Along with a goodly number of others who crowded onto all levels of the S tower at the Kent Ponds, four of us got satisfying but mostly brief views of the Baikal Teal in the cold rain from 12:30 to 2:00 PM.
After a return to home grounds and Phantom Lake at around 2:45 PM, we first looked for the Tufted Duck where we have seen it most frequently - at the NE portion of the lake. It wasn't there, but scoping caught it in the far south. We drove to the viewing location at the Green Belt area and there it swam just beyond the now-slippery boardwalk. We got great close-up looks and a nice display of the tufts. The bird which was by itself then took off, flying to the far NE segment of the lake. Just as we were about to leave the parking lot, two vehicles with folks we had seen earlier at the Kent Ponds drove up. We steered them to the NE with the strong hope for their success.
A chilly, but happy day !
Howie Wilson
Bellevue, WA
mailto:hwiz at earthlink.net