2018 Wrap up Part 2- Daytrips and Fishing Report

Daytrips-

I actually get up earlier on my days off than I from work. I spend almost every day that I am not working out playing. Really the only thing that keeps me indoors are unsafe roads during a snowstorm and intense heat.  I can not stay still. Sometimes I have my days off planned months in advance. For instance I already know when the new moon is in July 2019 in relation to my days off. I can also tell you, I will be in Narragansett fishing for albies on September 12, 13, 2019 unless there is an offshore hurricane.

Besides all day expeditions, I also consider ticketed events as a daytrip. Going to plays and concerts is something that not only costs money but requires planning. They are also things I look forward to during the days leading up to the event.  On the opposite end, I consider an overnight to New Hampshire as one daytrip even though a trip to NH usually starts Wednesday after work and I come home Friday night. I do not consider fishing after work a daytrip even if I drive the hour to "gansett" fish for four hours and drive home.

This year I went  on 105 daytrips. This is the breakdown

All day birding trips                     31
All day fishing trips                      11
Combined birding/fishing trips     13
New Hampshire Trips                    4
Other Overnight                              4
    (Plum Island (2), Acadia,
        Monhegan Island)
Trip to Concord, MA                      1
Block Island Ferry                          1

Plays                                               9
Concert                                           5
Musicals                                          4
Museums                                         5
Ghost Tour                                       1
Enchanted Village                            1



Sporting Events                               5
Fireworks                                        3
Fairs  (Washington County)            1
Fishing Expos                                  3

Presentations                                     3

Some weird things looking back-

I went on 69 daytrips in both 2016 and 2017. I can partially explain 2017. The weather was miserable on my off days from work the first half of the year. It seemed like we would have five days of nice weather followed by snow or a deluge of rain for two days when I wasn't working. This year, I have had much better weather landing on days I can play. Also, there were always birds to look for this year, so if I didn't have anything to do, I still had a reason to leave the house. In all the years I've kept track of daytrips, never before had I broken the one hundred barrier

None of the sporting events were normal football, basketball, or baseball games. Laurie wanted to go to two skating events, and Gymnastics Nationals. We went to polo match and a rodeo

The Presentations were: A Creepy Christmas and New England Legends with Jeff Belanger, A slide show of a trip to India at Jamestown Library by birders in my club.

Most of the combined fishing/birding trips were late summer and fall. A typical day would be to fish for albies at daybreak. Go to Trustom and/or Charlestown Breachway for the rest of the morning. In early afternoon go back to where I saw bait and catch stripers till dark.  I spent the most day trips birding because birding is my best option during the colder months.

The plays I went to Lost in Yonkers, Trial of Ebeneezer, To Kill a Mockingbird, Midsummer Night's Dream, Last of the Red Hot Lovers. All of which I really enjoyed. The Crucible, Arcadia, and Romeo and Juliet, American Strippers which I really didn't

The Concerts- The Beach Boys, Femmes of Rock, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Dropkick Murphys, A Stadium Christmas, Sawyer Brown at the Washington County Fair
The Musicals- Buddy Holly Story, Jersey Boys, A Christmas Celtic Sojourn, A Christmas Carol

Fishing-

Normally I will give a rundown and a letter grade to trout, carp, and saltwater. The only one I can comment on this year is saltwater. I did not fish for carp or trout enough to form an opinion. Despite my birding, I striper fished a lot. I was out almost every night. Even when I birded all day, I usually went fishing instead of home for the evening.

Stripers-

I caught a ton of stripers this year. As my friend Dave Pickering said schoolies were everywhere. I don't know how many days I ran into huge schools of fish. They were in the bay in the spring and the ocean in late summer and early November. Mid summer was not nearly as good as last year, but there were just enough schoolies around to justify driving twenty minutes to get out of the house summer evenings.

As for keepers, overall, their numbers are still down. However, for me, I caught a few more than in 2017. In Rhode Island I had a three keeper day in August. I had a few other keepers throughout the year. At the Canal, I had one good day catching eleven fish including three keepers. It was the only good day I had at the Canal as I kept being a day late (it's called having a job). Still for me,  the number of keepers was better than last year so I'd say B- even though I know keeper numbers overall are still poor.

Other fish

I caught my first two legal tautog, which is something I've been trying to do for years.

I only caught one albie all fall. However, my friend Dave took the perfect picture of it in perfect light, so I am more than happy with my one fish in a year where very few were around.

I caught a few gorilla bluefish in one spot in May from my kayak. I think I caught a couple in the summer and one 10 pounder in the fall. I really hope their numbers rebound.

I went Black Sea Bass fishing twice. I went on Eric Meyer's boat in Buzzard's Bay where we hammered them all day. We didn't keep any under 18 inches. I went on Dick Durand's boat in Narragansett Bay. We didn't get as many because they were much harder to fool, but I caught my biggest one ever at 23 inches. It doubled my rod over in 60 feet of water for five minutes. I couldn't have been happier.

I caught 14 species of fish this year. This is probably an all time low. This is a combination of fishing almost exclusively for stripers and birding. Instead of taking trips to the Cape for trout or putting my kayak in ponds I looked for birds or striper hotspots. My all time number of species is 32, so this number is tiny. I didn't even catch a largemouth bass.

Yearly Wrap Up- Summary and Birds

Magnolia Warbler

At the end of every year I write a summary of how my year went. I usually break it up into a couple of posts. I usually divide the posts into categories (fishing, birds, daytrips, goals). I will admit, these memories and stats aren't the best reading for a follower. However, since this site is basically a journal, it's easy for me to look back on previous years just by reading the last few posts of December. Also of note, I seem to write an opening paragraph similar to this each year.

