Bob's Gone Birding: The Best Laid Plans

Seas of Wheat in the Palouse Area of Eastern Washington

The best laid schemes of mice and men
Go often askew,
And leave us nothing but grief and pain,
For promised joy!

From "To a Mouse" by Robert Burns

Standard English Translation by "Simple English" Wikipedia

Western Wood-Pewee

Every birding trip I have taken has been carefully planned. Many hours are spent on researching birding sites, driving routes, bird lists, range maps, airline fares, hotel rates ... all designed to get the most birds for the fewest bucks. Usually things work out for the best despite a few pitfalls here and there. I missed the Hook-billed Kite in Texas, but got the White-collared Seedeater and other great birds in the subsequent days. A snow storm made travel over Santiam Pass quite treacherous and placed me at the Oregon coast much later than I planned. But when I got there I immediately got four lifers within 15 minutes. If I had been on time, I might have missed them. Who knows?

Certainly no 10-day trip - even the most successful - is without its rough spots. The best birding trip of my life was to Arizona where I tallied a huge number of life birds, but a much-desired birding location on Fort Huachuca was closed when I got there necessitating a significant change in plans. And there was the birding trip of a lifetime to Alaska that was tempered by broken glasses and the saltwater assassination of my camera.

With all of that in mind, I was prepared for a few glitches in the road on my most recent excursion - nine days of non-stop birding in Washington, Idaho and Montana, the crowning jewel of which was to be two days in Glacier National Park, especially on the trails at Logan Pass searching for Ptarmigans, Rosy-Finches and Crossbills! I had a list of 39 lifers that inhabited those states during the summer, but I recognized that I had a legitimate shot at less than half of them - say, 19. So, if I got half of that group - 10 lifers - I'd be thrilled. Overall, I expected to see about 120 species.

Canada Geese on the Snake River

Not so fast, my friends. We all know about those best laid plans, and I was about to get an object lesson in patience.

The first issue to overcome was the State of Washington and everyone's favorite supercenter, Walmart. You see, due to budgetary considerations, Washington does not have rangers in every park, at least not full time rangers who collect an entry fee. No big deal; the same is true in Florida where many parks have an honor system pay station. Not so in Washington. Instead, you have to go to Walmart, Fred Myers, or several other local outlets to purchase a one-day pass for $11! So my first day in Washington was not spent with the morning chorus and spotting new birds. Instead, it was spent with the morning shoppers at Walmart, trying to spot an employee who knew how to sell a Discover park pass. It took 45 minutes.

Finally I was able to get out of Spokane and head south to my first birding destination, Fields Spring State Park in the southeast corner of the state. My route took me south through the Palouse section of the state and its miles of wheat fields. I stopped briefly at the site of an 1858 battlefield where Lt. Col. E. J. Steptoe got spanked by a large contingent of Spokane, Palouse and Coeur D'Alene Indians. The historical marker indicated that the defeat was one result of unenlightened dealings with the Indians. It quickly added that the Indians were "ruthlessly subjugated" later in the year by a "full-scale campaign." It did not clarify if that was supposed to be a more enlightened strategy, but I thought not.

Rock Wren

The direct route between Spokane, Washington, and my intended destination in southeastern Washington goes through Idaho. That little quirk turned out to be a lucky break, my first of the day. I made a quick stop at a roadside scenic view that overlooked the twin towns of Lewiston, Idaho, and Clarkston, Washington, along with the Clearwater and Snake Rivers. It was a gorgeous spot and it provided my best-ever view of a Rock Wren which happily ignored the traffic above while gathering what looked to be nesting material. Then a Red-tailed Hawk swooped overhead, reminding me that I wasn't in Florida anymore because it looked nothing like those that I see at home.

The road swung through Lewiston and then over a bridge to Clarkston and back into Washington. On impulse, I pulled into what I think was called Riverside Park on the banks of the Snake River. This turned out to be a good move and my second stroke of luck for the day. It's a long, narrow park with a deciduous hammock, a few open fields, lots of brush along the river, and numerous sandbars just offshore. There were Lesser and American Goldfinches in the trees, flycatchers near the fields, Yellow Warblers in the brush and gulls and shorebirds along the river. I also saw Western Wood-Pewee, Canada Goose, Ring-billed and California Gulls, Lesser Yellowlegs, Spotted Sandpiper and Killdeer in just a few minutes of birding. It was already late in the morning, but I thought it was a great appetizer to start off the day's serious birding. Still, I wanted to get on my way because I had another 45 minutes or so before reaching Fields Spring.

