Washington: Best of the Pacific Northwest (1 Viewer)

[lgonz1008]

Sounds as though you had an outstanding trip and I envy all the wildlife you came upon.

It was definitely one of my better self-guided trips, everything I coordinated went to plan and even the things I had to move around came out for the better, so overall, great trip with some amazing moments and wildlife I'd love to see more proper next time.

 

[Micah_G]

I actually met many birders (including one today), telling me about certain big targets you only get in Eastern Washington and all I could say was, that when I visit the state again, I'd spent at least one week in the region to get some of those more dry country species.

Huh, that is interesting. I thought most of the birds that we have here (even the rare ones are also in western WA) but that is cool to hear none the less.
Some of the quite rare birds that we had in Spokane Co. were Hudsonian Godwits, Snowy and Great Gray Owl and a Snowy Plover. But I only saw the Hudsonian's out of that group.

 

[lgonz1008]

Huh, that is interesting. I thought most of the birds that we have here (even the rare ones are also in western WA) but that is cool to hear none the less.
Some of the quite rare birds that we had in Spokane Co. were Hudsonian Godwits, Snowy and Great Gray Owl and a Snowy Plover. But I only saw the Hudsonian's out of that group.

The ones they mentioned were species like White-headed Woodpecker, the sage habitat species (Thrasher, Sparrow and Grouse), along with mountain species more common east of the Cascades like Spruce Grouse and Townsend's Solitaire.

From your rare birds, the owls are both targets I'm missing, but we had a surprisingly cooperative Hudsonian early this summer that spent nearly a month in the agricultural fields of Palm Beach until the fields were drained, and thankfully, Snowy Plover is a species I can see multiple times a year if I go to the right beaches in the Gulf coast, they are rare, but expected if you know where to look and are careful not to step on them!

 

[MKinHK]

Great report - you really covered a lot of ground!

So many epic moments - Sabines Gull and the Orcas being the ones that stand out for me - as well as many more reasons to visit.

Cheers
Mike

 

[lgonz1008]

Great report - you really covered a lot of ground!

So many epic moments - Sabines Gull and the Orcas being the ones that stand out for me - as well as many more reasons to visit.

Cheers
Mike

While that breeding plumage Sabine's was definitely the best view of the species, we actually ended up counting 29 different birds, so you can definitely connect with this bird if you can handle a day out with plenty of tall and broad waves!

The Orcas surprise early in the trip was something I really didn't expect, but based on how much of the tourism in the San Juan Islands depends on whale watching during the summer months, I think almost every tour sees them (to the point that they claim if you don't see them on your trip, you can join us the next day for free to try again).