A look back at 2017

As I also write every year, each year seems to have a theme. These themes almost always seem to happen organically and I really don't plan them out. One year a decade ago, DJ and I went to New Hampshire to smallmouth  fish in the mornings and hike mountains in the afternoon. The following year I caught my first keeper striper. That was all it took for me to go to the Cape Cod Canal and Narragansett three or four nights a week after working as a baker until 1 am. 

Last year, my theme was really daytrips and trying new things. I went to Polo for the first time. We also went to Waterfire in Providence, the RI Philharmonic, the Drive In, and a reading of the Declaration of Independence.. For the first time in years I went to Roger Williams and Southwick Zoos. Of course there was always  fishing, hiking, birding, (and a vacation, Philly) to take up the majority of my time. All in all, I went to a variety of different things.

2018

It does not take a nuclear physicist to know what my theme for the year was in 2018. You could click on any month on the right side of this page and see multiple posts about birds. There is no question birding took up the majority of my free time this year. I am still a long way from an expert, but the amount I learned this year surpasses the last few years combined. However, my year did not start out this way. I had no intention of making birding my priority for the year. I really didn't dedicate one day to birding until February 1. The following is the breakdown of my year birding. Daytrips, Goals, and Fishing will be discussed in following posts.

Birds-

By about 20 minutes I was the first
person to see a Marbled Godwit in
 Rhode Island in 2018

Obviously, I spent a lot of time birding. I also did in 2016. In 2016 I broke my previous record of bird species in both Rhode Island and in New England. In 2016 I saw 161 species of birds in Rhode Island. I saw another 20 birds in the other New England states but not in Rhode Island for a combined total of 181. This year I saw 232 species in Rhode Island. I saw another 15 species in New England not in Rhode Island. My combined total is 247. 

I blasted my Rhode Island number by 71 and my combined total by 66 species! I will never again be able to beat my old record by such a number as there just aren't that many species of birds in New England. 

Looking back on the post I did on May 20- I had just broke my record for Rhode Island. I had seen 165 species of birds in less than the first five months of the year. However, even having over six months left, I predicted I had a good chance of seeing 180 species. Not only does it show my lack of confidence, but how much I have since learned. I thought I could only get another 15 species because that is all I thought I had the ability to find. 

However, even with such a fun and record breaking year here is how the top birders in Rhode Island fared-

The number of species seen in RI in 2018 was 314. The three leaders have seen 299, 296, 296. species. This is why I am proud to consider myself a good birder, but am no where near the experts. Again, I've seen 232. This puts me in 8th place on the list I keep track on.  Looking back on some of the birds I didn't chase such as a couple of wild geese in South Kingston and a Cattle Egret in Little Compton, I'm really upset I didn't chase them.

I ended up seeing at least 26 lifebirds. I say at least because there may be a couple gulls and terns I may not have previously seen but am not positive on. The lifers are 

American Bittern                            Summer Tanager                       Prothornatary Warbler

Cerelean Warbler                            Lincoln Sparrow                        Wilson Warbler

Curlew Sandpiper                           Tricolored Heron                       Nelson's Sparrow

Atlantic Puffin                                 Black Gullimont                        Little Egret

Wilson's Storm Petrel                      Red Necked Pharalope              Solitary Sandpiper 

Common Redpoll                            Red Crossbill                             Pine Siskin

Common Nighthawk                       Chuck Will's Widow                  Yellow Breasted Chat

Four species of Shearwaters - Cory's, Great, Sooty, Manx                 Orange Crowned Warbler

As with my record, I will never again see 26 new life birds in New England. There are still some warblers and flycatchers I have yet to see. But realistically I probably wont see 10 lifers next year even if I bird just as hard as this year.  

The one real takeaway I have from the birding this year was really: how much fun I had and how much I got into it. I love birding for many different reasons. I enjoy getting an email and knowing after work I'm going to chase a good bird. I love planning my daytrips trying to figure out where I have my best chance of seeing something new. I love being the one to report a rare species.

 I enjoy the people that are really into it. When there is a super rarity, the same ten people will make the trip no matter where the bird is in the state. I really didn't know most of these people before this year. Now we know each other by name. Although, I will never be invited to their houses on Super Bowl Sunday, nor to mine, it is nice to be included and respected as "a fellow birder".

The last reason why I have enjoyed birding so much this year is because of a very heavy, neck cramping camera lens I bought in April. Having my 500 mm Sigma has changed my life. I get almost as excited coming home from a day birding as I do leaving for it because I can look at the new pictures I took. Over the last 8 months I have taken more quality wildlife photos ( not including large mammals out west) than I have in the previous decade. My year started with frustration in Jan-March when I had my 300 mm and only got decent photos of Tundra Swan and Snow Geese. When I got my new lens I was awarded almost immediately with a three hour photo shoot of Summer and Scarlet Tanagers.   A month later, I got to cross off of my bucket list "photograph Red Knots in their breeding colors". Ever since, every trip was been a photographic adventure.

Probably my favorite photo of the year

Finishing the Year Strong

Yellow Bellied Sapsucker

   Since it rained yesterday, I had one day left before the new year to see if I could find any more "yearbirds". All year I have tried to just enjoy experiences. Numbers really haven't mattered. Many times this year I have stayed with cool birds for a long time hoping to get a wallhanger photos instead of looking for the next bird.

Over the last few weeks I have taken any fun experience I could get such as yesterday's Razorbills and last week's Peregrine Falcon. However, over those few weeks, I have really been targeting new birds. When I saw the Peregrine, I was actually looking for Lapland Longspurs and after that I took the Block Island Ferry to look for alcids.

Knowing today was my last real chance to see any new birds before Jan 1, I went in search of targets that I knew were around. They were  Yellow Bellied Sapsucker, Brown Creeper, Eared Grebe, Lapland Longspur, and Yellow Breasted Chat. I knew there was zero chance of seeing all of these birds, but I was going to give it the old college try. On the RI Birds list I keep track of my birds on, I was in 10th place to start the day. I was three birds behind an 8th place tie.

