Louise Rutter and I made a quick trip today (18 Mar 2008) to look for the Slaty-backed Gulls on Wenzel Slough Road near Satsop and Emperor Geese near South Bend.

Wenzel Slough Road was our first stop, and there were several hundred gulls in the field near Keys Road. Between 7 AM and 10 AM, we saw just about everything expected, including 3 or more Glaucous Gulls, but no Slaty-backeds. We returned about 1:30 PM and found no gulls in the area, but they began to return around 2. We then spotted the 3rd-cycle Slaty-backed Gull around 2:15. However, it kept disappearing into the tall grass and behind the small hills in the field -- we probably only had a few minutes of observation time even though we knew it was there over the next two hours. The gulls would occasionally flush, but I managed to see it in flight only once. Very frustrating. However, the Glaucous Gulls stuck out like a sore thumb every time the flock took flight.

The two Emperor Geese were in the field alongside Hwy 101 in the vicinity of the Potter Slough bridge, just west (?) of South Bend, around noon. I believe this is in the vicinity of milepost 53. We were parked on the side of the bridge closest to South Bend. They would not have been visible from the other side.

John Puschock
Wedgwood, Seattle
g_g_allin at hotmail.com
http://www.birdtreks.com

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