BIRDQUEST2004

It’s been a long and busy month but I finally got a few minutes to
sit down and update my blog.

I’ve had time to process some of the 2600 images I took and
these are the best from my trip from Anchorage to Seward.

I arrived in Anchorage at 6:30pm, picked up my car and was on the
road by 7:00pm.

On the way out of Anchorage to Seward you’ll see the sign
for Potter’s Marsh, well worth the stop.

If you drive straight without stopping it’s a 2.5 hour scenic trip by
car (medium size car 80$/day) but if your birding and taking photos it can take
considerably longer. In June though the
sun shines until 11:30pm, so I had plenty of time.

There were birdy areas all along the route. I found nesting Trumpeter Swans, Arctic
Terns, Violet-green Swallows, Red-necked Phalaropes, a Harlan Hawk, many
Wilsons and Orange Crowned Warblers, American Dippers on many streams and
Common Loons. A scope was very nice to
have along but I seldom have one with me on these trips.

I got to Seward at 1:00am and went straight to the Hotel
Seward.

If you are planning this trip to Seward, make sure to book
your room ahead of time. The rooms at
this time of year will run you 180$ a night and they are generally all booked
up. I had booked a room at the Hotel
Seward (www.hotelsewardalaska.com)for 2
nights. They have an expensive side and
a no frills side with bathrooms down the hall and rooms can be had for 110$ per
night.

Next morning I was up by 6am and having breakfast across
from the Kenai Fjord Tours office, downing my coffee and toast, I waited for
the office to open. I’d tried to book
the Captains Choice Tour (www.kenaifjords.com/kenai-custom-tours.html) but it
had been full for a month in advance so I settled on the Northwestern Fjords
Tour (www.kenaifjords.com/kenai-nwfjord.html)
a 9 hour tour. If you are at all
bothered by motion sickness bring something to take or wear. I brought along trusty Gravol, and took
long before I got on the boat. You will
need it, there were a few times during the day we were in some pretty large
swells and most aboard were sitting down and looking rather pale.

Also warm clothes are a must, no matter how warm it is in
Seward, it will be considerably colder on the water. I had on 2 pair of long underwear and wind
proof jacket, pants, tuque and heavy gloves.
There were a few times when even that wasn’t enough, especially when
your standing on the bow of a moving boat, looking for birds.

On this trip I saw Humpback and Killer Whales (a first for
me), Sea Lion’s, Steller Sea Lions, Sea Otter’s, Harbor Porpoise, Common and
Thick-billed Murre’s, Marbled and (lifebird) Kittlittz’s Murrelet’s, Pelagic and Red-faced
Cormorant’s (not many Red-faced), Black-legged Kittiwakes, Glaucous-winged
Gulls, Tufted and Horned Puffins and Rhinoceros Auklets.

From a photographic perspective, it’s tough to photograph
from this boat (Captain’s Choice would have been a smaller and better boat) but
I did manage a few decent images. The
best photo op’s are spectacular scenery, mountains and glaciers. Bring a suitable wide-angle lens.

This is the second time I’ve been on a cruise in this area
and it did not disappoint. Below are a
few of my better images from the 2 days, which include the drive down and cruise.

On the return to Anchorage the next day I spent 8 wonderful
hours birding all the way home. Lots of
different terrain and elevation change made for some good finds.

Best image of this leg was the Orange-crowned
Warbler, where you can see the orange crown…..Ciao for now.

I am sitting here in Anchorage waiting for my flight home. After 22 days countless flights, many birds (150 species) and 26 ABA life birds this trip was a great success. I have made new friends and shared some great days with an old friend.

My companions on this trip: Chris is a friend from Georgia and we’ve birded together in many parts of North America and he has an impressive total of 740 ABA birds. Mike is new friend from Anchorage and also has an impressive total of 717 ABA birds.

We were hung up in Nome for a day and a half due to fog, always a problem when travelling to this part of the world.

We spent 9 days on Gambell and the first few days were very productive due to the heavy southwest winds. A Siberian Rubythroat and Olive-backed Pipit dropped in for a visit. The alcids on the rocks were all new to me, we found Least, Parakeet and Crested Auklets, both Horned and Tufted Puffins, both Guillemots and even a few Dovekie. We also had great upclose views of Red and Red-necked Phalaropes and countless shorebirds including a few Common Ringed Plovers. A Yellow-billed Loon and Ancient Murrelet also made an appearance one day.

Sadly for me, except for a few Common Eiders, a lone King Eider none of the Stellers or Spectacled Eiders were found.

I had a good time bombing around the area we were permitted to travel in, via ATV. I may not be in such a hurry to sell mine now.

The people of the island were very friendly but sadly the areas we could travel to were limited. I would have loved to see more of the island but the extra money for the travel permit and guide were just not in the budget for this trip.

Food is expensive (everything is flown in) be prepared, bring cash or credit. Travellers cheques are cashable at the post office but a few days they didn’t have any cash on hand. ATV’s are 80$ a day, pea stones and distances make it hard to walk anywhere and accomodations are 120$

The last 4 days the winds shifted from the north east and south east, the rarer birds just weren’t coming in at all.

I was ready to move on to Nome and was the first person on the plane.

We stayed at the Aurora Inn and prices are 160$ and over. Car rentals are 110$. In both cases cars and accomodations you need to book well in advance. My suggestion would be at least 6 months in advance. There is also the Nugget Inn a little less at 110$ and they have no cars for rent. Food is a bit more reasonable and there are a few more places to eat but a small pizza is 26$ so again be prepared.

There are 3 roads to bird on, the Kougarok, Teller and Council Road. Each is roughly 75 miles and can be birded in a day. We had many species Bluethroats, Bristle-thighed Curlews, Rock Ptarmigans, Willow Ptarmigan, Grey-cheeked Thrush were everywhere, Bar-tailed Godwits, Pacific, Red-throated Loons were common and everywhere. We even managed an Arctic Loon. Along the shorelines and bridges Artic Terns and an occasional Aleutian Terns could be found. Many species of shorebirds were also found including an Red-necked Stint. Common, King Eiders and even one Stellers Eider.

Over the next few weeks I will post details of the areas and birds that we found. Keep checking.

Below I’ve posted some random images, Ciao for now.