I went to Trustom Pond first to look for Yellow Breasted Chat and Brown Creeper. The Chat a very pretty large warbler had been around Farm Pond for a few days. I didn't find it. However, I did get a Brown Creeper relatively easily. I found it on the Red Maple Trail.  One bird down

From Trustom I went to Fort Ninigret. There is a Yellow Bellied Sapsucker that birders say "is always in the big tree at Ft. Ninigret" except when I am there. I have looked for the Yellow Bellied Sapsucker 40 or 50 times this year. The big tree is right next to the parking area. Everyone and their brother has seen this damn bird there except me. On Christmas my friend Mike saw it in the morning and sent me a text. I met him there an hour later and it was gone!!!

Despite going 0-45 I had high hopes this morning. The sun was out and it was warm. It was the perfect weather for a Sapsucker to soak up some rays. Sure enough I found it within a minute. I sent Mike a text in all caps that I FOUND IT!  Two birds down

From Ft. Ninigret I went to Westerly, I had two targets, the Eared Grebe and Longspur. The grebe had been seen just west of Weekapaug. I knew before I got out of the car I didn't have a chance of seeing it. The ocean was still rough from yesterday's storm. I never would have found it between huge rollers. Even if I saw a grebe, I would never had time to identify it.

Horned Larks 23
Lapland Longspur 0

Off to Misquamicut I went. The Longspur was hanging out with Horned Larks a few days ago. I was looking at the Larks on Christmas when I got the text from Mike. I didn't see the Longspur mixed then nor was it there today. The number of Horned Larks has risen from 10 to about 30 over the last few days, but it seems the Longspur has moved on.

After striking out in Westerly I went back to Trustom. It was only 12:15. I figured I'd give the Chat another chance. I went back to Farm Pond. I ran into a birder named Dave who I see quite a bit. We ended up talking and the next thing we knew we had been looking for it for two hours. Another birder saw it in a spot we weren't looking, he had pictures so this gave us hope.

Finally after three hours Dave left. I walked to the other side of the pond and started "pishing" I walked all the way around the back side but still didn't see it. After I came back to my original spot, the bird came out of the thickets. I only got t couple of good looks at it, but it is unmistakable. I really wish Dave was still there as a witness but I saw it a good half hour after he left. After I saw the Chat, I had to pick my son up at the train station. Three birds down in a very successful day!

So I finished the day tied for eighth in Rhode Island for the people on the list. Diane Auld, David Wallis and I have 231 species each. I will have to wait it out two more days to see if either of the other two get another bird. Part of me hopes that Eared Grebe got blown to Montauk, NY (pretty much 100 percent of me). As Robert Duvall who plays Robert E Lee in "Gettysburg" after planning the third day of battle says "It's in God's hands now"

That last line may or may not be a bit dramatic, I'll let you be the judge. I do have one more species I can chase after work. Barrow's Goldeneye. One or two usually winter in the Providence River. One guy saw them three weeks ago. I looked three days in a row. I found Common Goldeneye but no Barrow's. The guy Dave who I birded with at Trustom today also said he didn't see them either. But they might be there. Who knows?

Razorbills

 

 I went to Newport today because of rumors of Mackerel being caught around Fort Adams. The reports were a week old, but today was the first day I could get down there. It was rainy and crappy out but it was also warm, I figured I had nothing better to do. So I took a chance to try to catch a species I've never caught before (snagging them at the Canal for bait does not count)

   Needless to say, I didn't get any macs. I tried for over ninety minutes casting into deep water. The tide was fairly low, so maybe they were out deeper. Maybe they moved on, or they were hiding on the bottom just out of casting distance, I will never know.

   All is not lost! When I walked up to the bulkhead I saw a couple of Razorbills. Razorbills are an ocean going species that nest north of us. They only go on land to  nest during the breeding season. They stay out in deeper water rarely straying within 500 yards of shore. You are much more likely to find them on the open ocean. They are in the alcid family of birds. The most famous species in this family are puffins.

   Every year Razorbills make it to Rhode Island. The most consistent place to see them is Beavertail. Still, Beavertail is no sure bet. The birds are usually way out over a quarter mile. When you do see one, you usually have to wait for it to come up on the next wave to see it again, while also hoping it doesn't dive down. They are almost impossible to see in rough water. If you've been to Beavertail, you know how unlikely it is to have placid conditions. Between early February and late March I made at least ten trips to Beavertail to find them and other winter specialties. I didn't see one in any of my attempts.

On Christmas while birding, I ran into my friend Mike Tucker. I mentioned how I wanted to see Razorbills since I have missed them so many times during the colder months. I had my two hundred dollar scope while Mike had his $3000 spotting scope. Needless to say, I was counting on his bright, crisp, clear glass to find me a Razorbill way out. Luckily, he did. At Point Judith, Mike found two Razorbills flying about a quarter mile out. I found them in my binoculars and watched them until they flew out of site. Mission accomplished. An hour later I found one on my own at Beavertail. It was sitting on the water about 300 yards out. This is pretty close for these guys. I could see it naked eye. In my scope, I watched it preen and clean itself. At that distance there is no point in trying for a picture, but I got great views of it in the scope.

Fast forward back to today. I was working my way up the shoreline casting my spoon into the drink. When I got to the bulkhead I noticed two Razorbills right near it. I'm talking within 20 feet of shore!!! I eased my way back out of site and walked back to my car to get my camera. I hadn't taken it because it was raining. If I did catch any mackerel I was just going to use my phone camera. The round trip took me about ten minutes. I was fairly confident that I did not scare them. However, when I got back to the bulkhead, they had disappeared. I put my camera in a trash bag (which I had brought in case I found any mackerel to take home.

