I started my morning at Central Ferry Canyon with SINGING Red Crossbills in the sun. The Bridgeport/Brewster lowlands were fogged in all day whereas the Waterville Plateau was warm and sunny. The only snow up on the Waterville Plateau seems to be at the high point of Central Ferry Canyon Rd. A mostly snowy field near where Central Ferry Canyon Rd hits Division for the first time yielded a calling Lapland Longspur among many Horned Larks.
The snowfree roads around Mansfield hardly had any birds. I did run into 6 Greater Sage-Grouse about 200yds east of Rd H NE & Rd 15 NE when I was just about to give up. No Snowy Owl, Gyrfalcon, Snow Bunting or Gray Partridge.
After only 3 hours in the sun, I headed back down into the fog. A Pacific Loon was seen off the east end of Jay Ave in Brewster. A Merlin flew over Washburn Island, another one was perched up in Bridgeport. A slate-colored Dark-eyed Junco at the Cassimer Bar and a Bewick's Wren at the Bridgeport sewage treatment ponds (thanks, Meredith!) rounded off the day.
Stefan SchlickHillsboro, OR