Hi Tweeters:
I'm a newbie at shorebirding, but even I can tell when there aren't any
shorebirds to see It was a gorgeous day at Bowerman Basin in Hoquiam w/
the high tide of 8.9 ft coming in early afternoon. There were a good
number of people there waiting and waiting. We saw a small group (about15)
of Semipalmated Plover, a small flock of Dunlin and 1 Western Sandpiper.
That was all the shorebirds to be seen. I talked to a fellow who said the
birds didn't show up yesterday either. The Grays Harbor Shorebird Festival
starts tomorrow and it will run Fri-Sun. Sure hope they get some birds!
The only thing that saved the day for me was finding the Chehalis Wildlife
Area which is west of Elma on Showeiler Road (south of the main highway
going to Aberdeen and Hoquiam). The road turns south to the wetland just
before mile marker 18. It's a huge wetland, well worth seeing. Lots of
lakes, ponds, trees, trails, and fields. And plenty of birds. This area
was mentioned by Patrick Sullivan in his message below. It saved the day
for me.
Carol Schulz
DesMoines
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4/25/99 Spring shorebirding highlights
....only 4 TURKEY VULTURES were encountered between Elma and
Satsop, with an OSPREY pair, 2 LINCOLN'S SPARROWS, and several calling
V.RAILS at the Shouweiler Wetland, and N.ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOWS were
encountered in several of our stops, mainly around water or marshes.
Ruth and Patrick Sullivan
GODWIT at worldnett.att.net