For the next half hour I watched the water as I continued fishing. I kept my eyes shifting in the 180 degrees I could see from left to center to right. I kept walking the bulkhead while fishing. At one point, I glanced behind me toward the boat docks. There were my little friends behind me between where I was and the docks but still hugging the shoreline. I ran back to get my camera out of the trash bag and waited until the Razorbills to pop up.

They popped up almost at my feet. They were so close I had to back off my zoom. They were probably less than ten feet from where I was standing. They were actively feeding. They would dive down and I would run twenty feet in the direction they were headed. When they'd pop up I'd take a bunch of pics and repeat the process. For fifteen minutes this went on. My heart was racing with excitement and I had to control my breathing to keep the camera still.

During my time photographing them, I never stopped thinking how lucky I was to be this close to a seabird that should be a mile offshore.

Peregrine Falcon

For most of the year I have been dumbfounded that I hadn't seen any Peregrine Falcons. A couple weeks ago I decided to put fate in my own hands and look for them at a known nest in Pawtucket. I found them but they were so far away that I couldn't get any decent pics.

A few days later I ran across another Peregrine on some pilings near the Hendrickson Bridge. Again, it was too far away for any pictures. This morning I was in Westerely, RI looking for a flock of Snow Buntings. In the flock was a Lapland Longspur. I didn't see the flock, but I had good reason. There was a Peregrine on a telephone pole looking for a potential meal. Luckily for me, this pole was right near the road. The sun was to my back. The falcon did not seem to mind at all that I was taking its picture. I watched it for ten minutes from my blind (my car) before heading out.

I saw Northern Gannets today followed by Horned Larks below.

Horned Lark

Christmas Bird Count

A long time ago, there was a Christmas tradition to wake up on Christmas and go out and see how many birds you could kill. It was a competition worth little more than bragging rights. In the year 1900 a bunch of people got together and decided it might be better to count the birds rather than shoot them. Miraculously, this idea stuck and it became the first Christmas Bird Count. Counts are now held on the weekends within a couple weeks before and after Christmas. They are not all scheduled for the same day so you may participate in more than one.

Fast forward 118 years ahead. My friend Mike Tucker texted me on Wednesday and asked me if I would be interested in joining him on the bird count he runs on Saturday (Dec 15). I had this Saturday off so I jumped at the chance. I had never done a Christmas bird count (for now on refereed to as a CBC) before so I was very excited before we got off of the phone. The purpose of a CBC is to count all of the birds in an area. In our case, Mike's block was the Seapowet area and the northern part of Tiverton. Along with Mike and myself, we had Jan St Jean who this year has seen 294 species of birds and regualrly goes over 300 in Rhode Island. Also joining us was Greg Sargeant who is pretty well known in the birding community. Basically, I birded with experts, and I was the new guy.

Our block was one of five that ran around the Westport River, Sachuest, Tiverton and Fogland Beach area. After the count is over, all of the groups meet to tally up numbers. The point is more for science than competition. Some areas might be on the open ocean such as Sachuest, so those birders would get sea ducks, where as a woodland area would have robins and blue jays.

Our section was a little dead today. The weather although warm was wet. Not too many birds took to the skies today. I don't know the final number, but we had about 60 species. Our highlight bird was a Little Blue Heron. It was the first one ever recorded in all of the years of the count area.

We did see an adult Bald Eagle today while scanning a pond. I had two new birds for the year we heard an Eastern Screech Owl, and we saw American Tree Sparrows. I hadn't seen American Tree Sparrows all year, but they were everywhere we went today. I contributed to the count and I wasn't just a waste of a seat in the truck. First thing this morning, while waiting for Mike to get me at Pardon Grey, I heard four Killdeer. It turned out to be the only Killdeer any of the groups reported. Jan got five of the six Brown Headed Cowbirds herself. I also believe Mike got the only Purple Finch of the day, but am not positive about that.

Although birding was on the slower side, we had a good day. The count ended with 133 different species. I am told, anything over 130 is a good day. Not only would I absolutely do it again next year, I'm going to see if any counts are still going on the first week of January when I have another Saturday off!

Common Redpolls

I spent four days this week looking for another northern winter finch, Common Redpolls. These elusive little guys seem to life birch forests. There is one in Lincoln, RI along the river. Last week a group of Redpolls were found by one of RI's best birders, Barbara Sherman.

Since then, I have tried three times to find them after work. I heard them once but for the most part the woods have been dead when I get there around 3 pm.

Today, not having to work, I tried again this morning. It took me quite a while but I ended up seeing two of them. They were tough to find and took me well over an hour. As I was walking out, three birders were walking in. I don't know if they have found them or not.

As far as I know only four other birders have seen them in the whole state. Hopefully, the birders I saw found them, but they are a challenge, and you will not see them without diligence. They are not like ducks on a pond. My guess is less than ten have seen the Redpolls. I am glad to be part of the club.

A Creepy Christmas with Jeff Belanger

On Tuesday, Laurie and I ventured to the Middleboro Library for a talk/ lecture by author Jeff Belanger. Jeff is into the paranormal. We has written multiple books on ghosts. He has a podcast where he talks about New England Legends. He breaks down the legends and tries to get to the bottom of how they started in the first place.

Tuesday's presentation titled "Creepy Christmas" details how many of our holiday traditions got started. Jeff talks about why we put wreaths on doors. He talks about the Yule Log and what garland represents (Yuck!!!). He discusses why Christmas and Christmas Eve are on December 24th and 25th. More than anything the first half of the talk is a history lesson about Christmas. I found it fascinating.

The second half is about scary Christmas characters.  He discusses the most famous of these, Krampus. He goes into other Christmas monsters from around the world as well. A quote from him "Those Germans knew how to discipline children". They had multiple scary creatures to keep kids in line.

Also Jeff talks about "Jingle Bells". Jingle Bells was written in Medford, MA. It is NOT a Christmas song. Christmas is not mentioned once. What it is, is a "hook up"song. It is literally about getting the girl to, um, do the deed. Jeff explains the lyrics and their true meaning.

