6587.jpg)
Days Inn, Canastota NY
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6680.jpg)
Gibson Taylor Road, Smyrna NY
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6755.jpg)
Wyndham penthouse, Avon OH
Our target today was a Kentucky Warbler skulking in the understory of the Beaver Meadow State Forest
35 miles south of Canastota. As we approached the area, the local roads dispensed with street signs
and pavement, the local farms dwindled in size and proximity to each other and horse-drawn carriages
shared driveway space with the horseless kind. A woman in cap and skirt waved at us from her roadside
garden plot. I reminded Darchelle, who was contemplating which way to turn at the next "T" intersection,
to wave back.
We consulted a couple of birdwatchers parked at the turn onto
Gibson Taylor Road L+ who had not seen the warbler but told us
where to look. We found the spot, pulled off onto a short spur, shut off the car and listened. We
may have played the song a few times to familiarize ourselves with it, and to familiarize the
warbler with the possible presence of a competitor. Darchelle heard the response first, then I was
able to pick it out. It was definitely the bird, and it was definitely some distance away in the
woods, and it was apparently not inclined to come make our acquaintance.
Darchelle went looking for it. I waited in the car and listened. The bird continued to sing,
though after a while I could not tell which songs were live and which were recorded. It seemed to
me that Darchelle was gone a long time though perhaps it was no more than 45 minutes. When she
returned she told me that she had only played the song a few times because the bird was singing
consistently unprompted. She had crept carefully closer until she was within a few feet of it but
she had never been able to spot it in the dense underbrush.
For the rest of the day we made tracks westward, stopping only in Liverpool to revisit our favorite
coffee shop. I did
a
checklist L+ while Darchelle purchased their delicious empanadas and arepas, and probably some coffee,
for the road. We reached Cleveland around sunset then carried on for another half hour to Avon and
a spacious suite at the Wyndham which was so comfortable that the next morning I would poop for the
first time since leaving Jackson six days earlier.
5/25/2023 Avon OH - Ann Arbor MI 162 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6767.jpg)
Morning view from the Wyndham penthouse, Avon OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6792.jpg)
On the trail in the Bacon Woods, Vermilion OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8199.jpg)
White-tailed Deer, Bacon Woods, Vermilion OH
After a late morning departure from our Wyndham penthouse we drove over to the Vermilion River Reservation,
a natural area and park along the Vermilion River in Vermilion OH. Navigating to an eBird hotspot where
Yellow-throated Warblers had recently been reported, we pulled into a sunny and mostly-empty parking lot
framed by a border of neatly-mowed lawn and enclosed by tall hardwood forest. We could see birds in the trees
and apparently navigable trails leading into the woods. We hoped the trails would lead us to the pin for
Bacon Woods L+ where
the warblers had been reported, and they did.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8232.jpg)
Acadian Flycatcher, Bacon Woods, Vermilion OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8191.jpg)
Indigo Bunting, Bacon Woods, Vermilion OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8254.jpg)
White-eyed Vireo, Bacon Woods, Vermilion OH
While Darchelle was unloading me from the car two men emerged from the woods carrying fishing poles.
They were parked behind us so we got to talking while they were packing up their gear. I forget
what they were fishing for but I remember they were also looking for "turtle rocks". One of them
offered to show us one of their turtle rocks but after searching his truck for a minute or so,
conceded that he could not find it. Apparently the Vermillion River is famous for them, whatever
they are.
The air was cool so Darchelle draped a blanket over me before we headed into the woods. Though
surfaced with dirt, the trail was smooth and dry. Tall forbs and a few flowers blanketed the forest
floor. We identified more bird by song (with Merlin's help) than by sight but we did get good views of
several species including those pictured above. We did not get any views of the Yellow-throated
Warblers, which sang regularly but remained out of sight high in the tree canopy.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8363.jpg)
Snowy Egret, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8369.jpg)
Yellow Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8391.jpg)
Green Heron on nest, Magee Marsh OH
When we had arrived in Jackson, we had been thinking that we might return to Seattle via Canada.
Not only would it have been shorter than returning through Ohio and Michigan but having never
traveled that way we thought it might be more interesting. When it turned out that we could only
see friends in Marblehead immediately before heading west we settled on the southerly route, and
quickly recognized the opportunity it provided us to see the half dozen or so warblers species which
we had missed on our trip east. One of those was the Blackpoll Warbler, and our best opportunity to
see it would be this afternoon at
Magee Marsh L+.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8414.jpg)
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8440.jpg)
Cape May Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8449.jpg)
Black and White Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
What a difference from
two weeks ago! While not exactly over, the party was definitely winding down.
