I was up early this morning, and took a brief twirl around Point Wilson, in Port Townsend, before hitting the road to Everett. I almost didn't, but just as I was leaving PT, the sunrise happened, and looked intriguing , so I did.
Always on my rounds, is the pier at the Marine Science Center. Didn't see any Otters, or fish, but did see the densest gathering of Guillemots that I've ever noted. OK, so it was only 18 birds, but they were all grouped unusually closely - more like Scoter's would typically be. They were mostly diving in unison- must have been some concentrated fishy business going on beneath the waves.
The guillemots were all decked out in their natty breeding outfits. I guess if your'e gonna "get any" on a date (if you know what I mean), it's best you dress accordingly, and not show up in your dirty winter underwear. Just saying'.
Port Townsend is kinda a Guillemot heaven- lots of fish, nice cliffs of glacial till to nest in, etc., and I've seen many over the past year here, but never such a concentrated group.
The other great show was the Cascade's. Sometimes the light here is just plain magic - and so it was this morning. In flat light the mountain view can sort of look like a cardboard cutout of mountains - just a silhouette - but this morning, thanks to Mother Natures Lighting Department, the range was revealed in glorious depth. Really made ol' Glacier Peak (our shyest Volcano) stand out behind the front range peaks it usually hides behind.
The only other birds I saw on my brief twirl, were a few Red-breasted Mergansers (have been a fair number lately), a Kingfisher, and those pier regulars, Rock Pigeons. Beautiful, really.
Jeff Gibsonreporting fromPort Townsend Wa