The presentation takes a little more than an hour it is well worth the drive. It is extremely educational. It is also funny and entertaining. Lastly, it is FREE!. He is doing another lecture Wednesday December 12th at the Bancroft Library in Hopedale, MA. It is also free, but I think you have to register in advance. Link below

https://www.jeffbelanger.com/blog/event/a-creepy-christmas-with-jeff-belanger-at-bancroft-memorial-library/

A slide of Krampus getting rid of the naughty children

A Mixed Bag

I got up early this morning to go birding. My goal was not to waste precious daylight driving and to be at my first destination at first good light. I didn't get to my first spot exactly when I wanted to, but I was within fifteen minutes of my goal time. 

My first stop was Lake Tiogue in Coventry. There have been Tundra Swans there for almost a week, but I had yet to see them because I am not old enough to retire. When I pulled up I saw two swans right away. I put my binoculars on them and they had the black bill and the yellow under the eyes of the Tundra Swans. 

 From Tiogue I went south. My next stop was in South Kingston to look for the Least Bittern. Least Bittern is a small wading bird. They are not very common anywhere. They are alos very hard to see because they blend in well with the marsh grass. The one in South Kingston has been very cooperative for photographers. It hangs out about 25 feet from a small bridge, sometimes right in the open for hours.  It was not so cooperative today. I did see it but stayed well hidden in the Phragmites. I could see it with my scope and binoculars but only little pieces of it at a time. Others were there also, I looked through their scopes but we all had the same view.

Just as it was coming out to feed, this Great Blue Heron flew in scaring the bejesus  out of the little Least Heron. The Least took off running through the grass. I went back two more times hoping it would come out of hiding, but it never did.

 In the area of the Least Bittern I came upon a cooperative crow while driving

After I left the crow I tried for a few other species without any luck. I went looking for the Fox Sparrow under Trustom's feeders but it wasn't there. I was told someone saw a Wood Thrust at Trustom also, but I'm sure it was long gone by the time I half heartedly looked for it. Lastly I tried for the Evening Grossbeaks that were at Burlingame a couple weeks ago. Again I struck out.

I did find the American Bittern at Trustom. It was flying around the pond. As I was driving back to look for the Least, I drove by a lady with her camera on a tripod. I looked out into the field and saw the same Barred Owl I saw two weeks ago. This time it was in a tree a lot closer than last time. I took a few dozen pictures of it.

On my way home I stopped in Narragansett looking for gulls but there weren't very many on the beaches. This worked out for me because I got home before the rush hour traffic. All in all, I had a good day. I didn't see all of the birds I wanted but had great views of the Tundra Swan and Barred Owl. I saw a Blue Winged Teal on a pond. I saw two different species of Bittern so I'm not complaining.

Birds every month of the Year

My first new bird in December,
Peregrine Falcon

Sorry, but yes, this is another post about birds. I will probably be spending most of my days off during the winter chasing birds. During this last month, I hope to add a few birds to my list. During January all of the birds will be"new" again so I'm curious to see how many bird species I can kind since I have learned so much the past year.

I've mentioned multiple times that I keep track of my list with other birders who bird in Rhode Island. Besides my RI list I just keep track of the birds that I've seen in New England but not in Little Rhody. I really have tried not to make birding about numbers. Truthfully, my goal really is more about getting good pictures. Still I keep the lists.The RI list is more important to me because I am friendly with the other people on the site. I see them at bird walks and most of them are in the Ocean State Bird Club. I could never catch the leaders even if I retired because I like to fish too much. I still want to see as many birds as I can.

One thing that I realized in October, I have seen new species of birds in every month of the year to that point. I knew there were a few more birds out there so I was going to add to my list during the final two months. During November I added thirteen species of birds to my list. During December if I could add another ten I will be ecstatic. One thing is for sure I will have found at least one new species in each month. On December 1 I found a Peregrine Falcon in Pawtucket. Peregrines are an awesome bird. I was disappointed I hadn't seen one yet this year.

I know that no one cares a rat's ass if I've seen new birds in each month. Trust me, this post isn't about "bragging". However, for me personally I am taking a little pride in it. Seeing birds all year means that I stayed diligent. I kept looking for birds. This is obviously been my best year birding in terms of numbers. But I also feel that it was a complete year round process to find them.

I didn't really spend any time birding until Feb 3. I saw a few birds in January but didn't look for  many winter specialties (which is why I still am on the lookout for them now).

The month I saw the most species- February- 67
The month I saw the least new species July- 3 (all at Charleston Breachway looking for shorebirds)

Also of note, Friday was the first time I have ever
been close enough to a Eurasian Widgeon to
make a photo worthwhile.

Crazy Good Birding

When I write my posts I try to tell it like it is. Sometimes that means I did not have a very good day, sometimes it does. A couple of posts back I wrote about how I had a terrible day birding until 3 pm. When I reread my post, it sounded like I was a Debbie Downer. The truth is, your not going to see a lifebird every day. When I go fishing, I'm not going to catch twenty five schoolies every time out. I'm not going to catch a personal best carp once a week. When I go to New Hampshire, I am not always going to have perfect weather and hundred mile views. I try to reflect these things in my posts.

However, when I have a good day, I hope that is reflected in my posts as well. When I post a picture of an albie, I hope you can tell the shit eaten grin on my face is real. I feel blesssed when I'm out in the woods or have a rod in my hand. When I see a new  bird or hike to the top of a mountain and the sky is blue, I assure you, I am happy.

Today was one of those days birding. I took a ride to Covenrty, RI to see the Red Crossbills at Nicholas Farm. Red Crossbills are a bird of the far north. There is a big invasion of them this year because their food supply ran out up there. If they have adequate food they would never migrate. I looked for them without luck a couple of times over the last two weeks without any luck.

