Searching for Warblers

Bolen Bluff Trail as it opens onto Paynes Prairie

The last few days have been busy ones.  I've been out searching for warblers.  After all, this is migration season and the warblers should be coming through.  Others have reported double-digit species counts, so surely I could do better than the single Prairie Warbler I saw at Cedar Key last week.

On Sunday I decided to walk the trail at Bolen Bluff.  This is a well-known fall warbler trap.  Located on the southern rim of Paynes Prairie, the trail runs along the bluff and eventually turns down to the basin itself.  It's a pretty walk and I've had some really great days there with warblers landing in waves, so I had high hopes.  Silly me.  The forest was quiet and the birds absent for nearly all of my walk.  I occasionally heard a Northern Cardinal's chip or a Carolina Wren's booming song, but that was it.  Eventually, I came across a mixed flock and saw a flash of yellow.  I chased after it for a bit and eventually found three Yellow Warblers and a Prairie Warbler.  Yeehaw!  I had doubled my Cedar Key warbler species count! I finished the trail - perhaps about three miles in all - and added two more Yellow Warblers to the day's count.  I've had better days in my back yard.

Northern Parula (Click on the photo to enlarge)

Meanwhile, the internet was all abuzz.  I read Janet Leavens's post about Central Winds Park in Seminole County.  She and others had reported a mixture of warblers including some really nice ones like Blackburnian and Black-throated Blue.  I had never been to Central Winds, but its voice was calling me.  So the Big Red Van headed out on the long drive early on Tuesday morning, and after a very filling IHOP breakfast, we got to the park just after 8:00 AM.

Central Winds is a lovely little park.  Looking at a map, you might think it is way too small to attract a lot of birds.  You would be wrong.  It's a beautiful little patch of green in the midst of urban sprawl on the southern edge of Lake Jessup.  Any birds crossing that lake would look down and see this one attractive bunch of trees and head right for it.  So the park is small enough to bird in a morning, but if the winds are right, there may be birds everywhere you look.

Yellow-throated Warbler

Being unfamiliar with the place, we wandered away from the van looking for a trail to follow.  Instead, we ended up following the birds.  Within 50 feet of the parking lot we encountered the day's first American Redstart, a Yellow-throated Warbler, and a Prothonotary Warbler with a bit of an eye line.  Coincidentally, the same bird was photographed and became the topic of some conversation among the state's birders.  From reading the posts, I learned that a small percentage of Prothonotary Warblers do indeed have a prominent eye line.

Eventually we found the trail and followed it along the rim of a large open field.  We chased a few birds to one corner of the field (near the bleachers) where we encountered another mixed flock.  A few Tufted Titmice and Carolina Wrens were accompanied by a Black-and-White Warbler, another Redstart, and a Prairie Warbler. 

I think Red-eyed Vireos are beautiful!

We saw that the trail was simply going back to the parking lot, so we reversed direction and started toward the lake.  Along the way we met a local birder, Dennis O'Neill, who proved to be very helpful and a really nice guy.  He told us where some of the better birds had been seen the previous day, so we headed in that direction.  A few Northern Parulas and more Prairie Warblers were all that we saw.  The trail ended near the banks of a small pond.  Here were White Ibises, a Little Blue Heron, a Tricolored Heron and a plastic Canada Goose.  There was also a Red-shouldered Hawk swooping and diving around in the skies above the pond.  We walked up the hill and finally came to a stand of oak trees.  There were more Parulas, more Prairies, another Redstart and another Yellow-throated.  It seemed we were finding several small pockets of birds, but they were all the same species.

Again we saw Dennis, and this time he told us of a Yellow Warbler he had just seen back by those bleachers.  We wandered over there and after a bit of work we found another mixed flock.  This time there were Redstarts, Parulas, a Prairie and, finally, a Yellow Warbler.

The Nature Trail at Central Winds Park in Seminole County

At that point I just wanted to sit for a while.  We found a bench and sat for a bit.  Good plan.  Soon another flock flew in and landed above my head!  For a few minutes we were surrounded by Red-eyed Vireos, Titmice, Wrens, Black-and-white and Yellow-throated Warblers, and yet another Redstart.  Red-bellied and Downy Woodpeckers joined in the gang as well.  It's fun being among so many birds, even when they are "the usual suspects."

