Subject: [Tweeters] Okanogan Co. trip
Date: Aug 8 00:21:49 2005
From: Stefan Schlick - greenfant at hotmail.com


Here the highlights of a trip to the Okanogan that Mike Fleming and I took
this weekend:

Black Swift (5 overhead 10.9mi into FR5130)
Northern Goshawk (1 immature bird 11.9mi into FR5130)
Blue Grouse (1 hen with 2 chicks 15.8mi into FR5130; 1 hen with 1 chick 5mi
into FR5220; 1 hen with 6 chicks 6.5mi into FR5220; 2 hens 1.1mi into FR100
- Buck Lake)
Ruffed Grouse (2 near creek at Nice CG off FR5130; 1 off 2-track 13mi into
FR5130)
Northern Pygmy-Owl (1 calling at Nice CG off FR5130)
Williamson's Sapsucker (2 males about 1.9mi into FR5220; 1 male about 2.9
into FR5220; 2 males and 2 females 1.1mi into FR100 - Cub Pass; 1 male 13mi
into FR5130)
Evening Grosbeak (2 at Lone Fir CG off US20; 6 about 2.5mi into FR100 - Cub
Pass; 5 at Washington Pass - 4 at parking area for overlook and 1 at marshy
area at turnoff for the overlook)
Red Crossbill (1 male at Roger Lake off FR39; 1 male 3.4mi north of Roger
Lake off FR39)
Gray Catbird (1 in the back of the Winthrop Brewing Company in Winthrop)
Lewis's Woodpecker (2+ along the Methow River in the back of the Winthrop
Brewing Company in Winthrop)
Three-toed Woodpecker (1 male 2.4mi north of Roger Lake off FR39, 1 male at
south end of Thunder Mtn burn at MP15.5 off FR39)
Boreal Chickadee (several birds at each of the following 4 stops off FR39:
3.4mi, 5.4mi, 6mi and 7.2mi north of Roger Lake)

FR5130, also called Eightmile Creek Rd, branches off W Chewuch Rd several
miles north of Winthrop. The Buck Lake turnoff (FR100) is about 0.5mi into
FR5130. The Cub Pass turnoff (FR5220) is about 6.2mi into FR5130 and reaches
Cub Pass in about 8mi. At the pass, you can turn north onto FR100 (again!)
towards Sweetgrass Butte to reach an elevation of 6100ft.

We were surprised to find 8 Williamson's Sapsuckers in an area where there
are no Western Larches. Other interesting birds included a Slate-colored Fox
Sparrow 13mi into FR5130 at a fairly low elevation and several
Chestnut-backed Chickadees in a wet area about 11mi into FR5130 (which
allowed us to get all 4 Chickadees occurring in WA). Signs of post-breeding
dispersal are everywhere: There was a Clark's Nutcracker just about 2mi
north of Winthrop, a Townsend's Solitaire just a bit further down the road
in the valley, several Wilson's Warblers in high elevation and several
passerine flocks with good numbers of Townsend's, Audubon's and Nashville
Warblers, chickadees, vireos, Red-breasted Nuthatches and finches at varied
elevations.

Stefan Schlick
Bellevue, WA