Looking for the Bright Spot

Fall is here and the infamous Oregon rain has returned. The weather forecast now calls for high percentages of rain every day.  This is when we put into place our survival plan of looking for the the bright spot. Many years ago when my passion was fly fishing I learned about waiting and looking for the magical time of the "hatch".  It's that time each day when the conditions are just right and the aquatic insects make a dash for the surface of lakes and streams to hatch into their next form.  Fish go on the feed, swallows can be seen even before the moment, swooping over the water in anticipation. It's the same notion, we have learned to look for the bright spot in each day to get out and do our dog/bird walk. Rarely does it rain continuously all day, almost without exception there is some point in the day when its dry and maybe even sunny. That's why it's important to anticipate when it will happen and be ready to take advantage of the moment.  We have had this experience the last few days,  desite lots of rain in the forecast we had breaks of glorious sunshine. Below are a few examples

Fairview Wetlands

We went to Fairview Wetlands on Sunday late morning.  Located in an industrial area, the paths are busy with workers taking a break on work days, so weekends are our preferred days. Despite early morning and late afternoon rain, we had a dry mid-day break. Here is the link to our bird list and photos. 

Adair Wildlife Area

Monday we drove down to Adair Wildlife Area to walk and bird.  We volunteered here a decade ago and love to return and seek out the variety of birds. We got a short break here of about 45 minutes between showers. Here is the link to our bird list and photos.

Luckiamute State Natural Area South

A second stop for the day was at Luckiamute State Natural Area South.  Here we got a long break in the weather with lots of sunshine.  Here is the link to the bird list. 

Our RoadTrek Zion is proving to be the perfect vehicle for our birding jaunts.  All the necessities readily at hand, clothing, restroom, food and shelter, we are ready for that bright spot.  This strikes me as an important approach to life its self, its import to look for the bright spot.