I stayed overnight in Ellensburg again on Thursday, so I could get to Wenas
early. Though early is relative in this case - it always takes me far longer
to reach Wenas than I predict, because it's impossible not to bird Umptanum
Road along the way....



Umptanum Road turned up the usual mix - both bluebird species, a nice
LoggerHead Shrike, Say's Phoebe, Sage Thrasher, Sage and Vesper Sparrows, an
Olive-Sided Flycatcher with defining white tuft. Lots of American Kestrels
posed decoratively along the lines.



In terms of numbers, Wenas was a competition between the Chipping Sparrows
and the western bluebirds. The bluebirds obviously had a very good breeding
season, with spotted juveniles in every patch of grass and hanging from
every low branch. The Cute Factor prize went to a mountain chickadee still
with a remnant halo of nestling fluff. I met all three nuthatch species
within ten minutes. I followed an excessively loud and oddly
hollow-sounding drumming to a juvenile red-naped sapsucker, who hadn't yet
learned the futility of tapping on bluebird nesting boxes.



And I finally found my life white-headed woodpecker - I heard the call off
to my left, just before the male flew in and landed right on the tree I had
my binoculars on. He stayed around for thirty seconds, then took off through
the campground, calling again, and disappeared into the trees. I couldn't
re-find him.



Three species of flycatchers around - dusky, gray, and the ubiquitous
western wood peewees, feeding very grown up and adult-looking babies! I had
a few common nighthawk fly-bys. And when I went back to the car, there was
a female white-headed woodpecker perched low on a pine ten feet away. Two
for the price of one!



All this, and I'd still be back home early enough in the afternoon to miss
the traffic. Except they'd closed the I-90 bridge so that idiots didn't
crash into the back of each other while being distracted by the Blue Angels.
Not that it worked - the same idiots simply crashed into the back of one
another on the 405 instead. It took me almost as long to get from Bellevue
to my home in north Kirkland as it took me to get from the rest stop east of
Cle Elum to Bellevue. Thanks guys....



Louise Rutter

Kirkland