Eastward to Walla Walla
Last year, every bird was a life bird. By mid-February 2015 I had seen 77 new-to-me bird species. 77 lifers! I didn’t even know what a “lifer” was then. Over my first year birding, I saw 253 life birds. Not that I’m counting. But, yeah, I’m counting. So far this year I’ve seen 98 species (year birds), but only…
Alaska By Land – Denali Part I
Before going to Denali, I did my homework. There was a slim chance we’d be eaten by bears and I wanted that chance slimmer. Planning is key (*see end notes). We traveled by train- the Denali Star, to reach the park. I humored the idea of birding by train, but that was pretty much impossible. The…
Larch Mountain Part I
I hadn’t given up hope on finding a Hermit Warbler after my Johnson Road trip. The following weekend, I conferred with BirdsEye and decided to try my luck at Larch Mountain. Funny thing about Larch Mountain, larch trees don’t actually grow there. Noble fir is the dominant species that was once marketed and sold by early…