Hi Tweeters,

This is long but some of these spots haven't been mentioned in awhile on Tweeters.? No real rarities but a nice trip with nice birds away from work and other responsibilties.

On the way over Sunday stopped and walked up the twin water towers at Snoqualmie Summit, of note to me

Lincoln Sparrow still in area, nesting, one carrying food.
Yellow Warbler
Hairy Woodpecker
Mountain Chickadee
Red Crossbill, possibly the critter that is able to open the fir cones
???up there, the cones are tight and covered in resin, but some are opened.
Evening Grosbeak
Redtail Hawk coursing over the ski slopes on the wing
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Gold Creek was very quiet but there was a Vaux's Swift and a Common Nighthawk.
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On Monday went to Washtucna early and ran into Mike Marsh, nice to meet a fellow tweeter.? Very birdy as it often is though I found no rarities, partial list:

Yellow-rumped Warbler, many
Ruby-crowned Kinglet, many
Empids, many-unfortunately these birds are not around long enough for me
? have learned how tell quiet Dusky and Hammonds apart.? But there also
? was Pacific-sloped Flycatcher which I could tell.
Downy Woodpecker
Sharp-shinned Hawk, immature mixing things up.
Hermit Thrush
Lincoln's Sparrow
Wilson's Warbler
Western Tanager
Western Wood Peewee
Eurasian Collared Dove
American Kestrel

Where did the vireo's go, the only possibility was a kinglet that looked like a Hutton's Vireo.
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Lyon's Ferry, super windy, many beautiful butterflies too.? New birds for the day for me included Osprey packing a meal, Orange-crowned Warber, Canada Goose, and Pied-billed Grebe.? I walked in the wind out to end of the spit.
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Palouse Falls was full of people but I did see a Loggerhead Shrike on the way in.
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It was about 3pm when I swung back through Washtucna and I got to see a lovely and incredible bird concentration.? Both Yellow-rumped Warblers and Ruby-crowned Kinglets were tightly massed on the tree just to the left while sitting on the Patrick Sullivan memorial bench facing toward the stream.? Truly dripping from the tree, one binocular view could easily contain at least 8 birds at a time.? I should have the YR Warbler underside pattern emblazoned in my brain.
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Hatton Coulee Rest Area Ponds, my first visit for this location, very worthwhile stop:

Lesser Yellowlegs
Greater Yellowlegs
Solitary Sandpiper
Western Sandpiper
Pectoral Sandpiper
Baird's Sandpiper
Wilson's Snipe
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Para Ponds in Othello, too much traffic and not enough birds but did see my first Great Egret of the trip further down McManamen Road in a pond.
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On Tuesday to Sun Lakes State Park a favorite place.? Some nice birds included:

Eastern Kingbird
Virginia Rail
a probable Gray Catbird, it was skulky but it sure sounded like one
American Wigeon
Canyon Wren

I walked down into the Environmental Learning Center in the park and enjoyed the mini-oasis.? Yellow-rumped Warblers were everywhere and engaging in interesting behavior.? Many were on the ground and one chased a Robin, another briefly hung out with a tight group of 3 White-crowned Sparrows, and 1 Savannah Sparrow.? An accipiter flew through, I think it was another immature Sharp-shinned Hawk, it was heavily streaked but quite a bit bigger than the Washtucna one.
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White-throated Swifts were flying over Dry Falls State Park when I arrived then soon moved off.
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I added many water bird species checking the lakes on the way down to Soap Lake.
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Soap Lake was great at the south end.? This is not covered so well in the Birder's Guide and I discovered a spot I had not been to before.? There is the park just off of SR17 and I have also been to the city park before by Ash St N but there seems to be a large public access near a flagpole between a church and the library on Main St.? You can look right down onto the shorebirds from here.? There was about 20 Red-necked Phalaropes in stunning light in the water below me and Western, Pectoral, and Baird's Sandpiper below on the beach.? There was about another dozen Red-necked Phalaropes off of the city park and an American Pipet flew over.
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Perch Point is also not in the Birder's Guide at all so I tried to remember how to get there since it has been a few years since I have visited and then I took a few notes on the way out.? To get there see P354 in the Birder's Guide off of hwy 262, go north on M SE, then left onto 6 SE, about 2.6 miles there is a gray house on the right and a fishing access road on the left.? Go left and then take the first right off the access road which will drop you down the pond and also access Potholes Reservior.? Green-winged and Cinnamon Teal were here along with Least Sandpiper, Eurasian Collared Dove, and Lesser Yellowlegs. Be careful where your drive your car here, one time I was here and someone was mired axle deep in soft gravel.
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Lind Coulee had my only Long-billed Dowitchers for the trip.
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I really didn't spend a lot of time birding Potholes State Park but did see

White Pelicans
Sandhill Cranes, 4 flew by
Western Grebe, still with begging chicks, the chicks were fully feathered
and only were slightly smaller than the adults
Great Horned Owls, 2 calling on Tuesday night.
Black-crowned Night Heron, immatures only, in flight.
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On the way home drove through Columbia National Wildlife Refuge and saw a Bonaparte's Gull at Soda Lake Dam. A concentration of Barn Swallows made me stop and the odd noise I also heard turned out to be their voices amplified inside a culvert. At this little stop a large flock of White Pelicans was soaring high in the air, about 40 birds.
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At county line ponds between Othello and Vantage I saw one Barn Swallow and that was that.
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At Wanapum State Park I saw Yellow Warbler and a Townsend's Warbler and I ran into Ruth Sullivan and Loren (sorry didn't catch the last name). Great to catch up Ruth again. I was heading home and they were heading toward Washtucna. I went through the river side campground on the way out and many birds were bathing in a puddle left over from watering including 8 little butterbutts splashing away. A nice ending.

All the locations except the ones I gave directions to are in the Birder's Guide to Washington by Hal Opperman, a great must have book in my opinion.

Kathy
Roosting in Kent, near Lake Meridian
(chukarbird at yahoo dot com)
Any driving directions contained within this message are given as a courtesy, beware, author is directionally challenged and will not vouch for them.