A well-camouflaged femal Red-naped Sapsucker eating suet

Fields Spring State Park is listed as being in Anatone, Washington. Anatone turned out to be the closest thing to a ghost town - while not yet actually being a ghost town - that I have ever seen. A sign on the road indicates that it has a population of 38 people, 17 dogs and 11 cats. I think they over-estimated the number of people. I saw no one, and I saw very little that appeared to be habitable. The park itself had a small parking area near a few picnic tables. I must say the area held a good number of birds. I saw a myiarchus flycatcher, probably an Ash-throated, but it got away before I could take a photo. A Northern Flicker called loudly and darted between the pines while a White-breasted Nuthatch successfully avoided my camera by constantly circling a tree trunk, always a step ahead of me. Then I caught sight of my first lifer for the trip, a pair of Red-naped Sapsuckers. Of course, the more colorful male flew off before I could get a photo, but the female was more cooperative.

The plan was to eat lunch at the picnic tables while keeping an eye out for more birds. A swarm of bees had other ideas, so lunch was eaten in the rental car. Afterward, I drove around the park looking for another place to bird. I found one small parking area with what looked like a trail through some pines, but the forest was utterly quiet. I couldn't find a single bird in the vicinity, so I gave it up. Maybe the birds hadn't gotten their Discover Passes at Walmart that morning?

Undaunted, I started toward my second destination, Craig Mountain WMA in Idaho. But on the way I encountered a third stroke of luck. I saw a wide pullout along the road and impulsively decided to check it out. The field that bordered it had nothing, but again acting on impulse, I crossed the road to peer down into a depression in the land. There was a pond teeming with life. In just a couple of minutes I chalked off Mallard, Wilson's Snipe, American Coot, Killdeer, Osprey, Red-winged Blackbird and Brewer's Blackbird.

I think this is a Lazuli Bunting, probably a juvenile.

The Idaho birding guide made Craig Mountain sound like a magnificent birding destination. Maybe it is at the right time of year and in the early morning. But it was a major disappointment on a late afternoon in July. The road in was narrow, with no pull-outs for birding. In fact, the road was dotted with signs warning me that both sides held private property and that I had to continue up the mountain to find public land. Now, I've driven over some pretty tough roads in the past. The "primitive" road that leads to Rustler Park high in the Chiricahuas comes to mind. But nothing was quite like the drive up Craig Mountain. I am not exaggerating when I say that at one point I thought I might have turned off what passed for a road and was now driving up a dried and rocky creek bed. It was that awful. And the places that were supposed to be there (according to the Idaho Birding Guide) were not to be found. Eventually I located a tiny parking area with a stony trail leading down a hillside. Desperate to do some real birding, I got out of the car and started down the path - and the first birds to greet me were Chipping Sparrows. Maybe they were the same ones that were in my yard last winter back home in Florida. Probably not, but I hadn't traveled thousands of miles to see Chippers. A little further down the trail things got better. I saw a group of birds flitting among some bushes. One proved to be an immature Dark-eyed Junco. Another was a young, drab Lazuli Bunting. The latter would have been a lifer a month earlier, but I had seen one in Zion Canyon. Still, it was a thrill. This species has always been in my top-ten most desirable list, so even a dull-looking youngster was worthy of a celebration. Then I saw an Olive-sided Flycatcher, only my second-ever of that species as well!

Mountain Bluebird

It was actually starting to get late and I had to return to Lewiston for the night. Still, there was another site beckoning, a boat ramp and dam on nearby Lake Waha. First I hit the boat ramp. Not a single bird in sight -- not one. Next I went to the dam. There I met a delightful couple who were members of the Nez Perce tribe. I heard stories of growing up on the reservation and camping in the wilderness. While we were talking, a couple of Mountain Bluebirds lit in a tree right above me. With the wind whipping around, it was tough getting a good photo, but I think patience was rewarded.

I assumed my birding day was ended, but Lady Luck had one more treat in store. I drove quickly along Waha Road back toward Lewiston (always staying within the posted speed limits, of course). Suddenly, a lump on a fencepost morphed into something that looked like a quail. I stopped, did a 180, and pulled off a few feet up the road from a gorgeous California Quail that posed patiently for dozens of photos. Unfortunately, all were in bad light, but a couple turned out well enough to post here.

And so ended the first birding day of my trip. After some thought, I realized that the best birding of the day had nearly all occurred at unplanned stops, while the planned target areas were generally disappointing. Then again, four birds saved the day for those major destinations including my second ever Olive-sided Flycatcher, Lazuli Bunting, and Mountain Bluebird and the one lifer, the Red-naped Sapsucker. Only a month earlier it would have been a four-lifer day. Still, I was happy and looking forward to a visit to the Nez Perce National Historic Park.