We wanted to take one more shot at the area under the oaks near the butterfly garden, so we headed back there next.  We exited the trail emerging into the more open area under the trees to find a Red-shouldered Hawk sitting quietly on a low branch.  It kindly posed for several pictures, something I wish that warblers would learn to do.  We looked around for several minutes but the only new bird we saw was a Bald Eagle that circled over us a few times.

For the day we counted 36 species overall, with seven different warblers (and lots of some of them).  Certainly it wasn't a great birding day, but my numbers are heading in the right direction.  From one warbler (Cedar Key), to two (Bolen Bluff) and now seven ... could double digits be just around the next bend of the trail? 

Red-shouldered Hawk looking for lunch

Same Red-shouldered Hawk from the rear

Central Winds Park, Seminole County

Another Shorebird Season

Roseate Spoonbill

This summer has been a series of annoyances that have kept me out of the field.  Issues with my back topped off with a miserable head cold have resulted in too much time spent on my couch.  But everything seems to be getting resolved at the same time, so it was enormous pleasure that I headed out yesterday for only the third serious birding effort since my the end of June.

As I noted some time ago, I'm making a concerted effort to learn as much as I can about shorebirds.  Sometimes it seems that the little critters simply defy identification.  Two things work against me.  First, we tend to see most shorebirds only as they pass through Florida and so they are here infrequently and in a drab plumage.  That combined with my own lack of experience and knowledge is a bad combination.  All too often, my "identifications" are prefaced by, "I think that's a ... " However, a world-class birder once wrote that the difference between a beginner and an expert is 10,000 mistakes.  Based on that assessment, I made significant progress along the learning curve at Cedar Key yesterday.

Click on this to enlarge it.  I think they're all Semipalmated Sandpipers.

My first stop was at Shell Mound, just north of Cedar Key.  I hopped out of the car before even reaching the parking lot in order to get a good view of a Roseate Spoonbill feeding with a Willet just a few feet away.  After admiring them for a bit, I looked further out and saw hundreds of peeps.  Unfortunately the silvery sand and the shallow waters of low tide created quite a glare.  That made picking out small details or photographing them quite difficult.  As far as I could tell, they were all quite similar.  I saw dark legs; dark, straight bills; white throats; and some streaking in the upper breast and flanks, but none beyond the legs.  So, Semipalmated Sandpiper, right?

I continued into the parking lot and scanned the sandbars and oyster beds.  There were a few Black-bellied Plovers in gorgeous breeding plumage and some Short-billed Dowitchers.   At least I assumed they were Short-billed.  There were about eight, and I looked at all of them.  I saw no structural differences in the shape of their backs, all were flat.  And I saw no differences in the amount of barring along the flanks.

Gray Kingbird

Meanwhile, I was really entertained by watching the Black Skimmers swooping low over the water while feeding between the sandbars.  I never fail to stop and watch them.  It's a scene that is both ancient and elegant, and one worth appreciating.  While I was admiring them, an American Oystercatcher zoomed by, the only one of the day.

A brief stop at the campground yielded more peeps, and again they all appeared to be Semipalmated Sandpipers.  Here at least I was able to get a few fuzzy photos that were somewhat helpful for studying later last night.  Undaunted, I decided to pack up and head into town.  Perhaps there would be more shorebirds in the mudflats east of town.

No such luck.  The mudflats were empty.  I guess the tide was too low and the shorebirds were well away from the road.  Still, the drive in yielded about a baker's dozen of Gray Kingbirds.  Despite the glaring gray skies behind them, I was able to get a couple of photos because the birds were so cooperative.  They simply ignored me as I crept closer and closer trying to get a usable shot with my little camera.  You can be the judge of how successful I was.

Hey dude!  Got any food?

The absence of shorebirds led me to see if any warblers were around.  This is not the best time of year for warblers in Cedar Key, but I thought it might be worth a try.  Unfortunately the birds didn't cooperate.  I found one female Prairie Warbler at the cemetery.  But while I was there, I had the feeling I was being watched.  I looked around and found a raccoon creeping up toward me, eventually hiding behind a pine and peeking out at me.  Cute little guy!