Female Red Crossbill

I got to Nicholas Farm about 8:30. There was another birder named Mike there. He said the birds had been coming by in small flocks from about 7-8 am. A few minutes in, we had a lone Crossbill fly over us. So at least my ride wasn't  wasted. Things were slow until 9:30 or so and the flocks that Mike had seen earlier came back. All told, we probably had roughly fifty birds. Numbers didn't matter to me. I was just hoping to get some good looks. One of the flocks landed in a tall pitch pine right on the trail. Although the birds were thirty feet up a tree they were right above us. We got fantastic views in good light before they moved on.

Besides the Crossbills, we also had Rusty Blackbirds, Ravens, and a lone Pine Siskin. All of these were new year birds for me in Rhode Island. Pretty impressive morning to get four yearbirds on November 30th. When I left, I was more than satisfied.

My next focus was Narragansett. There were reported Glaucous Gulls and Black Backed Gulls there. It is a long ride from the Connecticut border in Coventry to Narragansett Beach, I can tell you that. When I finally got to Narragansett, I went to the beach parking lot. The Black Headed Gull was supposed to be right in the lot. It wasn't there when I drove in. I went down to the beach to look for it. I saw a Bonaparte Gull but dipped on the BH Gull. No worries, I've seen one this year. I was just hoping for a good photo op.

I went to Scarborough Beach in hopes of finding the Glaucous (I saw my Black Headed there in Feb, so there was the possibility one could also be there). There were a ton on gulls on the beach. In front of the main building I could see hundreds to my left so I walked that way. In the mix was a giant white gull. It would have been impossible to miss. That was the Glaucous Gull. I took a bunch of pictures of it. There was bait in the water and the gulls were feeding on it (no fish were present). The Glaucous went after the bait  a couple times which is when I got shots of it flying.

After half an hour I was heading back to my car and I noticed how many gulls were by the jetty. I took a walk down to look for the Black Headed Gull. I didn't see any, but found another Glaucous!. This one was in much closer to shore. I got some pics of that bird also. It started to sleet so I went back to my car. At this point it was almost 3 pm, and decided since it was sleeting I may as well try to beat the commuter traffic.

The Red Crossbills and Pine Siskin were lifebirds. I had technically seen a silhouette of Rusty Blackbirds flying before but since the view was so bad, I didn't count them. Therefore, the Rusty's are another lifer. The Glaucous Gull lives in the far north, most likely in Iceland or the Arctic, so that is a very good bird even though it is "just a gull". The best part was I got to use my trusty camera and got some pretty decent shots. What a day.

More photos below. Check out the size difference from the Glaucous to the more normal Ringed Bill Gull.

This photo shows how big the Glaucous Gull is. The
bird on the right is your run of the mill Ring Billed
Gull that will steal your food at the beach.

Red Throated Loon

Enjoying the Entire Holiday Season

The two most striking thing about December are 1) How early it gets dark out. 2) The holidays are upon us. Truthfully, I hate how early it gets dark at this time of year. When I get out of work I barely have an hour of daylight. There's not a lot one can do with that little amount of time. Tens of millions are getting out of work when it is already dark.

To combat this depressing lack of sunlight, I take full advantage of the holidays. I don't just look at the "holidays" as Christmas morning. We try to really take full advantage of all of the events going on during December. Anyone reading this blog knows I am a firm believer in making memories. Here is a list of Holiday ideas. Some we are doing, some we have done, some I want to do-

Our calendar-

Sat December 1- Stadium Theater Christmas

Stadium Theater in Woonsocket  puts on a show of Christmas Carols that are tied together in a story. Some are just songs others are "song and dance numbers". I went last year and found it very entertaining.

Tues Dec 4- Creepy Christmas with Jeff  Belanger

Jeff does a presentation usually at libraries where he explains the origins and legends of Christmas. Things like the Yule Log, how Christmas fell on Dec 25, and Santa are discussed. He also talks about darker charecters such as Krampus. It is a lot of fun.  The presentation we are going to is in Middleboro. However he is doing a couple more in other places. If interested here is his website
https://www.jeffbelanger.com/

Jordan's Furniture, Avon, MA

Laurie and I are going to the Enchanted Village at the Jordan's Furniture in Avon. On top of the Enchanted Village there is also a 4D Polar Express Ride, an indoor skating rink, and a Laser Light Show,. We went a couple years ago and had a blast

A Christmas Carol-

A Christmas Carol is playing at many places this month. It is probably the most famous ghost story ever. We are seeing it at the Stadium Theater

December 18- A Christmas Celtic Sojourn-

Thi is something I have wanted to do for a few years. I'm not sure what to expect, but it is a basically an Irish sing and dance show. We are seeing it at the Hanover Theater in Worcester. There are also shows in New Bedford, Emerson College in Boston, and The Vets in Providence. You can get info at the venue websites or below
https://www.wgbh.org/music/celtic/christmas-celtic-sojourn

Trial of Ebenezer-

It has been a year and Scrooge is back to his old ways. He sues the ghosts and Cratchet. I have wanted to see this play for three years. It is running at the Attleboro Community Theater the next three weekends.

Heritage Gardens, Sandwich, MA

A landscaped garden decorated in Christmas lights. I only heard about this last year. It seems worth the trip
https://heritagemuseumsandgardens.org/


Other ideas-

There are plenty of things to do during the season that I have never done or never heard of. I'm sure a little internet research or exploring can find you exactly what you are into. Here are some othere things we have done that might make you a little more jolly during the holiday season

Boston Pops Holiday Concert-

Seriously, the Pops under Keith Lockhart is my favorite thing I have ever done Christmas related. Everyone should go at least once. Symphony Hall is awesome. The show has moments that will have you laugh out loud. At other points you will be in awe. The 12 Days of Christmas rendition is one of the best things ever

Old Sturbridge Village Christmas by Candlelight

OSV is only open a 3-8 pm certain days of the week during December. The town is transformed for Christmas. There are chestnuts roasting on an open fire, there are carolers, holiday concerts, poetry readings, gingerbread houses, a barn fire, etc. It is really fun

Other holiday concerts- There are holiday concerts all over not just the Boston Pops. They may be more convenient and cheaper.

