Even though the weather was not predicted to be sunny or dry, nor had there been many bird reports recently from that area, I was very ready to head east last Friday, just to see what I could find and to note changes in air, sky, water, flora as well as fauna. And to relax a bit. I had an increasingly stress-melting drive over, made moreso than usual by not seeing lots of birds as I drove! But there were differences in the numbers and kinds of birds I did see (compared with 2 weeks previous). This time, I saw a Peregrine Falcon fly across the highway near exit 27 (in Snoqualmie area), Black-billed Magpie sightings started sooner than usual and were more frequent, Red-tailed Hawks were more common along the highway (on poles and one dead on the side of the road), I saw no Turkey Vultures, did see a few Common Ravens, saw no birdlife except 2 crows at Rattlesnake Lake, several Bald Eagles on trees or taking flight, between Cle Elum and Ellensburg, despite increasing darkness and the beginning scattered spatters of rain (around 5:30). I decided that, since darkness was taking over for the cloudy light of the afternoon, I would, right after getting to Ellensburg, head out on Umptanum Rd., just because I hadn't been out there since the summer. But the draw of a fairly empty parking lot around the Roadside Grill at the start of Ump Rd., and the desire to have a good meal, pre-empted the goal of the Ump unknowns. Besides it was getting very dark very fast and I realized the rain was now getting serious about pelting my windshield. Time to look at the menu and relax in a dry, warm environment before heading back to Seattle. But this wasn't the best part of the trip - I've saved the best for second-to-last.

Once again, the Cle Elum RR pond area provided a few nice birds, and they even stayed put on perches long enough for me to pull over and try for a photo or 2. A Black-billed Magpie was shouting from the snag on which, 2 wks ago, Sue and I found a dragonfly-eating Merlin and a Belted Kingfisher. Down that road at the intersection of Spring Creek and Charter Rds, where the bridge leads to the fish hatchery, were 2 Belted Kingfishers chattering. I found one on a distant snag again, and tried for a shot or 2. For documentation only... :-) The goldening cottonwoods were a nice background along the ponds, and that was worth a few shots, too.

Then, I went to the Cle Elum Bakery on the main drag - they were still open, but out of anything that would have tempted me to feed my sugar demon, so I went back out to the car. Caught a quick-moving dark, pointy-winged shape up in the sky, flying east, in a big hurry, just behind the bakery - maybe that Merlin also had just missed something 'sweet' for its dinner and was off for a last-chance take in someone's backyard in town ? A Merlin - now that was much better than a sweet bun, that's for sure !

As for the trip back to Seattle (the last item in my report), the rain was intense, but traffic minimal and everyone behaved well on the road. So, with my Starbuck's Carmel Macchiato keeping me warm and wired, I crooned along with Bonnie Raitt and Sting and managed to really enjoy my trip back. The Amber Alert signs along the road, starting at Easton, were a bit unnerving, but the last one I saw near the 520-bridge turn-off suddenly turned off (no message), so at least one of the worrisome happenings of the day must have turned out OK...

So, here are my 13 photos for the trip (from 1:30 p.m. - 9 p.m.), including a few of the magpie and the kingfisher from the RR Ponds Rd. - not a big day for either birds or good bird photos, but it was still a very worthwhile trip... :-)

https://flic.kr/s/aHsk5EMrZw

Barb Deihl
Matthews Beach Neighborhood - NE Seattle
barbdeihl at comcast.net


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