After lunch I made one last effort to find some shorebirds by driving over toward the airport.  There is a small area along the way where they can sometimes be found along the road or gathered on a series of old piers.  What I found were mostly terns including Royal, Forster's and Sandwich Terns.  The really funny thing was that they all appeared to be singing.  Maybe it was karaoke night and they were getting warmed up?  I assumed they were singing "Tern Tern Tern" by the Byrds?  What, too cheesy?  Anyway, the terns were joined by a few Ruddy Turnstones, Willets, and Laughing Gulls while a lone Spotted Sandpiper patrolled the beach.

So it wasn't a particularly spectacular day, but it had its moments -- and I wasn't confined to bed or a couch.  Sounds like a good day to me.

My best guess:  Semipalmated Sandpiper

Another look at the Spoonbill, with a nearby Willet

A Sandwich Tern with some Royals

Forster and the Three Royals at Karaoke Night

My Back is Back, and I'm Back to Birding

Lily Lake at Chenango Valley SP

 After I returned from Alaska I had a sore back which I attributed to trying to sleep on a long plane trip.  Whatever the problem was, it got worse when I ruptured a disc in the lumbar area.  Dang!  That hurt!  But I'm getting around pretty well now and I've been itching to get back on the birding trail.  I got that chance yesterday, and I jumped at it.

I'm visiting family in Scranton, PA.  I like to hit new places when I can, so I decided to drive up to a state park near Binghamton, NY.  Chenango Valley State Park turned out to be a real gem.  It's a beautiful, family-friendly park with loads of birding trails.  Some are very easy walking; others are more challenging; all are gorgeous.

Green Heron

I started by walking around Lily Lake on a trail that proved to be narrow, uneven, and gorgeous.  I was surprised that there were no ducks on the lake.  It looks good for dabblers, but none were to be found.  I looked for a Swamp Sparrow at the water's edge, but a Song Sparrow popped up.  A Green Heron flew out of some reeds and lit on a branch just above the water.  Then I was swarmed by Black-capped Chickadees, Tufted Titmice, Red-eyed Vireos, a male Blackburnian Warbler and what I'm fairly sure was a Warbling Vireo.  I've only seen this species once, so I needed time to look at the field guides on my phone.  Still, I'm pretty sure I'm right.  If any of you are from the area, you can correct me if this is an unexpected species.

White-breasted Nuthatch climbing head first down a tree

The Lily Lake Trail seemed to disappear, and I found myself standing on what I think was the 12th fairway of the park's golf course.  I hustled around the area and found myself on a driving range.  Still, the lake was on my left, so I kept going.  Eventually I ended up back where I had started, but I never did find where the trail went.  Undaunted, I picked out another trail, this one labeled with an "S".  This one was much less challenging than the Lily Lake Trail.  It was wide, fairly smooth and well maintained.  At the junction of where the trail crossed another (labeled BE), I was swarmed by another mixed feeding flock.  This time the chickadees and titmice were joined by an American Redstart, what looked like a newly fledged Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, a Hermit Thrush, an Eastern Wood Pewee, and a whole bunch of White-breasted Nuthatches.  I loved watching the nuthatches run down tree trunks, hang upside down on branches, and generally have a great time - all while honking away, sounding like little clown horns.  Nuthatches love life!

Red-eyed Vireo

Next  I drove over to the public beach on Chenango Lake.  I walked around a bit, but found only a flycatcher that was just too distant for me to ID.  My guess from the habitat was Willow, but that's just as likely to be wrong.

It was time to go, so I headed out of the park with only 18 species!  I had to hit 20; I just had to ... Fortunately, New York birds know how to hang out on wires (unlike Alaskan birds).  Along SR 369 I found some Eastern Bluebirds and a Mourning Dove.  Twenty species was not great, but it was enough to make me feel like I had actually done some birding.

It's back to Florida tomorrow, and back to the birding trail more regularly.

By the way, do you have any comments you'd like to make?  At the bottom of each blog should be a line that says "Add a Comment".  Click on it and you can write your thoughts on anything I've written.  Have at it!

Chenango Lake

I love reading signs that highlight local history!

Circumnavigating Newnan's Lake

A family of Pied-billed Grebes in a retention pond.

