Hi all
sorry for the belated report, but here it is. kathy ehrenberg and i headed
out on a camping trip to the okanogan, july 20-24. we had a fantastic time
and although we missed some of our target birds (black backed woodpecker,
boreal chickadee and great gray owl) we were compensated by the majestic
scenery and discovery of wonderful new birding spots. we decided to start a
new summer tradition and took the opportunity to begin our fledgling list on
this trip. this was especially challenging when we were unable to locate
parents; nonetheless we took on the task with heroic energy and were
rewarded with 27 spp of fledglings!!

Thursday, july 20. our route began north of seattle as we headed east
across route 20 (the north cascade highway). everyone should take this
route at least once!!! its wonderful and gorgeous and smells great!! There?s
a lovely and informative visitor?s center and awesome scenery as we crossed
the crest. We checked out the cinnamon twisp bakery in twisp (new rival for
the cle'ellum folks) and then stopped to visit the barred owls in loup loup.
we planned to take FR42 up to conconully but, not believing the ambivalent
forest service signs, were forced to turn around several miles in due to a
washout in the road. We headed back east on rt. 20 and when we finally
entered Okanogan scoped out the gulls on the river and then headed out to
conconully. due to our meanderings of the day and the lateness of the hour,
we were forced to camp at lower elevation. We stayed at cottonwood
campground, not the site of choice. however our site was next to a clear
stream so we put up with the persistent "mood music" played by the campers
down the lane...

Friday, july 21. the next morning we headed up the mountain by a less than
well traveled road. we started out on FR38 and eventually ended up on
FR3820. at lower elevations we had predominantly ponderosa pine and fir,
but as we climbed we encountered a dry sage habitat with bitterbrush and
wildflowers. we saw fields full of lupine, fiery paintbrush, yarrow,
cryptantha, buckwheat, owl-clover, lomatium, and stonecrop. Countless
others were left unidentified? we transitioned into lodgepole pine and
engelmann spruce forest at about 5500 ft. as we climbed high into the
mountains we had 2 family groups of SPRUCE GROUSE; one female with 2 young
kids, both still white and very downy, covered in bright black spots and not
yet capable of sustained flight. we found this first group just south of
the junction with FR39. we saw mom and kids both on the ground and feeding
up in the spruce trees. as an aside, i would NOT recommend this road (3820)
for regular travel as it is not maintained for vehicular traffic. it would
be more prudent to approach this part of the mountain via FR37 or 39.
however, being the adventurers that we are, we decided our vehicle and
driver were worthy and we managed to cover a whopping 24 miles in just over
9 hours!! more advice - don't take low clearance vehicles on this road...
anyway we found our second family of SPRUCE GROUSE in parachute meadow on
FR39. this time mom had 3 older kids, already exhibiting the darkish
brown/black colouration and able to fly quite well. we were both amazed at
how bold these birds are. they allowed quite close approach and just went
on about their lives feeding, grousing etc., all within just a few feet of
us. i'm quite sure i would have stepped on one had kathy not seen them
before i was able to. in parachute meadow we also had a LINCOLN SPARROW and
several mule deer feeding. (One really interesting photo memory from this
area is of several mule deer sitting on the various piles of gravel at the
quarry across from parachute meadow, very large ears sticking out, staring
at us 2 legged creatures..). we established camp at tiffany springs
campground, having the entire place to ourselves (this is a primitive site
so bring your own water) and then proceeded to hike down to tiffany lake.
on the way down we were treated to a show of a female THREE TOED WOODPECKER
feeding and teaching her youngster just how to get all those yummy bugs out
of those nooks and crannies. Most of the time the babe just sat and stared
around waiting for mom to shove food in his mouth. After a while he made
some ineffective attempts at doing some tree damage of his own. Even with
10 power bins, I could barely see the tiny holes he was excavating. Good
thing mom was a very efficient feeder. We also had GRAY JAYS and CLARKS
NUTCRACKERS in this area.