Comparing checklists from the two days, we had only eight more species on the 11th, all of them
warblers, and about a third more individual birds, so not a huge change in bird activity. Birder
activity on the other hand was much diminished. The parking lot seemed to be almost empty and
for the most part as we were walking the boardwalk, we had to look for our own birds rather than
just stopping at each crowd of people and asking what they were looking at.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8424.jpg)
Black-throated Green Warbler, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8422.jpg)
American Redstart, Magee Marsh OH
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6812.jpg)
Parking lot, Magee Marsh OH
After exploring most of the boardwalk we did find one small crowd of both birders and birds at the
east entrance. The birds included female Cape May, Black-throated Green and Black and White
Warblers along with a male Blackpoll Warbler and a couple of other warblers representing in all more
than half of our 11 warbler species for the day. They were active, as warblers tend to be, but I
managed with the help of Darchelle and other birders to at least glimpse all of the ones I had not
already seen.
Sometime after 7 PM we pried ourselves away from Magee Marsh and drove north as far as Ann Arbor,
where we stayed at the Red Roof Inn because the Days Inn had no available handicap room.
5/26/2023 Ann Arbor MI - Manistique MI 389 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6828.jpg)
Red Roof Plus, Ann Arbor MI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6842.jpg)
Kirtland’s Warbler habitat, Manistee NF, Roscommon MI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8479.jpg)
Kirtland’s Warbler, Manistee NF, Roscommon MI
Kirtland's Warbler is one of the rarest warblers in North America. It breeds only in second-growth
Jack Pine forest in north-central Michigan, where its continuing existence is managed by scheduled
clearcutting of the pine forest and ongoing extermination of the Brown-headed Cowbirds which parasitize
the warblers' nests. It took about an hour of driving sandy tracks through jackpine stands of the
Manistee Forest L+
east of Roscommon before we were able to locate one of the warblers. Darchelle got photos and I had
decent views without getting out of the car.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8498.jpg)
Kirtland’s Warbler, Manistee NF, Roscommon MI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8482.jpg)
Kirtland’s Warbler, Manistee NF, Roscommon MI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6871.jpg)
Jack Pines, Manistee NF, Roscommon MI
Before crossing the big bridge over to the Upper Peninsula, we stopped
near Cheboygan L+
to search for a Golden-winged Warbler, and we found one too but were not able to get a photo. I had
barely glimpsed the one two weeks ago at Magee Marsh and had failed to get a satisfactory photo
during my Warbler Safari with Ed back in 2014, so I did not want to miss it on this trip. As it
turned out, I needn't have worried because over the next two days we would be traversing the center
of their breeding distribution.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8543.jpg)
Great White Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum), Manistique MI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8574.jpg)
American Redstart, Manistique MI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6875.jpg)
Colonial Motel, Manistique MI
As we drove off the bridge onto Michigan's Upper Peninsula I had the impression that we were
entering a foreign country, Canada perhaps. I don't know why. Maybe it was the long stretch of
empty highway ahead of us, the unbroken forest trimmed well back from the shoulders on either side
reminding me of the TransCanada in Newfoundland. Maybe it was the White Trillium, drifts of ghostly
white flowers glowing like snowbanks in the shadow of the woods. It could have been the leaves just
merging on the maples and birches, as if the calendar had been set back a couple of weeks. Along
the north shore of Lake Michigan the south wind in springtime does little to dispel winter's chill.
In Manistique Darchelle wanted to look for late warblers so we poked around in a couple of parks
along the water but found only a pair of subadult Redstarts before the sun gave up the ghost. We
retreated to a local motel where I took refuge under my electric blanket.
5/27/2023 Manistique MI - Ashland WI 286 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8703.jpg)
Mourning Warbler, near Gladstone MI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8726.jpg)
Ovenbird, near Channing MI
In the morning I tried to do a checklist in front of the
Colonial Motel L+ while Darchelle packed up but traffic noise
made it difficult to hear the birds. We fared better after we wandered onto
county roads L+
through a mosaic of farm fields, conifer forest and hardwood stands northwest of Gladstone.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8611.jpg)
Sandhill Cranes, near Gladstone MI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8637.jpg)
Wild Turkeys, near Gladstone MI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8686.jpg)
Mourning Warbler, near Gladstone MI
A small group of Sandhill Cranes in a field caught our attention. When we stopped for photos we
spotted the turkeys and heard a nice mix of birds singing in the woods across the road. For the
next several miles we stopped every minute or two to listen and add to our list. With a little
playback we even persuaded a few birds to pose for photos. Conditions were perfect for us - soft
air, gentle sunshine, a quiet road, a variety of habitats and lots of bird activity during the
middle of the day.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6975.jpg)
Alder Swamp, Norway Lake Rd near Channing MI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_6981.jpg)
Hardwood forest near Channing MI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8743.jpg)
Ovenbird, near Channing MI
We explored county roads for another hour or two, in the absence of GPS using the sun to maintain
our generally northwestward bearing, until we stumbled back onto US 2. We followed that to Ashland
with a couple of brief detours to look for a Golden-winged Warbler, and perhaps also a marsh sparrow
or two. The light had gone flat and the wind had picked up and we did not find much.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8757.jpg)
American Goldfinch, Ashland WI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A8897.jpg)
Ruddy Turnstone, Maslowski Beach, Ashland WI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7041.jpg)
Quality Inn, Ashland WI
Despite it being late afternoon by the time we reached Ashland, the prospect of augmenting our Wisconsin
bird list inspired us to spend an hour birding the
waterfront L+ and a local
college campus L+. Five more species on
Maslowski Beach L+ brought our total for the state up to 40.