I really enjoy The June Challenge.    This is a local "competition" that is sponsored by the Alachua Audubon Society.  The goal is to stay within the boundaries of a single county and see (not hear) as many bird species as possible during the month of June.  Every year I try to do a Big Day on June 1 or 2 in order to get the month started off right.  Well, this year I started the month in Alaska and returned in a state of zombie-like stupor.  So I really started my Challenge during the past week, and things have gone well, but not spectacularly so.  Most years I try to reach 100 species.  This year, getting into the mid-80s may be difficult, but I'll have fun trying.

My first stop today was a retention pond just off Main Street in Gainesville where others have found a family of Pied-billed Grebes.  It took about two minutes.  The whole family swam together enjoying the beautiful morning.

A Barred Owl who thinks he's an eagle.

The real goal for the day was Newnan's Lake.  Last year's drought made the lake a birding hot spot.  Early in the month the lake produced everything from shorebirds to pelicans and from ducks to Short-tailed Hawks.  This year the water level is remarkably high.  Last year I walked in places that are now fifty feet out into the water.  I stopped by the parking lot on SR 26 at the Newnan's Lake Conservation Area where a Yellow-throated Vireo has been very cooperative.  Not this morning.  It was nowhere to be found, so I headed to Windsor and Owens-Illinois Park.

As I drove into the park, I saw two Barred Owls scare up from the bank of the boat launch canal.  Odd.  It was about 10:00 AM, and owls are typically hiding in the woods, not out in the open at a public boat ramp.  I parked, hopped out, and reached for my camera.  Oh yeah, it's dead, victim of a salt water splash in the face in Alaska.  So, I grabbed my iPhone and attached it to my spotting scope, certain that the owls were no longer in the same tree.  I was right.  One of them had flown to the dock and perched on a pole.  Then he flew toward me and landed on a wooden piling right next to the water.  What happened next took me by complete surprise.  The owl leaped from its perch, swooped low over the water, and pulled a fish from the water!  What the heck?  Did it think it was an eagle?  Then, while I was trying to get my jaw off the ground, the second owl dove from the tree and repeated the fishing expedition, also grabbing a fish from the canal!  I've been birding quite heavily for the past 13 years or so, and I've never seen an owl go fishing.  What a thrill!  The Summer Tanager I spotted in the trees along the canal was also a nice find, but the owl was the star of the day.

Red-shouldered Hawk

Next I tried Prairie Creek, but only a single hummingbird flew by, so  I moved on to Powers Park.  Normally this is a really great spot, but I had little luck.  I scoped the lake from the dock, but saw nothing but Ospreys and Great Blue Herons.  I heard Limpkins calling from both east and west of the dock, but I couldn't see them, so they didn't count.  I walked back to the car just as a Red-shouldered Hawk flew into the tree above me.  I snapped a few photos and decided to check out the area near the small playground.  No birds.  In fact, the most interesting thing here was a gentleman from Hawthorne who told me that for the third year in a row he and his son rode their bikes from Hawthorne to Key West and back.  Wow!  Impressive.

I drove over to Palm Point and checked out the water's edge along the path, hoping to find a Limpkin.  I saw a few Double-crested Cormorants, an Anhinga, and a Little Blue Heron, but no Limpkin.  Grrrrr.

Limpkin in a tree

On to the next stop .... a small parking lot outside of a place I have recently learned is called Sunland Center State Park.  Who knew?  A small path led to the edge of the lake.  I stood there looking around, hoping to find a Limpkin, but I had no luck.  Then I heard one call ... from directly ABOVE me.  It was sitting in the tree directly over my head!  Am I a great birder or what?  I scrambled up the hill, grabbed my iPhone/scope and tapped away.  You can see the results here.

It was getting late, but I decided to return to the parking lot off SR 26 I had visited earlier and make one more effort for that Yellow-throated Vireo.  I played a tape and the bird flew right to me.  I figured that was a great way to end the day, so I gave it up and headed home.  I now have 72 species for the month and haven't gotten to La Chua Trail yet -- but that's coming!

See him?