Saturday, july 22. Today we became a bit itinerary challenged. we were
witness to the lightning storm that ignited several of the fires in the
okanogan. to that end, we had a wonderful vantage point at tiffany springs
(6800 ft.). the storm could be heard moving in from the west at about 0330.
by about 0400 it was clear that it was a biggie, and we were in its path.
from the ridge above tiffany lake we could watch bazillions of joules of
energy being thrust DOWN upon the ragged peaks and forests of the north
cascades. the storm was just like the old nor'easters i so much enjoyed
back in virginia. however, exposed as we were, we broke camp in record time
(its amazing what fear can do) and headed back down the mountain via FR39.
we were incredibly lucky as the storm took a more northeasterly route than
we did and we had only to deal with loud claps of thunder and an hour or so
of rain. the storm however did put a damper on our hopes of finding black
backed woodpecker. although we explored the entire burn area from tiffany
springs down to long swamp, we had no luck. the weather was bad, it was
cold and nothing was calling or singing.
>From here we moved onto the Oroville area, stopping at the state park at
lake osoyoos to take a shower (not recommended as a camping area, way too
crowded!). Here we started seeing the results of the storm that had moved
through earlier in the day - 3 wildfires were already burning in the area.
we thought about heading back south, but then decided to brave the smoke and
tickling throat and remain in the area anyway. it was really sad to see all
the forest up in flames?
We hit paydirt as we headed out of town and onto Tonasket-havillah road. We
found a nice old homestead on the north side of the road with some great
ponds and wetlands around it. We spent more than an hour here scoping out
all the birds. We saw both BLACK and WHITE THROATED SWIFTS as well as
several species of swallows working the ponds. There was a good variety of
waterfowl, both RED WINGED and YELLOW HEADED BLACKBIRDS and we listened to
SORA calling. Even NIGHTHAWKS were flying around eating what they could.
Just down the road we stopped to see MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRDS, RED EYED VIREOS and
billions of juvenile JUNCOS and CHIPPING SPARROWS. Here we had the
unidentified sapsucker on our trip. Once we reached havillah we headed out
west lost lake road and followed FR33 to lost lake where we saw COMMON LOONS
and a few other birds. Then we drove on to Bonaparte lake where we ended up
camping for the night. We had a very interesting hail storm that lasted
about 2 minutes. This was a fairly birdy area with nice trails around the
lake and up onto the ridge. A good spot for a base camp.

Sunday, july 23. The following morning we birded the meadows as we headed
south along Bonaparte lake road. There are some really nice ponds and mud
flats along this route and this is the area that actually inspired us to
start our fledgling list. We were incredibly fortunate in having not one,
but two opportunities to study a NORTHERN GOSHAWK along this road as well as
a pair of OSPREY. We eventually ran back into rt 29 and headed west to
Tonasket. Along the way we looked for BOBOLINKS in the fields at the corner
of 20 and aenas valley road on the advice of a local birder we met at the
campground. Unfortunately the fields had already been plowed, but we were
assured that the man that farms the fields waits until the bobolinks have
fledged! we still didn?t see any. from Tonasket, we crossed the river and
headed north and took the loomis-Oroville rd west through the many lakes
recreation area. Once into loomis we turned south on palmer road and headed
down into the sinlahekin valley. This was truly a breathtaking drive and
Kathy and I were in nirvana!! We didn?t have a lot of time, so just briefly
checked out the wildlife area, but spent more time along the lakes,
especially fish lake. This is one place that has to be visited when going
into the Okanogan. This is poor quality sage habitat; like most of the
areas we visited in the Okanogan, grazing is quite prevalent. It was still
beautiful and worth the time. After spending the day in this area, we
headed back south on rt 97/20 and ended up spending a clean quiet night in a
really cool place in Okanogan called the U and I motel. Its sits right on
the Okanogan river and from the back yard of the ?cabin? we could watch
fledgling wood ducks, common nighthawks and a family of four osprey just
down the river on a high platform. Great place and great price ($40 for a
double). We ate at the western restaurant just down the road from the
motel. Decent food and closeby.