5/28/2023 Ashland WI - Big Falls MN 239 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9043.jpg)
Ruddy Turnstones, Maslowski Beach, Ashland WI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7061.jpg)
Maslowski Beach, Ashland WI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7070.jpg)
South Lyman Lake Rd, Parkland WI
In the morning we returned to
Maslowski Beach L+ to get a few more photos of Ruddy Turnstones and to see
if any new shorebirds had shown up. Two Soras calling in the marsh on the other side of the highway
and a flyover bald Eagle were new for the state.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9112.jpg)
Golden-winged Warbler, S Lyman Lake Rd, Parkland WI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9142.jpg)
Golden-winged Warbler, S Lyman Lake Rd, Parkland WI
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9139.jpg)
Golden-winged Warbler, S Lyman Lake Rd, Parkland WI
Five miles south of Duluth we took a little side trip over to
South Lyman Lake Rd L+ near Parkland. Golden-winged Warblers
had recently been reported there on eBird and they were still present when we arrived. I had good
close-up views and Darchelle got the photos I had been hoping for. The warblers appear to favor
marshy areas with tall willow and alder brush near stands of Aspen and other deciduous trees. They
usually prefer in Minnesota though the birds we found had settled for Wisconsin.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7091.jpg)
Admiral Road (Sax-Zim Bog), Meadowlands MN
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7099.jpg)
Bog Laurel (Kalmia polifolia), Sax-Zim Bog MN
About an hour northwest of Duluth is a broad marshy area famous among birders for owls and other
species usually found farther north - the Sax-Zim Bog. As its name implies, the area features open
and forested bogs in which Black Spruce, Tamarack and Paper Birch are the common trees, but (per
the website +) other habitats
include "upland aspen/maple forests, floodplain forest, sandy upland pine stands, rivers, lakes,
farms, meadows, and towns".
Access to the area is mostly by wide, smooth and lightly-traveled gravel roads though there are a
few trails near the Welcome Center. There were also lots of mosquitos near the Welcome Center so
we did not venture out onto any of the trails, but instead
drove the
roads L+ for about five hours stopping to look and listen for birds in promising habitats. We
were particularly looking for Great Gray Owls and Connecticut Warblers but did not encounter either
species. Missing the Connecticut, the last eastern warbler on our target list, meant that we would
have to devote another day to the search if we wanted to find one. Andy and Ellen had seen them
last summer at Toomey Williams Road up near the Canadian border and with their assistance we would
have a reasonable chance of success, so we decided to spend the extra day on the effort.
Andy and Ellen had mentioned that there was a town named Big Falls nearby. We decided to stay there
so that we could get an early start in the morning. With "Big" in the name, we assumed the town
would have a motel.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7112.jpg)
In Joslin's kitchen
The namesake falls may have been big but
the town m+ was not. When we pulled into Big Falls shortly before
9 PM we found a gas station, a liquor store and a rustic-looking hardware store with a sign in the
window which advised inquiring inside about rooms. The hardware store was closed. The nearest
motel was at least an hour away. A couple of men standing outside the store suggested asking the
clerk in the liquor store who in turn suggested asking for Joslin at the tavern next door. Joslin
turned out to be a friendly woman dressed in
jeans and a T-shirt who immediately asked Darchelle "What can I do for you?"
When Darchelle explained our situation Joslin replied that she had a couple of rooms above the store
but the one with a bed was already rented. Perhaps someone in town might have an extra room they
would be willing to rent to us for the night, Darchelle speculated. Joslin hesitated then
acknowledged that she had a spare bedroom that her parents had used just the previous night but that
she was remodeling her house and it was stripped down to the studs. She could make up the bed for
us though. The house was just across the street and she would meet us there.
I waited in the car while Joslin showed Darchelle around the house. When they returned Darchelle
opened my door and within 30 seconds there were 30 mosquitoes buzzing around inside the car. After
spraying a cloud of bug dope around me, Darchelle explained that there were steps but she thought we
could handle them and between the her and Joslin and the ramp, we managed. Joslin returned to the
tavern and after getting me settled in Joslin's kitchen, Darchelle followed her to pay for the room.
When Darchelle tried to pay, Joslin insisted "Absolutely not!" so Darchelle tucked the $100 bill
down the front of her T-shirt and they both laughed. They arranged to have Joslin's friend Jason
help us down the steps in the morning then Joslin gave Darchelle a bottle of the tavern's best (only?)
