Russ Koppendrayer and I birded Skamania County today looking for some county lifebirds for him and some year birds for me. We started out on the Washougal River where the GREEN HERONS at the Schoolhouse Creek wetlands were easy to find. From the observation deck on Highway 14 at the Franz Lake NWR we spotted a flock of shorebirds at the western end of the lake. Despite the great distance we were able to pick out, WESTERN SANDPIPER, LEAST SANDPIPER, DUNLIN and one LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER. One GREAT EGRET and at least a dozen NORTHERN SHOVELERS were also seen from the deck. We checked the ponds and oak woodlands from Skamania Landing to North Bonneville and added a GREATER YELLOWLEGS and Slender-billed WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH. In Stevenson, there were KILLDEER, SPOTTED SANDPIPER and LEAST SANDPIPER at Rock Creek Cove. The Dunlin was an addition to my Skamania County life list. A seven shorebird day in Skamania County, where both the Dunlin and dowitcher are Code 5 birds is rare. At the wetlands on Red Bluff Road a MARSH WREN was heard and seen while we ate our lunches. We then headed north of Trout Lake to look for woodpeckers along the FR8040 road, we called for multiple species all the way to the Yakima County line without even seeing a flicker. On our trip back down the road we finally found a BLACK-BACKED WOODPECKER, a target species for both of us. We ended up with 74 species for the day with four yearbirds for me and at least five county birds for Russ.

Wilson Cady