Wrapping Up Alaska

For several days now I've been trying to figure out how to sum up my Alaskan experience.  The truth is, I can't.  It was way more than great scenery and great birds.  It was so much more than peaceful meadows, majestic peaks, and awesome glaciers.  In sheer numbers, I could have seen more birds by staying home.  In ten days of non-stop birding I saw 86 species.  My best single day in Gainesville is higher than that.  Of course, thirty-eight life birds is truly remarkable, but that is only a few ticks on a page compared with the total experience I had. So, with words failing me, here's the best I can do:

I couldn't help feeling that I was seeing the Earth as God intended it to be.  Its pristine beauty was almost overwhelming, so much so that I often got distracted from looking at birds because the background was so spectacular.  My lasting impression of Alaska will be looking southwest from an observation area on the road to Homer.  Kachemak Bay and Homer were to my left; Cook Inlet stretched out to my right.  Ahead of me was a break in the mountains that led to the Gulf of Alaska and the North Pacific.  Somewhere out there was Kodiak Island.  That opening was flanked by the Kenai Range on the left and the Aleutian Range to my right.  It was extraordinary

I spent nearly eleven days in Alaska and never saw darkness.  I was up at 11:00 PM and at 5:00 AM, and it was not dark, not even dim. 

A Trail at Exit Glacier

The people were wonderful.  If you've been "educated" on Alaska by episodes of Alaska State Troopers, you're getting a lousy impression.  These are great people, and especially on the Kenai, they live and die with tourism.  They want you there and they treat you accordingly.  Go.  You'll love it.

Perspective can be an eye-opening thing.  Every time I spoke to a local birder, the first bird they mentioned was Yellow-rumped Warbler!  To a Floridian, that's stunning.  The first sighting of the Yellow-rumped down here is greeted with loud laments.  For us, the Butter Butt (as we call it) is a sign that the fall migration season is at an end.  We live for the migration seasons when all of those great birds that don't live in Florida pass through on the way to their winter or summer homes.  Fall migration can be wonderful inland on the Florida Peninsula as the migrating warblers funnel through the center of the state, keeping close to the food sources of the interior forests.  The Yellow-rumped is the last of the warblers to come through, so when we see it, we know migration is done.  And then they stay here - all winter long - in their drab winter dress.  And just when they start to get gorgeous, they leave and migrate north.  And large numbers of them settle in Alaska where the local birders gush about them.  Harumph!

Bringing in a Boat at Anchor Point

I was fascinated by the boat launch and landing process at Anchor Point.  The tides are enormous there - usually at least 16 feet, so a dock built for low tide would be a dozen feet below water at high tide.  Build one for high tide and it towers above the boats at low.  So guys driving huge tractors with big, wide wheels tow boat trailers out into the frigid Alaskan water, hoist up the boats, and tow them up the steep hillside to a parking lot way above the sea.  There they pick up a boat wanting to launch and tow it and its trailer down to beach and out far enough into the sea to safely launch it.  That was so much fun to watch!

Based on ten days of vigorous birding I have come to believe there are no ptarmigans.  It's a carefully devised ruse by the local Chambers of Commerce to get birders from the lower 48 to rush to Alaska in search of a phantom.  They say Willow Ptarmigan is their state bird.  Yea, right.  By the time I left the Jacksonville airport I had seen five Northern Mockingbirds, our state bird.  So where were the ptarmigans??  I tried.  I really tried.  No ptarmigans.  I'm just saying ... I'm suspicious.

An actual frontiersman's cabin.  It would fit in my living room.

I have seen the "frontier spirit" of the old west played out commercially in a way that I think demeans the true hardships and unbreakable fighting spirit that marked the lives of those who tamed our frontier.  However, Alaska is still untamed.  There is a real sense of the frontier as soon as you leave the cities and towns precisely because IT IS the frontier.  It can be a really hard life, but the people seem to thrive on it.  I admire that.

The Captain's Choice pelagic trip out of Seward ROCKS!  Captain Sherry and her first mate Allie were wonderful.  They knew where the birds were, they could ID them, and they made me feel comfortable on a very cold and rainy day.  I stayed on the stern in the rain and salt spray as long as I could.  By the time I went inside, I was shivering and my poncho was in tatters.  Almost immediately, Allie had a cup of coffee in my hands and then she found a rain jacket I could use.  I know she did as much for many other passengers, but I couldn't possibly describe how much I appreciated that personal touch.  Many thanks to Ken Tarbox who recommended the Captain's Choice Tour.  It was fantastic!