IPA to go with my supper. It was a nice treat.
5/29/2023 Big Falls MN - Badger MN 300 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7129.jpg)
Early morning at Joslin's
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7138.jpg)
Big Fork River rapids, Big Falls MN
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7143.jpg)
Joslin and Jason at Toomey Williams Road
Jason showed up around 6 AM and we made it down the steps without incident. He and Joslin then took
us over to the campground to look at the falls. Jason's parents met at the campground when
they were teenagers and he has lived all his life in Big Falls. Joslin is a much more recent
transplant from the West Coast who became friends with Jason while working together on her remodeling
project. We took a few photos at the falls then followed them out east of town to
Toomey Williams Road m+ for the earliest (second earliest?)
birding start of our entire trip.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7145.jpg)
Toomey Williams Road, Northwest Koochiching MN
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9366.jpg)
Connecticut Warbler location, Toomey Williams Road MN
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7194.jpg)
Cottonsedge (Eriophorum angustifolium), Toomey Williams Rd
Toomey Williams
Road L+ traverses habitats similar to those at Sax-Zim Bog - mossy forests of Black Spruce,
tamarack and birch, open bogs, alder swamps and drier uplands forested with fir, aspen and other
deciduous trees - but is wilder and more remote. As at Sax-Zim, we drove slowly down a long gravel
road with frequent stops to listen for birds singing in the forest and marshes on either side,
taking almost 4 hours to cover maybe 12 miles out and back. Thanks to our early start we heard/saw
48 species as compared with about 30 at Sax-Zim.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9315.jpg)
Connecticut Warbler, Toomey Williams Road MN
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9459.jpg)
Nashville Warbler, Toomey Williams Road MN
Our most exciting bird was of course the Connecticut Warbler; our most numerous species (excluding a
flyover flock of Canada Geese) was the similar Nashville Warbler. Even with 18 we probably
undercounted it. I heard our first Connecticut as we were driving with the windows open past Black
Spruce and tamarack on our left and and a broad bog on our right. We stopped and looked for it but
as I recall, it did not appear until we played a recording of the song.
Show more Connecticut Warbler images
Altogether we had 11 species of warblers including four Connecticuts and five Golden-wings but we
missed both Canada and Mourning Warblers. We also missed two other northern species - Canada Jay
and Boreal Chickadee. Definitely not complaining here though; we were particularly grateful for
photos of the Connecticut.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9262.jpg)
Broad-winged Hawk, Toomey Williams Road MN
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9373.jpg)
Northern Parula Warbler, Toomey Williams Road MN
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9396.jpg)
White-throated Sparrow pair, Toomey Williams Road MN
I was surprised to see a Broad-winged Hawk flying over the bog; I think of them as a species of
hardwood forests like the Northern Parula, which was one of many species which we found not in the
spruce forest but in the upland deciduous forest.
The photo of the White-throated Sparrow pair illustrates
a fascinating fact + about that species. They occur in two color
morphs which are similar except for the color of the stripes on the crown. Tan-striped and
white-striped forms are equally common across both sexes but a bird of one form will typically pair
up with a bird of the other form. A tan-striped male strongly prefers to breed only with a
white-striped female and vice versa. The two color morphs differs somewhat in other behaviors as
well, differences which in anthropomorthic terms add up to white-striped birds being more assertive
and aggressive, but less nurturing, than tan-striped birds.
After a quick checklist back in
town L+ we left Big Falls around noon and drove west across the transition zone
between the eastern forest and the prairie. That ecotone has always intrigued me. Over about 200
miles the landscape changed from forest with patches of prairie (mostly marshes) to prairie with
patches of forest (mostly aspen). One afternoon was woefully inadequate to explore it.
Late that afternoon Darchelle had an appointment so she parked me under a picnic shelter in
Roseau L+ to count birds while she sat in the car and talked on
the phone. When a blustery shower put the birds down, I watched three boys on skateboards riding
around a fountain in the slashing rain. The birds and I stayed dry; the boys got drenched.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7232.jpg)
Evening showers from CR 7 north of Badger MN
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9628.jpg)
Nelson's Sparrow, 160 Ave, Greenbush MN
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7248.jpg)
Sunset from 160 Ave north of Greenbush MN
Yellow Rails had been heard along
County Road 7 L+ roughly due north of Greenbush. The
county road was gravel with a deep ditch on either side, ditches apparently intended to drain the
marsh so it could be converted to farmland. Fortunately here at least, the ditches had not been
sufficient to destroy the habitat and the rails and sparrows were still present.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9573.jpg)
LeConte's Sparrow, 160 Ave, Greenbush MN
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9601.jpg)
Nelson's Sparrow, 160 Ave, Greenbush MN
We arrived before sunset and played recordings of both LeConte's and Nelson's Sparrow in various
places along the county road but heard no response until we turned south on a smaller gravel road
optimistically named 160 Avenue on the map. Both sparrows came in from an area with tall grass and
relatively fewer bushes than most of the surrounding habitat and despite the low light, Darchelle
was able to get photos.
