August 26, 2008
Michelle climbs Saddle Mountain
Michelle and I climbed up to the saddle of Saddle Mountain today. This is Michelle's first time hiking up the very steep trail and she did very well. Next time we'll try going all the way to the top.
August 24, 2008
Brown Pelicans at Newport
There were large numbers of BROWN PELICANS reported by multiple observers at Newport, OR this weekend. I photographed this group from the South Jetty of Yaquina Bay. Most appear to be juveniles.
August 8, 2008
Mt Hebo wildlife
I was up on Mt. Hebo bright and early this morning. The advantage of early is you get to see stuff that's kind of unusual.
This is the first living porcupine I've ever seen west of the Cascades (my mom once brought home an I-5 roadkill for me found near near Eugene).
The peaks were above the cloud deck and it looks like I got a bit of migrant action as a result. I saw remarkable numbers of WILSON'S and ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS, PACIFIC-SLOPE FLYCATCHERS, heard a HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER. The dense flocking makes me think it was a fallout rather than just locals
Of course, the real reason why I'm up on Mt Hebo has nothing to do with birds or porcupines...
