Sat., three of us decided to take advantage of the good weather and go to
Vancouver to look for some highlight birds. We went to the Brambling site
first, 1961 Berkeley. We arrived right after the bird had been there for a
while. We were assured if we could wait long enough the bird would come back.
We waited 1-1/2 hrs. before the Brambling showed up. We were able to watch it
for about 10 minutes and we all got good looks at it. So that was a great
start for the weekend. The woman at the house said that the Northern
Pygmy-Owl at Maplewood Park had not been seen for a few days and we did not
see it.

Next we headed for Stanley Park and Ferguson Point to look for the Rock
Sandpiper. The tide was in and not many of the rocks were exposed. We saw a
number of Black Turnstones, but could not transform any of them into a Rock
Sandpiper. The American Wigeon and Barrow's Goldeneye were numerous. Walking
just south of the point we noticed a number of pointed rocks that were
balanced on top of other rocks. We figured they had to be using cement, glue,
or rods put into holes of both rocks. I was able to scramble down and check
one of them out. I found the rock really was precariously balanced on its
point. It took me some time to be able to get it in balance again. It is
obvious that these balanced rocks had to be temporary as the next good wind
would blow them over. We were wondering if this was a one time occurrence, or
are there some people doing this on a regular basis? It was quite impressive.

We stayed at a hotel near the airport and headed for Iona Beach Park about 8
in the morning on a beautiful, sunny day. The ponds were frozen over except
for a little on the edges. So most of the waterfowl were on the bay side. We
parked our car at the gravel lot just east of the south jetty. I got my scope
out of the trunk and we walked about half way out on the dike. The tide was
in and there weren't any mudflats showing. We did see a large number of
Dunlin flying, many of the usual waterfowl. An immature bald eagle flew over
with a duck in its talons. It labored off to the north, barely able to
maintain altitude. When we got back to the car we found the driver's side
window had been smashed in. They took a couple of small day packs, unlatched
the trunk and took all three pieces of soft luggage. They must have been in a
hurry as they ignored all the visible loose stuff such as; my Sibley's Guide,
two blankets, two pairs of hiking boots and other things. I imagine they were
looking for cash or credit cards, none of which was in the stuff they stole.
We reported it to the Richmond RCMP. We were wondering if this was a common
occurrence at Iona. The police couldn't give us an answer. Our car was the
only one without BC plates and the car was parked next to a large van which
evidently gave them some cover from other vehicles parked to the north of the
start of the dike. I suspect they may have been watching when I took the
scope out of the trunk and noticed the luggage. Apparently, you can't be too
careful. So what started out great ended up on the downside.

One other note for those that don't live in the Vancouver area. The access to
Iona and McDonald beaches is permanently changed starting today. Instead of
turning right after crossing the Sea Is. bridge, you continue straight ahead
onto Miller Road and then turn right on the new extension of Templeton Road
to go north to the beaches.

Hugh Jennings
Bellevue, WA
hughbirder at aol.com