The sun took refuge behind piles of cumulus off to the northwest sometime after 8 PM but it did not
really get dark until around 10. The sky was black overhead but lightning flashed silently along the
horizon in all directions. We started
another checklist L+ once the
Whip-poor-wills began to call. Despite the persistent breeze we could hear them near and far
out in the marsh. Closer to the road Sedge Wrens continued to sing along with winnowing Snipe and
the distinctive sneeze of the Nelson's Sparrow.
The rails declined to join the chorus but Darchelle eventually heard one somewhere around
here m+, about a mile east of where she had photographed the
sparrows. The sound was softer than we had expected and so mechanical that we at first doubted it
could be the bird. I had a very hard time hearing it. Darchelle took my ventilator mask off and
propped up my head while I held my breath and listened, and even then we had to try several times
before I could pick it out. "tiktik,tiktiktik tiktik,tiktiktik tiktik,tiktiktik", a sound so small
it was hard to imagine it coming from anything larger than a mosquito. Darchelle tried to record it
but we heard nothing on
the recording until I amplified it with Audacity and realized that we had at least two of the
rails.
5/30/2023 Badger MN - Crosby ND 406 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7321.jpg)
Darchelle and the owner of the Badger Motel
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9664.jpg)
Lesser Scaup, Lima ND
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9751.jpg)
Upland Sandpiper, Cando ND
We drove most of the way across North Dakota today, mostly making up for lost time, but also hoping
to come across two birds I particularly wanted to see in that state - Baird's Sparrow and
Chestnut-collared Longspur. Ed and I had seen and photographed both species on my last visit to the
state
back in
2015 but Darchelle had never seen them and if we missed them in North Dakota, we probably would
not have another opportunity. We missed them.
Our route ran along the northern edge of the state, never more than 20 miles from the Canadian border.
We traversed mostly farmland, very flat for the first 30 miles across the Red River Valley (apparently
once the floor of a
vast glacial lake +) then low rolling hills of unknown (to me at least) origin.
Birds were mostly confined to
pothole marshes L+ though on several occasions we spotted pairs of earnest-looking
Upland Sandpipers L+
along the road. Towards sunset we encountered male Ring-necked Pheasants in the road as well.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7372.jpg)
Pond 6 miles west of Rolette ND
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9853.jpg)
Shorebirds, Rolette ND
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7395.jpg)
Crosby Lodge, Crosby ND
At a
pond west of Rolette L+
we found shorebirds including White-rumped Sandpipers and a godwit which I thought might be Hudsonian
but was just Marbled. Late in the afternoon I sat in a
playground in Flaxton L+ and watched birds while Darchelle sat
in the car and met with a client over the phone. When she was done I pointed out both Orchard and
Baltimore Orioles and our first Franklin's Gulls of the trip flew overhead.
The Crosby Lodge at the edge of town was easy to access and quiet, with a nice
mix of birds L+ in
the morning.
5/31/2023 Crosby ND - Scobey MT 140 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7410.jpg)
Prairie along 151st Ave NW, Elkhorn ND
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0039.jpg)
Baird's Sparrow, Elkhorn ND
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0033.jpg)
Baird's Sparrow, Elkhorn ND
We hit the jackpot for prairie birds this morning in the
northwestern corner of North Dakota m+ and just across the border in the northeastern corner of
Montana. Google maps calls it Elkhorn and eBird references a school section along 151st Ave NW but
the Baird's Sparrows and Chestnut-collared Longspurs which we had hoped to see yesterday call it
home, at least for the summer.
We found the Baird's Sparrow in the
prairie L+
along 151st Ave NW a couple of miles north of the highway by its song (Merlin might have helped)
and called it in for photos.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0084.jpg)
Savannah Sparrow, Elkhorn ND
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0221.jpg)
Chestnut-collared Longspur, Elkhorn ND
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0128.jpg)
Vesper Sparrow, Elkhorn ND
We found the longspurs and other sparrows in somewhat sparser grass cover in the
North Elkhorn School
Section L+ a mile or two farther north. It was a lovely morning for birding, warm and sunny under
a bright blue sky, quiet except for the occasional tinkling of bird song and nobody else around for miles.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7432.jpg)
North Elkhorn School Section prairie, Elkhorn ND
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_0141.jpg)
Barb and Bob B, Elkhorn ND
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_A9998.jpg)
Grasshopper Sparrow, Elkhorn ND
Except for Bob and Barb B, to whom Andy had
also recommended this patch of prairie as a good spot for Sprague's Pipits. They were headed east and
we were headed west but we visited for a bit and played without success for the pipits before going
our separate ways.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7441.jpg)
North Elkhorn School Section prairie, Elkhorn ND
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0259.jpg)
Flowers ( sp) along 151st Ave NW, Elkhorn ND
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7461.jpg)
Homestead along 151st Ave NW, Elkhorn ND
We didn't see as many flowers out in the prairie as I
remembered from my last visit, perhaps because we were 10 days earlier this year.
