On Monday and Tuesday my wife and I did a quick 2 day tour of the Okanogan
area leaving from Seattle.

Overall we had a great trip and because we had never birded East of the
Cascades. we have been birding now for about 1 year. We added about a dozen
new birds to our life list. We ended up see about 80 species on the 2 days
with Tuesday being the high day of about 70.

We left Seattle on Monday at 4:30 and made our first stop at the Leavenworth
Fish Hatchery at 6:30. On the way over Steven's Pass we saw Ravens. A bird
we don't see much in Seattle. At the hatchery we had some light rain and it
seemed a little quiet there. One of the first birds seen was a Say's Phoebe.
A couple Osprey were chattering about and songs of the Swainson's Thrush
were heard. The other birds seen were pretty common. Upon leaving we did see
a few American Dipper which was a new bird for us along with the Phoebe.

Next stop was Washburn Island in Brewster. The road to this stop is not
marked at all and looks like a driveway to a farm which is also serves as.
Immediately upon stepping out it felt Birdy (thanks for tip Doug Parrot).
There we found GBH, Marsh Wren, Belted Kingfisher, Red-winged Blackbird,
Yellow-headed Blackbird (new bird) Willow Flycatcher, Spotted Towhee,
Black-headed Grosbeak, Eastern and Western Kingbirds, Mourning Dove, Spotted
Sandpiper, Common Loon, Tern, American White Pelican, Mallard and a half
dozen gulls sitting on the Columbia.

Next we headed off on the Cameron Lake Rd. We weren't really sure where to
stop along the road. The first main stop was Duley Lake. We saw our first
Ruddy ducks as wells as a couple Eared Grebe's in breeding plumage. Also
seen were Killdeer, Dunlin, Bufflehead, Canada Geese and Mallards. Along the
road to the next stop we saw Red-tailed Hawk, American Kestrel and the
Western Meadowlark. We took the Cameron Lake Loop rd and added California
Quail. About this time it started to pour rain.

We decided to head on up to our motel stop in Conconully. By the time we got
there the rain had died down. The reservoir there was pretty birdy. On the
water we found Canada Geese, Pied-billed Grebe, a half dozen Common
Goldeneye, 1 Red-necked Grebe, several American Coot and Mallards. On the
West side of the reservoir there we steep dirt banks where we found 50-70
Bank Swallow nest holes. Also on the bank it had three other species hopping
around, 25-30 Evening Grosbeaks, several Cassin's finches and a few Pine
Siskins. Over on the other side of the reservoir in the campground I found a
Yellow Warbler and a vocal Song Sparrow.

By now it was around 5pm. We headed out Sinlahekin Rd. We stopped at Blue
and Connor Lakes. Not a whole lot of activity at this time. Saw Mourning
Doves, Tree and Barn Swallows a Hummingbird, Bullock's Oriole, lots of Cedar
Waxwings, Bald Eagles and Brewer's Blackbird.

We kept heading North till we got to Loomis. I had read about a house with a
hummingbird feeder. I found it. Interestingly there were no hummingbirds but
the house had two little metal rods that stuck up from the porch railing
about 1 foot. the each had a Barn Swallow perched on them. It seemed almost
surreal . Not wanted to be suspicious and stake out the house for
hummingbirds we headed off to Palmer Lake.

By this time it was almost 8pm and probably too late for much. Saw a Bald
Eagle perched on a tree by the lake. We timed it so our drive back we put us
just after dark on Sinlahekin road hoping for Owls and Common Poorwill. Had
some more rain and it seemed very quiet. We stopping the car several times
in the pitch dark to listen. No owls but we did get to hear our first Common
Poorwill - a pair calling back and forth.

The next day brought better weather. We had much better birding the
Sinlahekin Rd. We spend most of our time at two stops, Blue and Fish Lakes.
They were hopping birds in the early morning. we did have fog come and go
which made identification and photography a bit trickier. We finally saw the
Swainson's Thrush. We have heard them many places but had never seen one.
Between the 2 lakes we saw Cedar Waxwing, Rufous Hummingbird, Willow
Flycatcher, Song sparrow, Eastern Kingbird, Northern Harrier, Osprey,
Black-headed and Evening Grosbeaks, Bullock's Oriole, Mourning Dove, Barn
Swallow, Chickadee, Spotted Towhee, Grey Catbird and Lazuli Bunting.

Stops around the reservoir produced similar to the previous day but we also
found, Mountain Chickadee, Pygmy Nuthatch, California Quail and a Red-naped
Sapsucker.
We headed back to Cameron Lake Rd and made a quick stop in a residential
area of Okanogan. We found a Eurasian-Collared Dove, Chipping sparrow,
Goldfinch, Starlings and House Sparrows.

On Cameron Lake road we started trying some different birding technique. We
would drive along and when we got to a spot that seemed to have potential we
would stop and get out of the car and spend a few minutes looking and
listening. If it seemed good we would stay and investigate. If not we would
quickly move on. This proved to be better than the previous day where I
think we probably drove by some areas we should have stopped. We found a lot
of the same birds from the previous day but more of them. We also found our
first Western Bluebird.

Another quick stop at Washburn Island had similar birds as the previous day
but was still well populated.

We thought we would add Cassimere Bar that was just around the corner from
Washburn. My wife put on bug spray and full body covering. I thought it
wouldn't be too bad. Big mistake. This was about the buggiest place I have
ever been. We walked about a couple hundred yard. Any stops to look thought
the bins or take a picture became agony as you got covered by tons of
critters. We quickly headed back to get out of this. As I was on my way back
to the car I imaged that this could be a suitable environment for Purgatory.
The only bright side to this stop was that I saw a pair of western Tanagers.

Our last stop was at Blackbird Island in Leavenworth. At 3pm the town was
hopping with tourist. Not much to see but we did view 3 Turkey Vultures
circling high overhead. We arrived home in Seattle a about 6pm and add a few
yard birds to our day list to bring us over 70.

Overall it was a great trip. Better weather might have helped but we learned
a lot. Birding 1 area where you get out and walk a certain route like at
Nisqually is more straight forward than birding and area like Cameron Lake
rd. I'm still not sure how best to bird this area. It's 30 miles long and
figuring out where to stop, how many places to stop and how long to spend at
each will take time to learn.

I want to thank all those people that responded to my queries for
information. It really helped a lot.

Best Regards,
Doug Schurman
Seattle - Olympic Hills