hi all -
I spent about 2 hours late afternoon today at the Marblemount field hoping for the Eastern Meadowlark. I left at 6:30 having had no luck. Via other birders there, I learned that it had not been seen for most of the morning, but that someone apparently saw it around 12:30, and then not again for the rest of the day.

While waiting w/ about a half dozen other birders, a resident came driving up and stopped right in the way of our scope views, sitting in the truck and seeming ready to be aggressive. After a few minutes just sitting there, he got out of the truck, asked what we were up to, and proceeded to talk birds with us for more than an hour! He was very pleasant , though initially concerned about who was lurking at his driveway end.

Other birds in the area:

At the Hardy Burn gravel lots, I came across a GRAY FLYCATCHER & a BREWER'S SPARROW --
in Newhalem at the spot of the earlier Hooded Warbler sighting, no luck with much of anything except Chipping Sparows
Newhalem Agg Ponds had American Redstart, Red-eyed Vireo, & Veery
At the Marblemount EAME field, maybe 6+ Western Kingbirds, a Say's Phoebe and many other birds to keep us distracted now and again


Here's hoping the Eastern Meadowlark was just taking most of today off and that others will be able to relocate later.

Matt Bartels
Seattle, WA