In the picture above are Lambert's Locoweed (Oxytropis lambertii) - the magenta flowers - and
White Locoweed (Oxytropis sericea) - the white ones, I think.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0517.jpg)
Sprague's Pipit, North Westby Rd, Westby MT
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0525.jpg)
Sprague's Pipit, North Westby Rd, Westby MT
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0554.jpg)
Sprague's Pipit, North Westby Rd, Westby MT
We found a Sprague's Pipit along
North Westby Road L+ across the Montana border in Westby, no more than 5 miles
southwest of where we had met Bob and Barb. When we played its song one flew in and trotted out
into the middle of the road right front of us but even at point-blank range it was not easy to spot.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0431.jpg)
American Avocets, North Westby Rd, Westby MT
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7487.jpg)
Rain shower, North Westby Rd, Westby MT
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0476.jpg)
Red Knots, North Westby Rd, Westby MT
Around Round Lake just north of town we found more shorebirds but nothing new. The small ones were
mostly Sanderlings and the larger ones, mostly Avocets. The rain shower blasted over us, vigorous
but brief, and nobody seemed to mind.
Having expended most of the day birdwatching, we only made it another hour or so before pulling up
in Scobey for the night. Motel options were limited but we hoped to check out a couple of wildlife
refuges not far to the west and did not want to have to backtrack to them. The big red Smoke Creek
Inn on the west side of town did not work out, perhaps because we could not find anyone to check us
in, so we returned to the Wheatland Lodge, aka the Juel Motel, in town. Thanks to a left turn off a
narrow landing just inside the front door, our room was not wheelchair accessible but the man at
the front desk, perhaps the owner, promised to make it work and so he did, helping Darchelle pull
the wheelchair up the second step into the room in the evening then practically carrying me back out
again in the morning. I remember being worried that he would hurt himself.
6/01/2023 Scobey MT - Choteau MT 425 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7513.jpg)
Juel Motel, Scobey MT
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0658.jpg)
Pronghorn Antelope near Peerless MT
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0769.jpg)
Red-headed Woodpecker, Opheim Mt
Thirty minutes west of Scobey and a few miles
before Glentana L+, we
flushed my last ABA life bird of the trip, a Thick-billed Longspur, from the side of the road. Shortly
afterwards, we flushed a pair of Sharp tailed Grouse, our only instance of that species for the trip.
Sadly, we also flushed a female Wilson's Phalarope which did not quite clear the windshield. That was
our second bird kill of the trip. Just yesterday evening, we hit a male Ring-necked Pheasant. We felt
worse about the Phalarope because we probably would not have hit it had we not been driving a little
too fast.
We had no chance for photos of either the Longspur or the Sharp-tails. Darchelle did get a photo of a
juvenile Broad-winged Hawk,
a bird I would not have expected so far west, flying over
MT 248 south of Opheim L+. Then again, I would not have expected
a Brown Thrasher or a Red-headed Woodpecker either, both of which we saw in the same area.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0717.jpg)
Chestnut-collared Longspur, Opheim MT
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7548.jpg)
Farm, Opheim MT
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0672.jpg)
Swainson's Hawk, Opheim MT
After submitting a checklist for
Cemetery Road L+
for the woodpecker, we began working our way south towards St Marie. We were still thinking we might hit up
a wildlife refuge for more prairie and wetland species but by the time we reached the turnoff to one of them,
Medicine Lake I think it was, we had run out of time.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0918.jpg)
Lark Bunting, MT Hwy 24 near St Marie MT
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7553.jpg)
Prairie near Malta MT
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0884.jpg)
Chestnut-collared Longspur, north of St Marie MT
We stopped briefly on a
side
road near Malta L+ but the patch of prairie there wasn't as large as I had hoped and we did
not find the Thick-billed Longspurs I was looking for.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B0963.jpg)
Ruddy Duck, Freezout Lake WMA, Choteau MT
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B1019.jpg)
Yellow-headed Blackbird, Freezout Lake WMA, Choteau MT
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7565.jpg)
Gunther Motel, Choteau MT
At some point we decided that Choteau, where the Rocky Mountains abruptly terminate the westward
stretch of the prairie, would be the place to find Thick-billed Longspurs. On our way up there from
Great Falls, we stopped briefly at
Freezout Lake WMA L+
along US 89 and added a few marsh birds to our Montana list. It was getting late but we were not
concerned about finding a room in Choteau, until we arrived and found the motels all full. All but
the Gunther, fortunately.
