I birded a few spots in the Snoqualmie Valley today to scout for a Seattle
Audubon Birdathon on April 26. My first stop was Tokul Creek on Fish
Hatchery Road between Preston and Snoqualmie where I saw a singing Dipper.
I then headed to Snoqualmie Falls to look for the Peregrines. .They pair
flew in about 10 minutes after I arrived and put on a brief playful
acrobatic show before perching in separate spots. I got one bird in my scope
and soon had a bunch of tourists eager to take a look. It was fun to show
the people the bird. The most common comments were "beautiful bird" and
"amazing." At one point one of the birds flew very close to the
falls.almost like it was trying to touch the water. After about an hour of
showing the birds to tourists I was about to pack up when one of the birds
dove down the cliff and snagged a Rock Pigeon. The crowd was very excited
about that one.



Next stop was Stillwater which was pretty quiet. Many of the usual suspects
made appearances including Red-breasted Sapsucker, a couple of Brown
Creepers, kinglets and heard-only Purple Finch and Pileated Woodpecker.



My last stop was Moss Lake which was a new spot for me. I headed around the
south side of the lake expecting a quick stroll around the small lake. The
quick stroll turned into about 2 hours of beautiful but circuitous up and
down hiking. Those of you who have walked the trails around there probably
know what I mean. Let's just say I was happy to find my way back to the
trailhead. My Birdathon partner John Tubbs and I will NOT subject Birdathon
participants to the same hike. Unless they want to. During my trek I came
across a nice flock of Red Crossbills as well as another Red-breasted
Sapsuckers, hoards of Kinglets and Chickadees and a few Bufflehead on the
lake.



Mason Flint

Bellevue, WA