Hi All,

I took a very circuitous route from Snoqualmie into the Montlake Fill today in an unsuccessful attempt at the Cattle Egret. However, the drive past Snoqualmie Falls, through Fall City, Carnation, and by Carnation Farm and Sykes Lake produced some good birds.

The confluence of Tokul Creek and the Snoqualmie River off Fish Hatchery Road produced several COMMON MERGANSERS - this species is virtually a constant presence during the late fall and winter in this area - or across the river and downstream by a large rock, and there is often an American Dipper in working Tokul Creek itself although I did not find it today. Fish Hatchery Road also yielded the first of at least a dozen RED-TAILED HAWKS (RTHA) in various locations for the day - surprisingly all the Red-tailed's that I saw were adults, no immatures.

I saw two COMMON RAVENS (CORA) just west of Fall City, north of 202 on 384th (I believe 384th is correct, it is the 'back road' that eventually turns into West Snoqualmie River Road and goes by Tall Chief golf course). The large grassy field and woodlots about a quarter mile north of 202 on this road (to the left) have been very consistent for CORA recently, if any of you want one within fairly easy reach for a King County list. This area also is excellent for ducks a little later in the season when a good part of the field floods for the remainder of the winter. Last winter, harvested cornfields along this road hosted Tundra Swans, but I have yet to see any this season.

I continued on West Snoqualmie River Road past the golf course and through Carnation Marsh and saw several more RTHA's and a number of the to-be-expected passerines.

The best birds of the day, however, were at Carnation Farm and Sykes Lake. For those not familiar, Carnation Farm is accessed just north of Carnation by turning left onto (appropriately enough) Carnation Farm Road and following the road to the farm that made the 'contented cows' famous. (Soon to become a Robert Redford 'Hole in the Wall Gang' retreat for sick kids.) Before you get to Carnation Farm, just after crossing the Snoqualmie River, on your right you will see a relatively new King County Natural Area called Chinook Bend. There is a pond near the road that is virtually always good for multiple duck species, and is in the process of being enhanced for waterfowl. Today, very strangely, it was deserted.

To the east of Carnation Farm, there is an outlook over their very large hayfields. This lookout is always worth a stop because there are major snag trees along the Snoqualmie River that often hold Peregrines, eagles, hawks or herons (bring a good scope) and because it allows you to see the geese that are almost always in the field at this time of year. The vegetation is high enough right now that it is fairly difficult to see the birds from the lower road section that goes through the farm. Today, there were easily a thousand geese in the field, so I took the time to do a thorough examination of the fields through the scope. Most of the geese were Canadas with a few Cacklers mixed in. However, there were at least four immature SNOW GEESE (no adults) and at least seven GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE thrown into the mix for good measure. These were first of the season birds for me in the Snoqualmie Valley.

Sykes Lake is the long, skinny lake that lies mostly on Carnation Farm property, and 100th crosses it near its west end. Sykes is good in the winter for a variety of waterbirds. Today it did not disappoint. Present were:
AMERICAN WIGEON
DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT
GREEN-WINGED TEAL - at least 200, including a flock of about 50 that rocketed in from somewhere, circled the lake about six times and then decided to set down
PIED-BILLED GREBE
WESTERN GREBE - There have consistently been three to five WEGR's here every time I've visited over the last few weeks.
AMERICAN COOT
RING-NECKED DUCK
MALLARD
GREAT BLUE HERON
(Surprisingly, no Scaup.)

There is a snag tree at the west end of Sykes Lake that often hosts raptors. Today, it was an eagle bonanza. There were three immature BALD EAGLES, one with almost completely white underparts, the other two more typical of 2nd or 3rd year birds. As I was watching the immature eagles, two adult BALD EAGLES flew right over the tree and landed several hundred yards away on a large tree near the river. For a brief period, a COMMON RAVEN landed within ten feet of the immatures, providing an interesting size comparison.

No falcons, harriers, or buteos other than RTHA were seen today, but the number of hawks and eagles, and the wide plumage variations seen was very enjoyable. My goal this winter is to find a Rough-legged Hawk in the Snoqualmie Valley - I'm told there are very few (if any) records of this species for the Valley, but it would seem to be plausible winter habitat. Anyone have any more specific info about occurrence of this species here?

John Tubbs
Snoqualmie, WA
johntubbs at comcast.net
www.tubbsphoto.com