Subject: ptarmigan jinx
Date: Aug 15 21:56:33 1999
From: Hill - hill at cbnn.net


On my 10th attempt to see ptarmigan I knew that Friday the 13th would be the day. Following the advice of Mike Schroeder and others, Bob Flores and I drove up to Slate Peak where last year they were spotted from the parking area. After four minutes of scanning the snow banks, there it was..... the rain and fog that just wouldn't go away. I wandered around some tundra getting soaked for awhile, but had to drop down below Harts Pass to get below the clouds and a break in the rain. Trip number 11 will be to Rainier again, I think, since a few of you have a bird staked out for me.

Bob had to go back to pack for his Outer Banks pelagic trips tacked on to training back east. I led the Central Basin Audubon field trip yesterday (8/14) from Conconully over FR 37 and FR 39, looking for Boreal Chickadee and other high elevation birds. Between and during the rain showers the six of us that braved the weather caught up with a few feeding flocks, and found the chickadees in three locations. The first was along FR 37 near Old Baldy, along with YR Warblers and both kinglets (which seemed to be in every feeding flock), and what was described to be a Williamson's Sapsucker. Pikas were very common along the road in the rocks. Other birds along FR 37 included W Tanager, Hairy Woodpecker, Cassin's Finch, junco, nutcracker, T Solitaire, a Varied Thrush, and robin. Roger Lake (east side) also had Fox Sparrow, and Mountain Chickadee in the same flock with Boreal Chickadee. Freezeout Ridge had constant rain, and somebody coming down from Tiffany Mountain said it snowed on top. We worked one more area, Parachute Meadow, for Spruce Grouse, again without success and gave up on that elusive bird. There were Chipping Sparrows, BC Hummingbird, Hermit Thrush, one Townsend's Warbler, and both chickadees on the west side of the meadow (the east side had pouring rain). I was hoping to find WW Crossbills, but the weather didn't cooperate. Across the burned area there were a few RT Hawks perched in the rain. Some of the nest boxes put up for Boreal Owls were easily visible among the toasted trees. Near mile 24 where Dog Creek crosses at a sharp cutback, a female Spruce Grouse was waiting at the top of the roadcut for her three chicks to cross the road in front of us. Exciting for everyone but the hen, which tended to her brood and could care less that we were 6 feet away burning up film in marginal light. So after putting in a few miles in some of the known Spruce Grouse spots, even using a dog at times, the bird sat next to the road for us to drive up to. Like Slate Peak ptarmigan!?! One more observation as we headed back to Conconully through the Sinlahekin WA. The plantings are all ripe with fruit, and Cedar Waxwings were everywhere! Some were eating berries, but many were perched over the marsh hawking insects.

Randy Hill, Othello