Bake Sales

Church Fairs

Craft Fairs

Tree Lighting

La Salette Shrine Festival of Lights

Holiday Movies on the Big Screen -   The Greenwich Odeum has screenings of "A Christmas Story" and "It's a Wonderful Life" and "Frozen"  http://www.greenwichodeum.com/calendar/

The Odeum also has other holiday themed shows during the month.

For other ideas especially theater check out Motif Magazine. It is essentially a stoner magazine but there section on things to do is second to none.
http://motifri.com/

I've said it before and I'll say it again. The holidays should be about more than the latest electronic. If your stressed out during the season, you are doing it wrong. Eliminate the things that are stressing you out and add things you will enjoy. Have fun during the holidays. You know what comes after the holidays? January which is a big pile of SUCK!!!

Trustom Saves the Day

Up until 3 pm, I was having one of my worst birding days ever. I went all over the Rhode Island coast from Little Compton through Aquidneck Island and Jamestown all the way to Charlestown. I started at about 8 am in Little Compton. Every place I stopped I had a target bird or birds in mind. I didn't see any of them. In Little Compton I was hoping to see the Cattle Egret without any luck.

Carolina Wren

There were some birds around in most of the places I went, but they were all regular common birds like gulls and robins. The only place I had any success was Rueker Wildlife Sanctuary. I saw a first of the year (FOY) Winter Wren. I also had a loud Carolina Wren close willing to get its picture taken. Other than that, I didn't see much in seven hours.

I tried to be at Trustom at 3 pm. I knew there would be ducks on the pond and the light would be good. Everywhere I went throughout the day, the water was glass calm. I knew the water would be glass on the pond. I wanted to go out to the pond because I knew a lot of ducks would be on the water. If they were close, I could get some good pictures.

I ended up getting to Trustom at 3:05. The last two stops before I went there were fruitless. I went to Charlestown Breachway but there wasn't a bird within a quarter mile from shore (there were loons and Black Scooters way out, both common species). I also tried the pond behind the old Cross Mills Fire Station. Last week I had Pintails and a Northern Shoveler there. Today it was frozen.

My luck changed in Trustom's parking lot. Under the bird feeder was a Fox Sparrow. This is a very good bird. At least one usually shows up each winter to these feeders. I actually saw one on Thanksgiving at Moose Hill, but I didn't have any chance for a picture. As I started snapping my first three pics, a couple cars pulled in. The occupants slammed their doors and talked really loud. This spooked my shy photo subject. I waited five minutes but I was burning daylight and went out to the pond.

The pond had all the usual suspects. I counted at least ten species of ducks. I missed the Canvasback that I saw last week but I found the Tufted Duck very easily. The ducks were not nearly as close as they were last week. I only stayed with them for fifteen minutes. I trudged back as quickly as I could to see if I could get any more photos of the Fox Sparrow. When I got back to the feeders, the sparrow was back but my light was gone (it was 4:03 pm). I took a bunch of pictures but the flash came up. In all of the photos of the bird's eye is shiny. I'll have to go back again and see if I can get some better shots.

On the bright side, while watching the little Fox Sparrow, I heard a Great Horned Owl hoot a couple of times. Since birders are allowed to count birds they can identify by hearing, I get to count the owl. The owl, Fox Sparrow, and Winter Wren gave e three new Rhode Island birds. Next time I bird all day, I'm going to have to leave more time for Trustom, it really is an ace in the hole!
Two pictures below

Just one of many photos of the Fox Sparrow in bad light
with shiny eyes. 

I blew this up so you can see the Tufted Duck. It is
the one in the middle. You can see the feathers
sticking out the back of its head

Birding in the Cold

Brown Creeper

The record for the coldest high for Thanksgiving was 30 degrees. The average high temperature for Nov 22 in Providence is 51 degrees. Neither of these statistics mattered today. Today is the coldest Thanksgiving on record.  It will easily demolish the old record by 8-10 degrees.

I couldn't sit around and eat all day. I needed to get out and explore. I went to Moose Hill Audubon Refuge and hiked/birded for almost four hours. I dressed for the weather and the only part of me that got cold was my chin (oddly, not my nose).

I went to Moose Hill beacuse of an ebird report I saw yesterday. A guy spent 6 hours hiking. He found 243 Red Breasted Nuthatch, Red Crossbills in multiple flocks, 3 Fox Sparrows,and 16 Brown Creepers. I certainly did not expect to have a day like that since it was thirty degrees colder and more importantly, the wind was strong. None the less, I was hoping for some of those birds.

I ended up seeing a few Red Breasted Nuthatches, a Fox Sparrow, and three Brown Creepers. All in all there were not a lot of birds as expected. Still, I ran across a couple of mixed flocks. The Creeper and the Fox Sparrow were both  yearbirds for me. Birding sure beat staying in the house.

Friday I will be opting outside again. The wind is supposed to die down. Maybe I can get a few more winter specialties.

Things I am Thankful For (outdoor related)

Mt Madison, number forty seven on my quest for forty
eight, seen from Mt Adams, number 48

If you read along with this blog consistently you will see I write a post every Thanksgiving about things I am thankful for. I write my list for things that have to do with the outdoors whether that be fishing, hiking, birding, etc... I'll keep the real world stuff private. So without further ado...

1. This first one is a bit selfish. I am very happy to have completed the NH 4000 foot mountains. When it takes seventeen years to complete, you feel like it will never end. For a week after I finished, I was still in disbelief that I had finished. Now, I can hike anything I want without "wasting" a day I could be working on my list.