6/02/2023 Choteau MT - Spokane WA 469 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B1316.jpg)
Thick-billed Longspur, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B1323.jpg)
Thick-billed Longspur, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
Morning dawned misty and gray, or at least we presume it did because those were the conditions when
we checked out of the Gunther around 8AM and drove southwest 20 miles on MT Hwy 287 to
Spring Valley Road L+.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B1107.jpg)
Homestead, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
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Mule Deer, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
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Flowers, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
Spring Valley, if that is the correct name for where we were, is a broad plain of shin-high grass
sloping gently down to Freezout Lake, which this morning was hiding in the gray mist off to our
east. The subdued hues of green and gray and the hazy outlines of distant ridges were more suggestive
of Ireland than Montana. Birds, and a few relict buildings, were dwarfed by the nearly featureless
spread of the landscape. The few birds we flushed from along the road quickly settled into the
grass and the songs they left behind faded into the grass with them.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B1100.jpg)
Swainson's Hawk, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
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Ferruginous Hawk, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
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Swainson's Hawk, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
The local hawks seemed unaccustomed to company and disinclined to relinquish their roadside perches.
so we tried not to disturb them while taking their photos. After tolerating a few photos the Ferruginous,
which had a nest in a cottonwood not far down the road, screamed at us to move on so we did. We were not
there to look at hawks anyhow, but Longspurs.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B1254.jpg)
Thick-billed Longspur, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
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Thick-billed Longspur, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
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Thick-billed Longspur, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
The Thick-billed Longspurs, when I got a good look at them in Darchelle's photos, were scruffier
than I had expected. I have been looking
for them for a long time (almost four decades) but
have never taken a good look
at them. Unlike their more colorful cousins, they sport a
disorderly arrangement of black, white and gray accented by a little patch of chestnut on the
shoulder which is too small to help out much. Still, I was glad to finally see them and grateful
that Darchelle, after traipsing around in the grass for a half-hour or so, was able to get a few
photos.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B1121.jpg)
Rose, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
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Larkspur and Lupine, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
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Penstemon, Spring Valley Rd, Fairfield MT
Grass appears to dominate the undisturbed prairie but where the grass gets sparse, as on old road cuts,
flowers take over. We didn't spend much time studying them but enjoyed the show.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7649.jpg)
Egg Mountain 5 miles SW of Choteau MT
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Cottonwood and Limber Pine, Dearborn River MT
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Mixed conifers, I-90 exit 5, Taft MT
Before we left the longspurs the Gunther Motel texted Darchelle (or called, I'm not sure) to tell us
that we had left the power cord for the ventilator in the room. Proceeding without it was not an option
so we drove back 20 miles to retrieve it. Had we not had to do that, we would not have stopped at the
Egg Mountain overlook
and learned about the Maiasaurs which died and were buried there around the time the Rocky Mountains
were beginning to form.
As we continued south on MT 200 the land around us began to rise and trees began to appear.
One of the first trees we would see, Andy had told us, would be lanky Limber Pines, and so we did,
where
MT 200 crossed the Dearborn River m+.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B1361.jpg)
MacGillivray's Warbler, I-90 exit 5, Taft MT
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Western Flycatcher, I-90 exit 5, Taft MT
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Townsend's Warbler, I-90 exit 5, Taft MT
About 90 minutes west of Spokane we stopped at
I-90 exit 5 L+
to try for a few more Rocky Mountain species before returning to Washington. The several species we
added to our trip list, included the three pictured above, are all common summer birds in our home
state as well. This and our previous stop at the
Blackfoot Canyon Campground L+ paid off for us; we added 20
species to our Montana list.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B1430.jpg)
Horned Lark, W McFarlane Rd, Spokane
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Brewer's Sparrow, W McFarlane Rd, Spokane
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Grasshopper Sparrow, W McFarlane Rd, Spokane
Less common in Washington are the three prairie species we sought during the hour and a half of daylight
remaining after we reached Spokane that Friday afternoon. We found Black Terns at our first stop,
a small pond L+
a mile south of Cheney, and again at West Medical Lake where we got them last year. A few miles to the
north we drove
W McFarlane Rd L+
looking for Grasshopper and Clay-colored Sparrows, both of which we have found there in the past.
We missed the Clay-colored but that was okay since we could get them at Chewelah tomorrow. The tern
was the important bird to get because missing it would have required an extra morning in Spokane and
with only two days left before we needed to be home, we could not afford that. During our five
weeks away from Washington we had missed almost the entire spring migration and we had some catching
up to do but if we played our cards right, we could pick up 40 more species before we got home.
6/03/2023 Spokane WA - Davenport WA 177 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7715.jpg)
Holiday Inn Express Spokane-downtown
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B1515.jpg)
American Redstart, Westside Calispell Road, Usk
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Northern Waterthrush, Westside Calispell Road, Usk
Returning to Spokane after dark, we had some difficulty finding a motel with an available room and had
to pay almost $300 for a short night at the imposing Holiday Inn Express. It was the most expensive motel
of our entire trip.
