I gave myself a break today. Ken and Heather Voboril went out owling early, in the cold, wind and rain, and in 3 hours heard one Great-horned Owl. One more than I had predicted when last night after getting home from the Gray’s Harbor CBC I called Ken and bailed on owling on his Vashon CBC. I met Them and Jacob Miller, a young and new-to-birding birder at the Purdy Park & Ride at 7:50. I tried scoping in the barely light for the Black Scoter on Henderson Inlet, but with the weather there was not enough light to see anything that early.
We did our usual routes for the CBC, and it was fun to get to know Jacob a bit, a home-schooled and very sharp 14 year old from Mason County who has been birding for about a year. The birding in general was slow in the AM with far fewer finches, sparrows and the like in the Burley area, and then the rain came in ernest. We spent much of the AM driving neighborhoods looking out the car windows for feeders and flocks. Nothing really notable was found.
In the afternoon we went to Long Lake, a segment of a different section of the count area, where Ken had found some good birds scouting the day prior. Heather spotted the Canvasback, very distant but identifiable. Hundreds of Ringed-neck Ducks dominated, but big numbers of PBGR and AMCO were seen, and in the boat launch area Jacob spotted Hariy Woodpecker and Red-breasted Sapsucker, usual for the area, but good FOY birds for me.
We wrapped up at Blackjack Creek area where Heather and I heard the Virginia Rail we had missed in the AM, and Ken and Jacob scanned the fields for raptors, largely without success.
As usual a good day of friendship and birding, lots of new FOY species (easy in early Jan) and cold hands and ears.
Say goodbye to the CBC season.