2. I say it every year, I am thankful for striped bass. I would have so much more time to fill during the months from April to November. Some days at work during the spring I think about about stripers all day long.

You wouldn't know it by the lack of fish I've put on Social Media
but I actually caught a lot of fish this year despite birding so much

3. I am thankful for unselfish birders. I have seen a disproportionate amount of really good and rare birds this year. Many of them are because of bird alerts and Facebook posts. Sometimes I'd show up to a spot and the birders would be more interested in getting me on the bird than continuing to look at it themselves. I've had this happen a dozen times this year and seen it happen dozens of times when others show up. The RI birders are very good people willing to share with others.

4. I am thankful for my outdoor clubs I've joined. The Ocean State Bird Club is full of many of the people I mentioned above. The Narragansett Surfcasters is a great organization. They  have so many fun events and (when I actually remember them) I enjoy the meetings.

5. I am grateful my mother introduced me to the outdoors. I've wrote about it many times in different ways, but I will never forget our memories. I've also taken my love of the outdoors far past anything she ever did or learned. But she certainly built the foundation.

6. I get the same adrenaline rush from mountain top views, catching a huge fish, and seeing a rare bird or animal. I really will never understand anyone that doesn't get excited catching a thirty pound striper or seeing a Scarlet Tanager or Moose. I am VERY grateful those things matter to me. 

7. I am grateful that Plum Island, one of the greatest birding destinations in the U.S, is ninety minutes from home.

8. I am grateful for the four days I spent in Acadia NP this September. We did and saw so much in those days. However, I am twice s happy that Laurie loved it as much as me and we are going back in June.

9. I am very happy my favorite things to do are free except the gas to get there. I need hiking, fishing, and birding in my life. If I had to pay (for more than a license or White Mountains pass) I would have to do them a lot less.
'
10. As always, I very much appreciate being invited on my friends' boats. Both Eric Meyer and Dick Durand let me fish with them this year. Both are good friends and I can never show my gratitude enough.  Because of them I caught tons of big Black Sea Bass including my biggest ever.

I don't think I'd fish for anything else
if these were around all year

11. I caught one albie this year. That might seem like a disappointment. However catching one is million times better than getting zero. They are such an amazing fish. Whether I get one for the year or have a twenty fish day, I never stop being in awe of their beauty and strength. Dave was there to take a few pictures with absolutely perfect light to do the fish justice.

12. I saw two porcupines in a month. This may be a weird thing to be thankful for, but I had only seen one in my life before that. Both were on the ground and not afraid.

13. I have destroyed my old record of how many birds I've seen. However, that is not what I am thankful for. What I am really happy about are the experiences. So many days this year, I birded from daybreak until evening (then met Dave to go striper fishing). Some of those days were truly spectacular. There are too many cool memories to write them all here, but here is one.

I showed up at Miatomini Park in Newport one morning this May. I realized half of Rhode Island's best birders were there so I tagged along. We all got lucky and there was a "fallout". There were birds everywhere. The trees looked like they were covered in bright Chistmas lights. I saw more Bay Breasted Warblers and Canada Warblers that day than my life combined. There were Scarlet Tanagers and Summer Tanagers along with a bunch of other warblers everywhere you looked.

I had another day like that at Plum Island. There were days where I chased rarities to be rewarded with wallhanger photos courtesy of the bird. These are all reasons why I get up at 5:30 in the morning to go look at birds.

Chestnut Sided Warbler

12. I am thankful for my vacation buddy best friend Laurie and thankful for my fishing buddy best friend Dave Pickering. Both know how much they mean to me.

13.  Although I worry about his crazy ass antics, I proud that my son followed his dream to live the life he wants and see all of the places on his bucket list. It takes a brave person to drive cross country alone to take a job at Yellowstone without knowing a soul. After Yellowstone he got a job at the Grand Canyon. He saved enough money to take a three month vacation around the world.He is going to start in Madrid and go to the Far East before coming home.  I envy his willingness to try new things. I said I took my love of the outdoors far past my mother in terms of learning and seeing. My son took my wanderlust and magnified it ten fold. I'm proud of him.

One of the first birds I see after I bought my new lens.
I photographed it for three hours

14. Looking back, I'm grateful I bought myself the 150-500 mm camera lens this spring. Taking pictures with it is probably my favorite thing to do. In fact, since I bought it, I haven't wanted to buy anything "materialistic" for myself since. I've taken more "wallhangers" in a good week than I have in some full years. Along with my surf rod it is my favorite possession. I can live without a television ( I have). I really could live without a dining room table, but I NEED to own a big camera lens now that I've had one.

15. I'm grateful my boss let me take three Wednesday's off this spring. I worked in our kitchen on Tuesday nights so I could have three three day weekends (Wed-Fri). I did so much during those weekends. I took a trip to Maine to see Puffins and Monhegan Island. The other two weekends I lived at Plum Island NWR. For the first year ever, I didn't feel like I was missing out on spring.

16.Although I will admit, I enjoyed Acadia more, I am glad Laurie suggested the vacation we took this year to Niagara, Gettysburg, D.C. and Philly. We saw many of America's greatest landmarks on that trip.

17. I am thankful I finally caught my first ever legal size tatoug.

18. I am thankful I went to three temperary art exhibitions. I saw lines of thought at RISD which were drawings and doodles from people such as Rembrandt, Michelangelo, DaVinci and many more. I was blown away (this was actually 2017, but still within the last 12 months). I went to a Georgia O'Keefe exhibition at Peabody Essex. Lastly at Mystic Seaport I saw artifacts borrowed from a museum in Sweeden that contained many Viking artifacts. Just awesome!

19. I am happy to live in a country with so many beautiful places and great animals. My bucket list of places to visit is pages long. I have trails I want to hike in ten western states. I want to visit a dozen wildlife refuges in Texas and Florida. I'll never get to see all of these places, but the point is, it is great to live in a country where there is too much to see!