The cornerstone of our plan to make up for missing May in Washington would be a morning birding along the
Westside Calispell Road L+
in Pend Oreille County 5 1/2 hours from Seattle but only an hour north of Spokane. Others have recorded
more than 90 species in a day there; we found only 69, of which 26 were new for the year.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B1625.jpg)
Bobolink, Westside Calispell Road, Usk
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Clay-colored Sparrow, Hafer Rd, Chewelah
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Black Bear Motel, Davenport
As we had hoped, we found and photographed a Clay-colored Sparrow at
Hafer Rd L+
just south of Chewelah. After a pit stop at the Indian
reservation gas station nearby, we continued south to Davenport with a stop to bird an unexpectedly
lush strip of riparian cottonwoods and underbrush along
WA 231 south of Ford L+.
6/04/2023 Davenport WA - Cle Elum WA 337 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7860.jpg)
Hallin Lake, 7 miles east of Ritzville
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B1964.jpg)
Killdeer, Lind Coulee, Moses Lake
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Forster's Tern, Lind Coulee, Moses Lake
Our plan for this morning was to visit marshes, lakes and ponds across the Columbia Basin in search of Wilson's
Phalaropes, Forster's Terns, Clark's Grebes, and maybe a stray Franklin's Gull. I suspect that all four
of those species were named for white males with questionable perspectives on people of other races, and
as a result may receive new names over the next few years. We have no problem with that, nor did we
have any problem finding the first three of them. We would find the fourth a week later in Tri-Cities.
Cow and Hallin Lakes L+
east of Ritzville were new for us but were not particularly productive. We did better at
Lind Coulee L+,
an old standby for both the terns and the grebes.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B2198.jpg)
Nashville Warbler, NF 7200, Peshastin
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B2224.jpg)
Dusky Flycatcher, NF 7200, Peshastin
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B2239.jpg)
Cassin's Finch, NF 7200, Peshastin
Common Poorwill and Flammulated Owl were on our agenda after nightfall and Maxine had heard both within
a week or so near Camas Meadows in the hills northwest of Wenatchee between Cashmere and US 97. That was
a new location for us and we were impressed with the variety of both birds and flowers up there. We birded
NF 7200 L+ up to
Camas Meadows first, where both the Nashville Warblers and Dusky Flycatchers were new Washington birds
for the year.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B2272.jpg)
Calliope Hummingbird, NF 7200, Peshastin
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Calliope Hummingbird, NF 7200, Peshastin
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7927.jpg)
View NE from Camas Creek Rd, NE of Camas Meadows
With time to kill before sunset we followed
Camas Creek Road L+ up over a ridge then turned around when
it became too steep and narrow. Lots of good Calliope Hummingbird habitat and very nice views up there.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7896.jpg)
Balsamroot and Lupine, Camas Creek Rd at Camas Meadows
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7965.jpg)
Camas Meadows along NF 7200, Peshastin
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7950.jpg)
Balsamroot, Camas and Bistort, Camas Meadows
Camas Madows is a flat and well-watered field of forbs and grasses surrounded by mature mixed
conifer forest, good east-slope Cascades montane habitat for birds and apparently for elk as well.
After admiring the flowers and attempting to photograph the elk we followed
NF 7200 L+
up a couple of miles hoping to hear a Flammulated Owl, or maybe even a Spotted Owl. No such luck,
but we did photograph a cooperative Common Poorwill.
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B2363.jpg)
Elk, Camas Meadows, Peshastin
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/SRX_B2457.jpg)
Common Poorwill, NF 7200, Peshastin
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_7984.jpg)
Stewart Lodge, Cle elum
Had we heard a Flammulated Owl we could have been home within two hours but instead we spent an extra
hour driving the
forest
roads above Liberty L+ until we finally heard one. It would be our only one all year.
We pulled up to the Stewart Lodge, where by prior arrangement they had left our room open for us,
around 1AM.
6/05/2023 Cle Elum WA - Seattle WA 123 miles (
link to here)
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_8054.jpg)
90 Minutes from Home, Cle Elum
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_8074.jpg)
The west end of I-90, Seattle
![Click to enlarge](images/inline/2023/IMG_8075.jpg)
Monica's Welcome Home sign
Looking for a Gray Flycatcher, we drove back to
Taylor/Hart Rd L+ but failed to call one up. We did pick up
one more bird though, for both the trip and the year, before we reached the end of I-90 3021 miles
from where we had started west in Boston 14 days earlier. That bird was the Black-throated Gray
Warbler which we heard from the
Tiger Mountain trailhead L+ on the way into Issaquah.
Altogether we spent 41 days on the road, drove 8953 miles, traversed 20 states, saw or heard
295
species of birds and photographed 130 of them. Despite being out of state for the entire month
of May, we managed to return home with 287 species for the year in Washington, 42 of them picked up
in the past 3 days.