Subject: RE: Birding Across the USA
Date: Oct 3 10:42:11 1997
From: "S. Downes" - sdownes at u.washington.edu



On Thu, 2 Oct 1997, Michael Price wrote:

> Hi Tweets,
>
> Don Baccus wrote:
>
> >An old girlfriend of mine still hits Crane Creek nearly every year, and
> >seems to think that it is, as you say, about as good as better known
> >spots like Pt. Pelee.
>
> As a kid in the late '50's and early 60's (just after the invention of the
> telegraph, as I recall, haff-kaff) I used to go to Pelee in May: that was
> just as the declines were barely beginning. It was worth *every* column inch
> of hype that's ever been typed about it. Can't speak for the other site, but
> I suspect it's like two guys facing off in a "Tastes Great!" "Less
> Filling!"-type discussion. We're talking the same birds and a separation of
> sites of about twenty-thirty miles. Think of the opposite sides of the
> Strait of Juan de Fuca and whether one's better than the other. Sometimes
> yes, sometimes no. Sometimes flyovers and no birds, other times headwinds
> and the place is nuts.

I'm only speculating as I'ver never been to either site, but a birding
friend of mine raves about Crane Creek. She said that it was better than
Pt. Pelee, with no comparison, because the birds concentrated before
crossing the water to Pelee. She said that she and other friends often got
30 species of warblers in a morning! By looking at the map, it does make
since. If we use Port Angeles, Victoria example; the birds (whether
raptors or passerines) would congregate at or near Port Angeles in order
to fly accross, after hitting victoria they would quickly disperse. One of
these days I'd like to hit both places during spring migrtion and see for
myself.

Scott Downes
sdownes at u.washington.edu
Seattle WA