For a variety of reasons I delayed my trip until after Memorial Day.  If I ever do it again, I'll go a few weeks earlier and attend the shorebird festival that is held annually in mid-May.  They reported THOUSANDS of shorebirds per day!  I'd love to see that.

I was actually surprised at how hard it was to find birds in some places.  Massive forests did not translate into massive numbers or varieties of birds.  I worked some areas along gravel roads in gorgeous forests for hours on end, and often came away with less than a dozen species.  Of course three of them might have been lifers, so I'm not complaining. It's just an observation.  I expected to see more birds.

Along the same lines, in all of the hours I spent in the field I saw four woodpeckers, three of the same species (American Three-toed) and one other (Hairy).  What's up with that?  There are millions upon millions of trees, and few woodpeckers!  Also, I saw only two raptors that weren't eagles.  Both were Northern Goshawks.  Where were the rest?  Mystifying.

Alaskan birds do not seem to perch on power or telephone lines.  The one bird on a wire that I saw was a Rock Pigeon in Palmer.  It probably learned to do that in the lower 48.

I tried really hard, but I could not see Russia from Wasilla.

I loved Alaska.  I really, really did.  When I first arrived, most local folks I talked to said, "Welcome to the Great Land!"  Great Land indeed.  I feel so blessed to have had the chance to visit Alaska, and I will do everything I can, support every cause or measure I hear of that works to keep Alaskan forests and mountains clean and unspoiled.

And with that, listed below are the 38 lifers I picked up during the trip. 

Cackling Goose

Black-legged Kittiwakes

Trumpeter Swan

Harlequin Duck

Barrow's Goldeneye

Spruce Grouse

Red-faced Cormorant

Northern Goshawk

Golden Eagle

Black Oystercatcher

Wandering Tattler

Black-legged Kittiwake

Mew Gull

Glaucous-winged Gull

Aleutian Tern

Common Murre

Thick-billed Murre

Pigeon Guillemot

Marbled Murrelet

Kittlitz's Murrelet

Rhinoceros Auklet

Harlequin Duck

Horned Puffin

Tufted Puffin

Boreal Owl

American Three-toed Woodpecker

Olive-sided Flycatcher

Gray Jay

Steller's Jay

Black-billed Magpie

Northwestern Crow

Violet-green Swallow

Boreal Chickadee

American Dipper

Varied Thrush

Townsend's Warbler

Golden-crowned Sparrow

Pine Grosbeak

Red Crossbill

Common Redpoll

In addition to the birds, there were also these delights:

River Otter

Mountain Goats

Moose

Lynx

Dall Sheep

Black Bear

Harbor Seal

Steller's Sea Lion

Sea Otter

Dall Porpoise

Humpback Whale

Mountain Goat

Snowshoe Hare

Porcupine

Red Squirrel


So, now it's on to the June Challenge and some hometown birding.

Final Days in Alaska

Cook Inlet and the Aleutian Range

Bearing Tree

The rain in Seward forced several changes to the plans I had in mind before leaving Florida.  Now I had only one day in Soldotna rather than the two I had hoped for.  But plans (like records) are made to be broken, so you adapt and move on.  I left Seward on a bright, cool Wednesday morning and headed north and then west toward Soldotna. 

The first adaptation was an impulsive decision to turn into the Ptarmigan Creek Campground on the Seward highway.  The little trail there that parallels the creek is actually really pretty and quite birdy.  A Bald Eagle soared overhead, a Pine Siskin popped up on a spruce, and then a flycatcher landed just above the trail.  It looked like it was wearing a vest of some sort ... Olive-sided Flycatcher!  A lifer!  A bit further up the trail were a Wilson's Warbler, a Swainson's Thrush and a Boreal Chickadee that resisted all of my efforts to turn it into its Chestnut-backed cousin.  Next, a Spruce Grouse flushed from just behind where I walked and flew overhead -- another lifer!  This trail was great!  Then a few steps later I encountered a tree with a sign declaring it was a "Bearing Tree."  The kiosk at the trailhead had warned that bears were active in the area.  After a bit of thought, discretion won out over valor.  I had two lifers -- I didn't want to lose a life in pursuit of another -- so I bailed.

Headquarters Lake at the Kenai NWR.