Mondy, july 24. The next morning we decided to make a try for SORA in the
south summit area as well as hunt for BOREAL CHICKADEE in the methow
wildlife area (once again on the advice of a local birder). We didn?t find
either bird, but believe they were in the area and we just lacked the time
to cover it adequately. To get to south summit, head west out of Okanogan
on rt. 20. turn left onto FR 41 just west of the turnoff for loup loup
campground. Head down past the snopark about 5 miles and you run into the
marsh. One disappointment was the milfoil covering the pond. The methow
area was reached by taking the twisp river road out of twisp and turning
north up into elbow coulee. There were some very nice riparian areas which
were quite birdy even in the middle of the day. This road held lots of
promise, but time constraints prevented complete exploration. We had to go
back through twisp, so made another stop at the bakery and then headed back
home to seattle. Our route from here was via rt 20 east, to rt 153 south to
rt. 97 south at pateros. In Wenatchee we picked up rt 2 west and went
through Leavenworth and up into Tumwater canyon. This is another very
beautiful drive. It was a bit hard leaving the Okanogan and coming back to
the concrete jungle, but we plan to head back out again in the fall for
another look around.

Our trip list is below. F stand for fledgling. Please feel free to contact
me if you have any questions.


Report: OK County #2
Number of Species Observed: 112
Number of Birds added to Life List: 2
Personal Comments:
with KE. see field journal for trip notes etc.

