Hi Tweets -
Yesterday I made my third trip of the year to the Naches Pass area of
King Co. These were my first trips up there, and I've been
consistently impressed by the possibilties. If you are looking for a
new part of King Co to bird, I'd recommend it highly. Having put off
posting results from earlier outings, I figured I'd just combine
things into one message here.

Birds:
Red-naped Sapsuckers - in three trips, I've seen RNSA 3 times.
Yesterday, I even had a pair mating - a pretty good sign of [barely]
western WA breeding. [There are also Red-breasted Sapsuckers up
there, so check any sapsuckers closely for hybrids]

Chipping Sparrow - as more of the snow clears, these seem easier to
find up there. Yesterday, wandering around the edges of many of the
boggy meadows, they were plentiful.

Mountain Bluebird - last week [on May 26], a pair of MOBL was present
on a side road south just beyond the mp15 sign.

Northern Goshawk - I've yet to see one in the county, but another
couple birders had one up there on May 27.

Blue Grouse - again, a May 27 observation by others up there.

Ruffed Grouse - down lower, near the county line, there was one near
the road on May 27.

Lincoln's Sparrow - good place to find them singing on territory,
around the edges of the boggy meadows.

Fox Sparrows - also singing in numbers up there.

Olive-sided Flycatchers, Wilson's, Yellow & Townsend's Warblers are
all also around.

I'm still keeping my eyes out for other eastside treats like Calliope
Hummingbird, Am.Three-toed & Black-backed Woodpeckers and anything
else that might sneak across the crest. Down lower, I'm hopeful that
a Hermit Warbler or two might still be findable this far north.

Directions:
From Seattle, it seems to take about 1 1/2 hrs if you don't run into traffic.
Take 410 east from Enumclaw, crossing into Pierce County at
Greenwater. 2 miles later, turn left onto FR 70. In just under 9
miles, FR 70 crosses back into King Co and starts heading up. The
Red-naped Sapsuckers have been present just prior to the 15 mile
marker [15 miles from 410]. As of yesterday, the road was snow free
almost to the 16 mile mark. Snow persists on side roads and in the
meadows, but the roads up to that point are fine and relatively
pothole free.

If anyone else finds anything interesting up there, I'd love to hear
about it. I look forward to making more trips as spring continues to
emerge up there.

Matt Bartels
Seattle, WA


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