Hi Tweets -
Yesterday [6/5/16] I tried to escape the heat [unsuccessfully] by heading uphill. I?d been wanting to follow up on Dave Hayden?s Lewis County guide to US 12 to try a hike he mentions [his guide is available at: http://wabirder.com/lewis.html <http://wabirder.com/lewis.html> for free download ].

The Sand Hill trail starts on FR 1284, a road just west of White Pass in Lewis Co. Trailhead about 2.8 miles up FR 1284. As Dave described it, there is a burn a little under a mile up the trail - It is a relatively steep uphill mile, but doable w/ some huffing & puffing. And once there, it was a great new spot to learn about ? I mostly hung around not far into the burn, near a small pond covers the trail [probably meltwater that will soon be gone, but still feeling like the flattest spot at the top]. In three hours of birding , the following were around:

Cassin?s Finch right away - several of them around
Mountain & Western Bluebirds - many MOBL, several WEBL - seemed to have young already?
Townsend?s Solitaire - pretty constantly tooting and/or singing [Hermit Thrush farther down the hill too]
Calliope Hummingbird - one popped up early on
Williamson?s Sapsucker - a pair working the area around a little pond that covers the trail where I mostly hung out.
Swainson?s Hawk! - one cruised over, circling slowly overhead for great views.
Prairie Falcon - one made a similar slow cruise-by
Also heard Clark?s Nutcracker & Gray Jay, Northern Pygmy-Owl and maybe Pine Grosbeak

Great place, and definitely worth return visits in the future ?

Thanks Dave for putting the guide together - great to get into new corners of Lewis Co ?

Matt Bartels
Seattle, WA