GAVIIFORMES
Gaviidae
Loon, Common 7/24/2000 3 No No Loons
Lost Lake
PODICIPEDIFORMES
Podicipedidae
Grebe, Pied-billed 7/24/2000 5 No No Grebes
F
Grebe, Horned 7/24/2000 7 No No Grebes
Spectacle Lake
CICONIIFORMES
Ardeidae
Heron, Great Blue 7/24/2000 2 No No Herons, Egrets and Bitterns
Bonaparte Meadows
Cathartidae
Vulture, Turkey 7/24/2000 2 No No New World Vultures
ANSERIFORMES
Anatidae
Goose, Canada 7/24/2000 35 Yes No Waterfowl
F
Duck, Wood 7/24/2000 13 No Yes Waterfowl
F, male in eclipse
Wigeon, American 7/24/2000 9 No Yes Waterfowl
F, Bonaparte Meadows
Mallard, 7/24/2000 23 Yes Yes Waterfowl
F
Redhead, 7/24/2000 1 No No Waterfowl
Tonasket-Havillah Rd. ponds
Scaup, Lesser 7/24/2000 15 No No Waterfowl
F
Bufflehead, 7/24/2000 1 No Yes Waterfowl
T-H Rd.
Goldeneye, Barrow's 7/24/2000 1 No Yes Waterfowl
Gorge Lake
Merganser, Common 7/24/2000 3 No No Waterfowl
F, Methow Wildlife Area
Duck, Ruddy 7/24/2000 18 No Yes Waterfowl
FALCONIFORMES
Accipitridae
Osprey, 7/24/2000 7 No Yes Hawks, Eagles and Kites
F
Harrier, Northern 7/24/2000 2 No Yes Hawks, Eagles and Kites
T-H Rd.
Goshawk, Northern 7/24/2000 1 No No Hawks, Eagles and Kites
Bonaparte Meadows
Hawk, Red-tailed 7/24/2000 6 No No Hawks, Eagles and Kites
Falconidae
Kestrel, American 7/24/2000 10 No Yes Falcons and Caracaras
GALLIFORMES
Phasianidae
Pheasant, Ring-necked 7/24/2000 1 No No Pheasants, Grouse, Quail and Tur
Concunally Rd.
Grouse, Spruce 7/24/2000 7 Yes Yes Pheasants, Grouse, Quail and Tur
F, FR 3820 near junction with FR 39, and Parachute Meadows
Odontophoridae
Quail, California 7/24/2000 17 Yes Yes New World Quails
F
GRUIFORMES
Rallidae
Coot, American 7/24/2000 40 Yes No Rails and Coots
F
CHARADRIIFORMES
Charadriidae
Killdeer, 7/24/2000 8 Yes No Plovers and Lapwings
Scolopacidae
Yellowlegs, Lesser 7/24/2000 1 Yes No Sandpipers
T-H Rd.
Sandpiper, Spotted 7/24/2000 7 Yes No Sandpipers
Snipe, Common 7/24/2000 1 No No Sandpipers
Bonaparte Meadows
Laridae
Gull, Ring-billed 7/24/2000 No No Gulls and Terns
Okanogan River
Gull, California 7/24/2000 No No Gulls and Terns
Okanogan River
Tern, Forster's 7/24/2000 1 No No Gulls and Terns
COLUMBIFORMES
Columbidae
Dove, Rock 7/24/2000 15 No No Pigeons and Doves
Dove, Mourning 7/24/2000 45 Yes No Pigeons and Doves
STRIGIFORMES
Strigidae
Owl, Barred 7/24/2000 1 No No Owls
Loupe Loupe Campground
CAPRIMULGIFORMES
Caprimulgidae
Nighthawk, Common 7/24/2000 18 Yes No Nightjars
APODIFORMES
Apodidae
Swift, Black 7/24/2000 22 Yes No Swifts
T-H Rd.
Swift, White-throated 7/24/2000 3 No No Swifts
T-H Rd.
Trochilidae
Hummingbird, Rufous 7/24/2000 3 Yes Yes Hummingbirds
CORACIIFORMES
Alcedinidae
Kingfisher, Belted 7/24/2000 3 No No Kingfishers
PICIFORMES
Picidae
Woodpecker, Lewis's 7/24/2000 10 Yes Yes Woodpeckers
F
Sapsucker, Red-breasted 7/24/2000 1 No No Woodpeckers
Conrete
Woodpecker, Downy 7/24/2000 1 Yes No Woodpeckers
Bonaparte Lake
Woodpecker, Hairy 7/24/2000 1 No No Woodpeckers
Tiffany Lake Trail
Woodpecker, Three-toed 7/24/2000 6 Yes Yes Woodpeckers
F, Tiffany Lake Trail, FR 39
Flicker, Northern 7/24/2000 15 Yes Yes Woodpeckers
F
Woodpecker, Pileated 7/24/2000 1 Yes No Woodpeckers
N Fork Ninemile Campground
PASSERIFORMES
Tyrannidae
Flycatcher, Olive-sided 7/24/2000 5 Yes No Tyrant Flycatchers
Wood-Pewee, Western 7/24/2000 25 Yes No Tyrant Flycatchers
Flycatcher, Willow 7/24/2000 4 Yes No Tyrant Flycatchers
Flycatcher, Hammond's 7/24/2000 1 Yes No Tyrant Flycatchers
FR 38
Flycatcher, Dusky 7/24/2000 1 Yes No Tyrant Flycatchers
FR 38
Flycatcher, Pacific-slope 7/24/2000 3 Yes No Tyrant Flycatchers
Phoebe, Say's 7/24/2000 1 No No Tyrant Flycatchers
Concunally Rd.
Kingbird, Western 7/24/2000 12 Yes No Tyrant Flycatchers
F
Kingbird, Eastern 7/24/2000 24 Yes No Tyrant Flycatchers
