Hi tweeters,I am back in the Netherlands after 5 weeks in Washington. It was a great experience and I am happy that I will return there sooner or later. My previous update was just before I left for the Olympic peninsula. In the end, I styed at one place for the whole lat week, very near the Hoh visitor center opposite the Forks river. I did not have much luck finding lifers though, and the forest seemed to be quiet. Nothing strange I suppose for August at this latitude: it is like that in the Netherlands!
I did see one final new bird though which was Tufted Puffin from Cape Flattery. I had feared they would be far-away dots but maybe August is a good month to see them up close as well.?
On my way back to Puyallup, I tried to see Sooty Grouse in the high Olympics (Deer Trail) but my truck failed miserably on me with a broken water hose meaning that the motor overheated once in a couple of miles. On one of these cooling-down stops, I noted however a tern-like bird flying high overhead, peenting away: a common nighthawk! I had seen it before in the eastern USA but after all stories on tweeters, I thought it was a nice surprise, especially when waiting for a overheating motor...
Having not seen all possibilities means that I will have ome more birds to search for next time(s). So keep on posting: I will be lurking but with a special interest in posts with the name of any of my potential lifers mentioned.All the best, Roland van der Vliet, the Netherlands