Hi tweeters,

My husband Tom and I spent last week exploring Gettysburg and a few other
historic sites on the East Coast. We had a good time, and I took the
opportunity to bird some of the sites. We spent most of the time enjoying
the area and taking in the monuments, so we didn't have time to go to any
real birding hotspots, but I did manage to see 85 species, and I got some
great looks at a lot of the specialties in the area.

We started out spending a couple of days in Gettysburg. It felt a little
weird to bird such a historically profound location, but I did enjoy the
birds there. The first place I stopped was in the woods behind the monument
at Oak Ridge. The first day, we found a Brown Thrasher and a small flock of
Blue-headed Vireos there. The next day, I explored the woods on my own, and
managed to pish out a pair of White-eyed Vireos, as well as two Gray
Catbirds, one of which seemed to offering me a green bug!

As we drove along Seminary Ridge, we found lots of Eastern Bluebirds in the
trees. Midway down this road, we stopped to hear a ranger giving a lecture,
when I noticed a Yellow-shafted Flicker flying across the field - with a red
mustache! He was followed by a Red-headed Woodpecker, which finally landed
in the trees near the High Water Mark.

Next we hit Little Round Top. As Tom was reliving Chamberlain's campaign, I
noticed lots of Indigo Buntings, Chipping Sparrows, Eastern Wood Pewees,
House Wrens and bluebirds in and around Devil's Den. The woods around the
sites were echoing with the haunting calls of Wood Thrush, and I also
managed to find a lot of woodpeckers: a Red-headed, a few Pileated, lots of
Downies and several Red-bellied. Here I also found a pair of Scarlet
Tanagers, as well as a Barred Owl, which landed in a tree in front of me,
stared at me for a minute, and then flew off.

After Gettysburg, we headed down to Antietam. Here I found a lot of
bluebirds and buntings, as well as Grasshopper Sparrows and groundhogs in
the open fields. Near Burnside Bridge, I found the most interesting bird of
the trip: a Bay-breasted Warbler. Nearby, I also found a male Orchard
Oriole. The real highlight here was our B&B, which was a delightful house
on an acre that backed to the battlefield. The grounds were beautifully
landscaped, and they had a pair of House Wrens nesting in their garden shed.
They also had feeders that attracted East Coast specialties that we could
enjoy at close range as we sipped lemonade on the porch: Cardinals,
White-breasted Nuthatches, Tufted Titmice, Carolina Chickadees, Blue Jays,
and lots of fiesty goldfinches.

At Harpers Ferry, we took a hike up to Maryland Heights, and found a lot of
Baltimore Orioles (the only place we saw them on this trip), as well as more
Wood Thrush and a few warblers and vireos in the trees along the Potomac
River. We then traveled down to Charlottesville via Skyline Drive.
Unfortunately, it was very foggy during the drive, but we did manage to find
some more warblers, including a pair of Hooded Warblers, Louisiana
Waterthrush, and Northern Parulas.

At Charlottesville, we stayed in another B&B, again with feeders and a
beautifully landscaped yard. This place also had a hummingbird feeder, and
we were able to enjoy Ruby-throated Hummingbirds at close range, until they
were supplanted by twinkling fireflies at dusk. The next morning, I was
delightfully awakened by the loud singing of Carolina Wrens.

We ended the trip at the Smithsonian in DC, where I got a sombering look at
a few extinct birds behind glass: Passenger Pigeons, a Carolina Parakeet,
and a Heath Hen. It was interesting to get a feel for their size and
appearance, anyway.

I didn't take too many bird pictures on this trip, but I have two shots on
line (both ironically taken in somewhat colorful places):
an Eastern Bluebird taken in the "Bloody Lane" at Antietam:
http://www.geocities.com/christinevadai/nonPNW/eastern_bluebird.htm
An Indigo Bunting in Devil's Den at Gettysburg:
http://www.geocities.com/christinevadai/nonPNW/indigo_bunting.htm

Regards,
Christine Vadai
Mill Creek, WA
christinevadai at sprynet.com