Plat I Reservoir Birding

Yesterday we took our friends Michael & Melisa with us on an Umpqua Valley Audubon Society birding trip. It was called the “Raptor Run” and was led by veteran birders Dale & Elva Paulson. We started at Fords Pond, and then went to Plat I Reservoir, and then multiple stops along North Bank Road.  Jeanette, Buster, Melisa and Michael are shown here at Plat I Reservoir where Jeanette is probably pointing out the location of the two Bald Eagles we spotted here. As to raptors, for the day we spotted a total of 7 Bald Eagles, 8 Red-tailed Hawks, and one American Kestrel. In all we saw 31 different species of birds.  

Rare Trumpeter Swan Sighting

Yesterday morning Sue Butkus from the Elkton Community Education Center called to alert us of a swan she had spotted along Hwy 38 on her way to work.  We packed up our gear and went in search to see if we could find it and make identification.  We found it in a large field with 50 Canada Geese about a hundred yards from the highway.  Because of the distance it was hard to get a quality photo and make a positive identification.  But after considerable scrutinizing I’m relatively certain it’s a Trumpeter Swan, which is classed as a rare sighting in this area.  The other possibility is a Tundra Swan, which is a little more common, but is smaller and normally has a yellow spot at the base of its bill.  We hope to go back today for second look.

Spotter at Work

On our way back to Elkton yesterday we stopped in Cottage Grove at the Row River Nature Park, informally known as the Cottage Grove Ponds, to do some birding.  When we are birding Jeanette usually serves as the spotter.  Her sharp eyes are almost always the ones to first spot a bird, then she points it out to me, and if I get a chance I get a photo.  Here she is using a bird call on her iPod to call out a Bewick’s Wren that she spotted which disappeared in the bush.  The Bewick’s came back out to investigate as well as a Pacific Wren. Jeanette was able to hold their attention long enough that I was able to get photos of both birds.

Narrow Escape

We had a narrow escape yesterday when we almost accepted volunteer positions at the Cape Perpetua Visitors Center. Our own peculiar penchant of looking for volunteer opportunities put us in this precarious position. It started innocent enough; I left Jeanette by herself at the Visitors Center while I went to retrieve the motor home.  When I returned we were almost ready to sign a contract. It was only the viewing of the dark shaded host site and a few breaths of fresh air that brought us to our senses and saved us from making too hasty of a commitment. --- photo – Jeanette viewing Cook’s Chasm at Cape Perpetua.

The Long Way Home

If you have been keeping track of our where-abouts, and you know your geography, you will know that the Sea Lion Caves are way north of our turn off to Elkton! But, that is where we were this morning at the Sea Lion Caves looking out over the ocean.  Actually today’s post should probably be titled “Good Fortune” or something similar, so let me explain.  Leaving Bullards Beach on Sunday morning we thought we were headed home to Elkton, but after stopping in Coos Bay for groceries, we realized we didn’t have to go home, and could spend some more time going up the coast on Sunday, the one sunny day in the forecast.  It instantly made real good sense, because for one I was tired of driving in the hard winds of Sunday, secondly it would allow us to stop at Cape Perpetua the following day and check out our volunteer whale watching site we would be manning in March. Plus we could swing through Dallas and attend an update on my mom’s care, and get in a visit with daughter Lisa and grandsons Will, Luke, & Jake. Two minutes after making the decision we pulled into the Mill Casino RV Park.  Now here is when the “Good Fortune” began to really become apparent. Not only could we relax and not continue driving, we found out that Elkton was without electricity!  So as I sat in my warm motor home watching the wind whip the waves across Coos Bay, sipping a glass or two of wine, watching the football games, I did consider myself most fortunate. And today as we continued up the coast in the bright sunshine stopping at the Sea Lion Caves, Cape Perpetua, and many other stops, we continued to consider ourselves most fortunate.  We are camped tonight at South Beach State Park and will continue on to Dallas tomorrow.   

Whale Watching Training

Dr. Carrie Newell is shown here lecturing on whales during the “Whale Watching Spoken Here” training held at Bullards Beach State Park. Dr. Newell is a very enthusiastic, entertaining and informative person and we learned a lot about whales, and Gray Whales in particular. The purpose of the training is to prepare us for manning a whale watching site for two days in March.  We attended along with our Elkton neighbors Lyle & Stephanie Schnabel. The Schnabels and we made the somewhat perilous journey down here to Bandon in our RV’s yesterday, having to use Hwy 42 as Hwy 38 was closed. We will be returning to Elkton tomorrow, probably with a strong tail wind.     

Juncos in the Snow

Seeing Juncos in the snow this morning in my front yard took me back to my very first sighting of a Junco, they were in the snow under my grandmother’s camellia bush. I remember vividly every detail of peering out the window and observing the sharp contrast of the dark colors of birds on the white snow as they searched for camellia flower seeds. That was 65 years ago, strange what an impression it made on my mind and is so clear all these years later.