I had already birded many of the stops along the Sterling highway which runs west across the Kenai Peninsula, so I drove all the way to Soldotna.  Actually, I had one stop to make.  That was at Wildman's General Store, a combination deli/grocery store/laundromat near the junction of the Seward and Sterling Highways.  I had stopped there on Monday and found four great things: the nice people who worked there, the good coffee, the clean men's room, and some delightful apple fritters.  So on Wednesday I stopped and enjoyed all four of these things again.

Finally I reached Soldotna, and I drove directly to the Headquarters of the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge.  This proved to be a great stop and a beautiful place.  Again there were clean restrooms and cheerful people including one ranger who spoke about where there might be some good birds.  The trail was steep - and after forgetting my scope I had to climb it an extra time.  Still, it was worth it.  There was a Hairy Woodpecker, a Brown Creeper, and an American Three-toed Woodpecker.  Then, at the lake at the bottom of the trail (pictured above, right), there was an Aleutian Tern, my third lifer of the day.

One of the Bald Eagles of Anchor Point

I wish I could say that the day in Homer was as successful.  It was not.  To be sure there were marvelous aspects to the day.  For one, the views from the highway of Cook Inlet, Kachemak Bay, and the distant volcanic peaks were extraordinary.  Anchor Point was a great stop.  One bush held a singing Golden-crowned Sparrow.  Around the parking lot were more Bald Eagles than I have ever seen in one day.  The Alaska Islands and Ocean Visitor's Center is a wonderful place to spend a few hours.  The exhibits are interesting and entertaining.  One described the impact of a healthy ocean on our lives.  Another focused on the lives of sea birds.  Yet another detailed the work of the scientists who worked on the seas during the early days of the Alaska Maritime NWR.

Grazing Moose on Tustumena Lake Road

During early May, there may be no better place on earth to view shorebirds.  But this was early June and no shorebirds were to be found.  Someone told me that a plover could be found along the famed Homer Spit that cuts into the bay, but I didn't see it.  All I saw were Black-legged Kittiwakes; lots and lots of Kittiwakes.  I saw nothing on Beluga Slough, but the lake was a little better.   There were Mallards, American Wigeons, Ring-necked Ducks, and a Greater Scaup.  A Belted Kingfisher flew about looking for a meal.  But that was it.  Perhaps I didn't prepare well enough for this day, but I was out of luck.  I headed back to Soldotna but took one side road.  I drove a good distance along Tustumena Lake Road.  I found a few birds including a Common Loon in one lake and a Fox Sparrow, but the highlights were a couple of grazing Moose and a Snowshoe Hare.  The hare was mostly brown but still had its white feet.

That brought me to my final full day in Alaska.  Most of it was time spent getting back to Anchorage, but two stops are worth mentioning (aside from another stop at Wildman's).  The day started on Swanson River Road near Sterling.  I birded it for hours, hoping for a Red or White-winged Crossbill.  I really didn't want to leave Alaska with seeing a crossbill.  Among the species I found were Dark-eyed Junco, Boreal Chickadee, Gray Jay, and Varied Thrush.  I was about to give up but decided to try one more spot and I'm lucky that I did,  Four Red Crossbills perched on tall spruces long enough to give me a quick look.  That was the last lifer of the trip.

The lake at Portage Glacier

After that I drove back toward Anchorage.  After leaving the Kenai Peninsula, I pulled onto the road to Whittier and Portage Glacier.  This is a short, picturesque drive to the Visitor's Center.  There, large chunks of ice still float on a bright, startlingly blue-green glacial lake at the base of the glacier itself.  I watched Violet-green Swallows and Glaucous-winged Gulls swoop and soar above. Wilson's Warblers, a Swainson's Thrush and a Hermit Thrush sang in the shrubs near the road.  A Black Bear roamed the mountainside above us.  One trail next to the road led across a boardwalk and observation deck built for observing the salmon run up stream.  The photos above and at the bottom of the page don't begin to communicate the sheer beauty of the place. A couple of hours flew by while I soaked up the serenity and majesty of the surroundings.  And the next day I was on a plane heading back to Florida with its heat, humidity, and extraordinary variety of birds.

I'll have one more blog about my Alaskan trip.  I'll give you my trip list, lifers and non-avian species.  Also, I have a few observations that might be of interest, so come back in a day or two.  Meanwhile, it's on to the June Challenge!

