Snowy goose chase
I was most thankful for hand warmers, an ice-scraper, and new snow tires this past weekend when I drove to eastern Washington in hopes of seeing a Snowy Owl. The backroads were frozen, covered in ice but I barely noticed until I got out of the car (hooray snow tires!). Worth every penny. I passed flocks of Horned Larks…
All the Grebes starting with a Gnatcatcher
I didn’t intend to chase the rarity, but I brought my camera and binoculars to work just in case, and when a second report of the Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher (originally found by Nick Mrvelj) came in at Kelley Point Park, I decided to go for it. I arrived and immediately felt overwhelmed. Tiny bird, big park.…
Seattle to Malheur to Astoria III
I’d never been to Steens Mountain before, but I’d only heard good things. It is a 30-mile long fault block mountain that peaks at 9,773 ft and consists of 428,156 acres of public land. There is one 59-mile loop road that is gravel, often washboard, and takes about two hours to drive. Or several more hours…