Our Secret for Survival

Jeanette looking out on Huddleston Pond

The stress that coronavirus is putting on peoples lives is tremendous, and I believe that it requires some  effort and discipline to be able to continue living happy healthful lives. We have found that we have a couple of built in daily practices that are serving us well in this crucial time of the coronavirus. Number one, is that we truly love to go birding.  This puts us out in the fresh air, provides us some exercise, and for the most part, keeps us away from other people. Number two has to do with the weather.  For around 15 years we traveled to Arizona for the winter, where getting outside on a daily basis was a no brainer. But here in the Northwest, with lots of cold and rain, it is a different matter.  Years ago I came up with the concept of looking for the "sweet spot" in each day.  That is, looking at the weather forecast, figuring out the best time of day to be outside in regard to temperature and rain, and then plan your day accordingly.  It's amazing that each day normally has a window of fairly nice weather, and that's when we jump into action.  Yesterday's trip to Huddleston Pond in Willamina is a good example.  There were some morning dry hours in the weather forecast, so we left home first thing in the morning with the expectation of getting in a bird walk.  It was true, we got in a nice walk of around a mile and a good bird list and some photos.  You can see it here.  Afterward we stopped at a drive-thru coffee shop for some hot chocolate, and then drove over to Sheridan where we picked up a Subway sandwich which we took to the Sheridan Southside City Park and Pond. We noted a few more birds, then enjoyed our lunch in the warm comfort of our van. On our way back to Dallas we were pleased to spot probably a dozen American Kestrels on the power lines, a few Red-tailed Hawks, two Northern Harriers, and a Rough-legged Hawk. We arrived back at Dallas Retirement Village just as the rain started. We had gotten outside for some fresh air and exercise, avoided close contact with people, and most importantly enjoyed a sense of adventure.

Great Egret with a male Hooded Merganser

   
 

Some Things Are Hard To Swallow

Yesterday, Jeanette and I decided to take advantage of a full day of sunshine by making a return trip to the coast to the Alder Island Nature Trail at the Siletz Bay National Wildlife Refuge.  Though biting cold, we had bright sunshine. You can see our complete eBird observation list with photos here.  One of the most entertaining things we saw was this Red-necked Grebe swallowing a fish.  It looked like a difficult proposition, but judging by the huge lump at the base of its throat, which was taken a minute later, it was successful.

 

Siletz Bay National Wildlife Refuge

Yesterday morning I was sitting in my den looking out the window at the fog and waiting for it to clear out so we could go birding.  I decided to check the Road Cams on the ODOT Trip Check site, and low and behold the Oregon Coast had sunshine.  We made a change of plans, and were soon on our way, and were indeed greeted with bright sunshine when we arrived at Lincoln City.  Our first destination was to check out Siletz Bay National Wildlife Refuge.  In the past, we have just driven past this refuge because no dogs were allowed, but in these post-Buster days we are continuing to visit places once off limits. 

The parking lot is limited to short vehicles, and there is water access to put in canoes or kayaks, but the main event for pedestrian birders is the Alder Island Nature Trail.  It's a graveled surface is a pure delight as it circles the island with great views over the sloughs and Siletz River. 

A culvert allows for easy access to Alder Island and still allows for tidal water to ebb and flow.

Interpretive signs are well placed to aid in understanding the flora and fauna of the refuge.

Our complete experience was amazing.  This moves to the top of the list for birding locations that we will be returning to this winter.  You can see our bird list with photos here. 

 

New Camping & Birding Locations

This was an exploration trip we took yesterday in the Oregon Coast Range to ferret out parks and campgrounds of Lincoln County. And of course birding locations!

Our first stop was Elk City Park.  This is a hidden gem located at the confluence of  Big Elk Creek and the Yaquina River. Popular with fishermen, the campground has 12 campsites. Bird List

Our second stop was in the town of Siletz at the Hee Hee Ilahee Park.  Boat access to the Siletz River is a big part of this park.  We enjoyed sunshine and lunch here as well as bird watching.  Bird List

Our third stop was at the Strome Boat Launch and the adjacent Barbara & Walter Brown Memorial Park. Although the campground was closed in the Brown Memorial Park, we enjoyed a bird walk on the trail along the Siletz River. Bird List 

We did check out one more campground,  A.W. Jack Morgan Park. A boat launch is on the south side of the highway, and the campground is on the north side. Although I failed to get a photo, we found the campground very well kept. Lots of shade, this is probably an ideal camping spot in the summer. The one negative note is that all of these locations were without cell service.  

 

Checking on Lyons City Park

Jeanette checks for birds at Lyons City Park

 The devastating wildfires that swept through the Santiam Canyon this past month have caused us to be concerned about Lyons City Park and wonder if it survived, so yesterday morning we took a drive to find out.  Much to our relief, both the Lyons City Park and the next door John Neil County Park were OK.  We spent some time birding, and it seemed quite normal.  You can see our bird list for Lyons City Park here, and for John Neil County Park here.

We first discovered Lyons City Park as a birding location back in December of 2013. Here is the Cascade Ramblings Trip Journal for that trip. I looked back in the eBird records and in the passing years we have birded there twenty nine times. You can easily conclude it has been a favorite area of ours and we were relieved to find it survived unscathed. We did see some campers in the John Neil County Park, and learned from the bulletin board that the campground was for fire evacuees only.

  

Finding Rock Wrens

Rock Wren - William L Finley NWR - Oct 21, 2020

 Jeanette and I saw our first Rock Wren in the rocky cliffs of Buskin Mountain State Park in Arizona while volunteering there in 2009.  It's not a bird that is normally seen in Oregon's Willamette Valley, so I was surprised when Jeanette woke me up early yesterday morning saying she had canceled her events of the day, pickleball and water aerobics. She wanted to go to William L Finley National Wildlife Refuge, because Pam Otley, a friend of ours, had reported finding a Rock Wren. It took some coffee and a little bit of time to get my bearings, do the research on the location, and come up with a plan.  Pam had reported finding it in an old rock quarry on Pigeon Butte, so I plotted a route based on what I could make out from maps.  Arriving at the refuge, we were immediately distracted by Great Egrets, Great Blue Herons, and searching Northern Harriers along Bruce Road. Eventually we found a parking lot and made our way up Pigeon Butte and to the quarry.  We had bright sunshine and great views, but the quarry was pretty quiet.  We both where ready to accept that we had a great hike even if we didn't find the Rock Wren, when Jeanette suddenly exclaimed, "there it is!"  I snapped a number of photos.  Our day was complete. You can see our complete observation list here. 

A Bluebird Morning

 The Village Birders from the Dallas Retirement Village went to Kingsborough City Park this morning to walk a section of the Rickreall Creek Trail System.  Immediately upon exiting the cars Jeanette noticed and pointed out some Western Bluebirds.  In all we saw six individual birds, the highlight of our morning, and the perfect start for a birdwalk.  The weather was a little iffy with threatening clouds or rain possible, and birds were scarce, but all six of us enjoyed the walk.  Click on the observation list here.