Golden-crowned Sparrow

Kachemak Bay, Homer Spit and the Kenai Range

Portager Glacier and Its Lake

Death (of a Camera) on the High Seas

As soon as I opened my eyes on Tuesday morning, I checked the weather ... rainy, cold, windy.  I really doubted that my boat trip would happen, and that caused me all sorts of consternation.  The second half of my trip would come apart unless this trip happened today.  I dressed quickly and headed to the tour group's headquarters.  I was prepared for the day (I thought), but feared the worse. 

Sea Otters at Play

However, I shouldn't have worried.  The trip was going ahead as scheduled despite the rain.  I had a rain parka, but the thought of wet jeans wasn't too pleasant.  I dashed into the company shop and bought some rain pants, put them on, and soon we were under way. 

At first the rain was no more than a mist.  True, it was a cold mist, but I could handle that.  The seas were calm in Resurrection Bay, and almost immediately we saw two Sea Otters frolicking in the waves.  They looked up as we passed by, and I got a nice photo of them checking us out.

A bit later I got my first lifer of the day, a Marbled Murrelet.  It wasn't long before I got another, a Pigeon Guillemot.  The Captain spotted it off the starboard side, and I was really pleased that I was able to pick out the right field marks as it flew past us.  Studying pays off!  Who knew?

Black Oystercatcher

After a visit to one of the glaciers we headed to a spot where the Captain thought we might be able to find a Black Oystercatcher.  Sure enough, it was standing out in the open as if it were hired by the tour company to pose for us.  That was the third lifer for the morning.

Throughout the day we visited small coves and inlets, looking for something rare and interesting.  Each stop seemed to produce something wonderful.  In one small, dark crevice we found Red-faced Cormorants.  We watched at least three Humpback Whales send geysers of water well into the sky before showing us their tails as they dove deep into the frigid waters.  We saw Steller's Sea Lions and Harbor Seals stretched out on the rocks, oblivious to the cold and rain.  Dall Porpoises swam with us, racing along next to the boat and diving into our wake.  Mountain Goats and a Black Bear roamed the mountains above us.  And then we heard the thunder of a glacier cracking and watched as a huge chunk broke off and fell into the sea.  All of it was breathtaking.

Horned Puffin

Meanwhile, as soon as we cleared Resurrection Bay and entered the Gulf of Alaska, the seas got rougher and the rain turned fierce.  Most people headed for cover, but I was enjoying the adventure of it all and stayed on deck as long as I could.

Eventually we reached the Chiswell Islands, part of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge.  There we found one island that was home to hundreds of Common Murres and a few Thick-billed Murres scattered among them.  Fortunately the Captain found one of the latter and pointed it out to us.  A second island held hundreds of Tufted Puffins while yet another held hundreds of Horned Puffins.  The puffins were amazing.  They literally threw themselves off of the cliff, then flapped their wings like mad until they pulled themselves out of their dive.  Sometimes they flew right at us, only to veer off at the last moment and jet away.   I have to admit that the puffins were my favorite part of the trip.

Harbor Seal

Soon the rain drove me back inside, but the birding didn't stop.  As I watched through a starboard window, a Kittlitz's Murrelet flew past the boat.  Fortunately, others on board saw and identified it too, so I was confident in counting it.

It was about that time that things started going bad.  First, I took a serious cold-water bath when the bow of the boat slapped into a wave, throwing seawater on deck.  I took the brunt of it while trying to aim my camera at a  bird.  The camera died on the spot and has not returned to life.  Fortunately I was able to retrieve a few photos, but it is generally pretty useless now.  Then I tried to wipe the salt water from my glasses which promptly broke in half.  So I had no camera and no glasses.  Fortunately, my bins were just fine.  I refocused them to my horrible vision and returned to birding just in time for my last lifer of the day - a Rhinoceros Auklet.  That made ten new birds for the day and 34 for the Alaskan trip.  I had a back-up pair of glasses in the hotel, so that wasn't a big problem.  Of course, now I would have to bird without a camera - but wait - I could go back to digiscoping with my iPhone.  So all was well with the world.

In fact, it was a fabulous day and I'll be thrilled by its memory for the rest of my life!

Mountain Goats

The last photo before my camera died.  R.I.P.