F
Vireonidae
Vireo, Cassin's 7/24/2000 1 Yes No Vireos and Allies
Methow Wildlife Area
Vireo, Warbling 7/24/2000 3 Yes No Vireos and Allies
Vireo, Red-eyed 7/24/2000 5 Yes No Vireos and Allies
Bonaparte Lake
Corvidae
Jay, Gray 7/24/2000 12 Yes No Crows and Jays
Crow, American 7/24/2000 10 Yes No Crows and Jays
Raven, Common 7/24/2000 12 Yes No Crows and Jays
Hirundinidae
Swallow, Tree 7/24/2000 Yes No Swallows
Swallow, Violet-green 7/24/2000 Yes No Swallows
Swallow, Northern Rough-winged 7/24/2000 Yes No Swallows
Swallow, Bank 7/24/2000 Yes No Swallows
Swallow, Cliff 7/24/2000 Yes No Swallows
F
Swallow, Barn 7/24/2000 No No Swallows
Paridae
Chickadee, Black-capped 7/24/2000 5 Yes No Tits and Allies
Chickadee, Mountain 7/24/2000 25 Yes No Tits and Allies
Chickadee, Chestnut-backed 7/24/2000 1 Yes No Tits and Allies
Methow Wildlife Area
Sittidae
Nuthatch, Red-breasted 7/24/2000 20 Yes No Nuthatches
F
Troglodytidae
Wren, House 7/24/2000 1 No No Wrens
Wren, Winter 7/24/2000 5 Yes No Wrens
Wren, Marsh 7/24/2000 1 No No Wrens
Lost Lake
Regulidae
Kinglet, Golden-crowned 7/24/2000 10 Yes No Kinglets
Turdidae
Bluebird, Western 7/24/2000 5 No Yes Thrushes
Bluebird, Mountain 7/24/2000 8 No Yes Thrushes
F
Thrush, Swainson's 7/24/2000 15 Yes No Thrushes
Thrush, Hermit 7/24/2000 10 Yes No Thrushes
Robin, American 7/24/2000 30 Yes Yes Thrushes
F
Thrush, Varied 7/24/2000 4 Yes No Thrushes
F
Mimidae
Catbird, Gray 7/24/2000 1 No No Mockingbirds and Thrashers
near Spectacle Lake
Sturnidae
Starling, European 7/24/2000 Yes No Starlings
Bombycillidae
Waxwing, Cedar 7/24/2000 35 Yes No Waxwings and Silky-flycatchers
Parulidae
Warbler, Yellow-rumped 7/24/2000 6 Yes No New World Warblers
Warbler, Black-throated Gray 7/24/2000 2 Yes No New World Warblers
Concrete
Warbler, Townsend's 7/24/2000 3 Yes No New World Warblers
Yellowthroat, Common 7/24/2000 5 Yes No New World Warblers
Thraupidae
Tanager, Western 7/24/2000 8 Yes Yes Tanagers
Emberizidae
Towhee, Spotted 7/24/2000 5 Yes No Tanagers,Buntings,Sparrows and
Sparrow, Chipping 7/24/2000 100 Yes No Tanagers,Buntings,Sparrows and
F
Sparrow, Brewer's 7/24/2000 1 No No Tanagers,Buntings,Sparrows and
Sparrow, Vesper 7/24/2000 1 No No Tanagers,Buntings,Sparrows and
Sparrow, Savannah 7/24/2000 3 No No Tanagers,Buntings,Sparrows and
Sparrow, Grasshopper 7/24/2000 1 Yes No Tanagers,Buntings,Sparrows and
V, Concunally Rd.
Sparrow, Song 7/24/2000 12 Yes No Tanagers,Buntings,Sparrows and
F
Sparrow, Lincoln's 7/24/2000 1 No No Tanagers,Buntings,Sparrows and
Parachute Meadow
Junco, Dark-eyed 7/24/2000 45 Yes No Tanagers,Buntings,Sparrows and
F
Cardinalidae
Grosbeak, Black-headed 7/24/2000 2 No No Cardinals, Grosbeaks and Americ
Loupe Loupe
Bunting, Lazuli 7/24/2000 1 Yes No Cardinals, Grosbeaks and Americ
Methow Wildlife Area
Icteridae
Blackbird, Red-winged 7/24/2000 50 Yes Yes Troupials and Allies
Meadowlark, Western 7/24/2000 20 Yes No Troupials and Allies
Blackbird, Yellow-headed 7/24/2000 45 Yes Yes Troupials and Allies
Fish Lake, T-H Rd. and
Blackbird, Brewer's 7/24/2000 Yes No Troupials and Allies
Cowbird, Brown-headed 7/24/2000 Yes Yes Troupials and Allies
Oriole, Bullock's 7/24/2000 4 Yes Yes Troupials and Allies
Fringillidae
Finch, Cassin's 7/24/2000 3 No No Siskins, Crossbills and Allies
Thirty Mile on FR 39 and
Finch, House 7/24/2000 3 No No Siskins, Crossbills and Allies
Crossbill, Red 7/24/2000 60 Yes No Siskins, Crossbills and Allies
F
Siskin, Pine 7/24/2000 40 Yes No Siskins, Crossbills and Allies
Goldfinch, American 7/24/2000 8 Yes No Siskins, Crossbills and Allies
Passeridae
Sparrow, House 7/24/2000 Yes Yes Old World Sparrows

* Record does not fall within date range of trip.


marissa j benavente
junbug99 at home.com
seattle wa