Tweets:
A friend of mine went nude windsurfing once, a little farther along
the Columbia River at a windy spot near Clatskanie. It was at night.
I did not watch... But I heard about it. He survived, and I believe
he was quite exhilarated.
Now on a birdy note, our Tahoma Audubon intermed class led by Ken
Brown did a 4-day trip over the 4th, starting Friday the 4th. We went
to Nile Rd Burn, but didn't arrive until 10:30am. Dipped on the
Black-backed Woodpeckers, but saw nesting Williamson's Sapsuckers, and
Pygmy Nuthatches. Then we headed north and east. On I-90 heading
east at Moses Lake, we pulled off at the second water viewing area
where there is a big pullout. We viewed two CLARK'S GREBES in Moses
Lake very close to the hwy to the right. Reardon Ponds west of
Spokane, DeLorme p C 1.5 did not have mud yet for shorebirds but we
had ducks, P-billed Grebes and babies, and lots of young American
Coots w/ white heads. Then we headed to extreme NE WA. staying
overnight in
Chewelah. In the morning we had 3 SOLITARY SANDPIPERS, and a Spotted
Sandpiper about 4 miles
south of Chewelah, looking east from hwy 395. This wetland is near
the bottom of the hill, where the valley starts as you are heading
north on hwy 395.
>From there we traveled to Sullivan Lake. We had a Red-necked Grebe at
Sullivan Lake in breeding plumage.
That night we camped for two nights at Salmo Pass, near Mt Salmo NE of
Sullivan Lake in a rocky parking lot w/ horse do-do at 5900 feet. I
complained to our leader Ken Brown, but that night he got us two
nearby calling BOREAL OWLS! They called their work or w-erk call.
Unfortunately we could not see them. We walked up the trail that
leads past the end of the road at Salmo Pass and around the bend on a
north-facing slope. It was a lovely night w/ a partial moon. I then
apologized for complaining about our campsite in the Boreal Forest.
Oh, yes, in the afternoon, before the owl trip, we had a pair of Pine
Grosbeaks pecking around in our campsite about 20 feet away. Very
nice. Life views for me, after seeing these guys sylhouetted in the
past at the tops of trees. Wow!
We had a very nice trip with very nice people, and I wish to thank Ken
Brown for organizing it all.
Yours, Carol Schulz
DesMoines, WA
linusq at att.net
----- Original Message -----
From: <Pterodroma at aol.com>
To: <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Cc: <mpforce at mac.com>
Sent: Wednesday, July 09, 2003 10:39 AM
Subject: nude birdwatching


Imagine if you will (sounds like Rod Serling
| introducing the "Twilight Zone") that you are on the beach at Sauvie
Island on
| the Oregon side of the Columbia River last Sunday just kind of
hanging out (bad
| pun, sorry) soaking up some rays and enjoying the peace &
tranquility and
| magnificent views of Mt. Hood, St. Helens, and the mighty Columbia
itself.
| Suddenly after several hours you remember that your bins are in the
bottom of your
| pack. You pull them out and start scanning the opposite side of the
river (for
| birds of course!). Low and behold, you serendipitously spot an
adult
| RED-SHOULDERED HAWK soaring around over the tree tops over there
which happens to be
| Ridgefield NWR.
| .........okay, I confess, it's not a hypothetical question :-))
|
| ****************************************************
| Richard Rowlett
| Seattle / Bellevue (Eastgate), WA, USA