Tweets,

Brien Meilleur joined Nancy and me in a tour of the upper half of the Snoqualmie Valley, Fall City to Carnation. We hoped we might get lucky and find the SANDHILL CRANE Alan Bauer reported via Andy Stepniewski day before yesterday. Not knowing exactly where it was I figured it was a long shot, but we lucked out and spotted it half hidden by a row of deciduous trees looking se from near the junction of West Snoqualmie River Rd. and 24th SE. We were able to get much better looks from just north of the 90 degree bend where SE 23rd becomes 316th SE. We scoped it from the road to the wnw between a house and barn where there is a swing on a big maple. It was foraging leisurely near the south end of a row of deciduous trees along a dike and at times quite difficult to spot. My first for the county.

Lots of sparrows north along the zig-zag route toward the Carnation Marsh, with two WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS with the usual suspects, plus a PEREGRINE duking it out with a Red-tail.

To top off the day we spotted a SNOWY OWL in the grass at the pond below the overlook along Carnation Farms Road just northwest of the Snoqualmie River Bridge. It has a somewhat damaged right eye but otherwise seemed OK. Less heavily marked than the Discovery Park bird.

A beautiful wintry day.

Gene Hunn
18476 47th Pl NE
Lake Forest Park, WA