701!!! Dream yr update (long)

GREGORY.B.MILLER@bge.com
Wed, 9 Sep 1998 13:25:04 -0400 

Howdy all!

   Incredibly, I passed the mystical 700 mark for the year
on Saturday, September 5 on probably the luckiest pelagic
trip I've ever participated (albeit with a little less
fanfare than a certain baseball drama).  Here's a quick
update of my California escapades...

Fri 8/28
--------
   On two hrs sleep, forgot to TURN ON the alarm I had set.
Missed my flight by 5 minutes.  Fortunately, easily rerouted
and lost only a couple hrs time.  Arrived in CA too tired to
bird.

Sat 8/29
--------
   Monterey Bay pelagic.  Met birder Tom Grey (Todd Newberry
couldn't make it).  Found out about Broad-billed Sandpiper
from Tom.  Decision time.  Aargh.  Opted to stay in CA.
Monterey Bay was very choppy.  Added Elegant Tern (#683),
Buller's Shearwater (#684), Black Storm-Petrel (#685), Ashy Storm-Petrel
(#686), and Black-vented Shearwater (#687).

Sun 8/30
--------
   Monterey pelagic to Albacore Grounds.  Still very windy.
Headed out early in very rough waters (for Monterey).
Turned back after 2 hrs of a futile attempt.  Felt a little
helpless.  How do I make up for a scrapped CA pelagic?
Added Cassin's Auklet (#688) back in the harbor.  Spent the
remainder of the day birding with Debra Shearwater, Tim
Stevens, and Father Tom Pincelli in San Benito County.
Added Lawrence's Goldfinch (#689).

Mon 8/31
--------
   Drove down to Santa Barbara.  Found out my car had been a
victim of a hit-and-run when I went to fill up with gas.
Aargh.  Pretty exhausted from the stress of the scrubbed
pelagic and now the car.  Walked to local restaurant and
ticked Spotted Dove (#690) on the way.  A consolation of
sorts.

Tue 9/1
-------
   Got to Island Packers in Ventura Harbor by 7:30am and
signed in.  Met 3 British birders (Andrew Raine, Bob
Walthew, and Richard Saunders) that were on the ill-fated
Albacore trip with me.  Made sure a naturalist would
accompany us (required now to see the Scrub-Jay).  Added
Island Scrub-Jay (#691).  Drove to Pasadena.

Wed 9/2
-------
   Met Andrew, Bob, and Richard at the Chilao Visitor's
Center in Angeles National Forest in the San Gabriel Mtns at
6:15am.  Heard a couple Mountain Quail (#692) up the
hillside, but saw no signs of current feeding at the
Visitor's Center.  Spent a couple hrs combing the hillsides,
but w/o any luck.  Drove North to Mt Pinos.  Easily added
White-headed Woodpecker (#693).  Parted ways with the Brits
(they were after the Condors).  Continued up Mt. Pinos.  Had
a small covey of Mtn Quail run across the road.  What a
treat!  Added Hermit Warbler (#694) at the summit.  Bumped
into a van full of birders from NJ who knew Sandy Komito
(who I met on Attu).  Sandy was at 715 for the year a couple
weeks ago.  Wow!  He's probably gonna set his own record
this year.  Called Debra Shearwater to reserve a spot on
Saturday's trip to Monterey Bay.  Drove back to Santa
Clarita for the night.

Thu 9/3
-------
   Made the 4 hr trek thru L.A. traffic to the famed Salton
Sea.  I could already see the cloud striations of hurricane
Isis, just 200 miles to the South.  I was excited.  Stopped
at the little day park in Salton City.  With triple digit
temps and 80% humidity, the conditions were stifling.  Add
to this the incredibly pungent smell of dead fish.  Lots of
birds, but nothing outstanding.  On to Red Hill Marina.  The
45 Yellow-Footed Gulls (#695) provided a worthy tick.  Added
Wood Stork to my CA list.  Drove back to Huntington Beach to
meet birder Phil Swan who was on the boat with me in
mid-August in NC.  We headed down to Crystal Cove St Pk and
found several California Gnatcatchers (#696).

Fri 9/4
-------
   Had more Spotted Doves while leaving Huntington Beach.
Rained off and on most of the morning in Southern CA (an
unusual event I'm told).  Drove to Monterey for another
Shearwater Pelagic to Monterey Bay.

Sat 9/5
-------
   South winds blew hard all night, but relatively calm in
the morning.  The group from NJ was on the boat as well.
Hit early fog.  Found a huge flock of Black-vented
Shearwaters (700+)--prob the result of hurricane Isis.  Out
of the fog we came on a group of 50+ Buller's Shearwaters.
Wow.  My anticipation increased.  Inwardly, I now felt this
was going to be an extraordinary day.  I was right.
Murrelets at 2 o'clock.  Raised wings revealed that they
were Craveri's Murrelets (#697).  A few minutes later, the
huge, hulking figure of a South Polar Skua (#698) passed in
the wake.  An odd bird (thought initially to be a
Flesh-footed) flew by and then spent some time in the wake
at close range.  Large, uniformly dark bird, gray bill and
legs, but flesh-colored feet.  Didn't fit any bird
description well.  Soon a good Flesh-footed Shearwater
(#699) passed down the right side of the boat.  A Blue Whale
was seen at 1 o'clock.  I watched intently as the gargantuan
creature arched it's pale back and dove.  Impressive.  I
heard someone call out "white bird at 11 o'clock".  I raced
toward the front.  From my vantage, all I could see were
heads, shoulders, and hats.  I temporarily lost my
politeness.  "Down in front!", I yelled frantically.  Still
in between a head and a hat I found the Red-billed
Tropicbird (#700) sitting on the water.  I rushed to the
back of the boat as we passed it on the water.  What a
magnificent way to hit 700!  A life tick, too!!!  I was
incredibly elated and RELIEVED.  A short fracas ensued as I
exchanged handshakes, high-fives, and hugs with participants
and leaders alike.  It was an unbelievable moment for me.
But we were not done with the day.  More murrelets at 10
o'clock near the boat.  Xantu's Murrelets (#701)!  What a
phenomenal day out.  Four of the five birds were lifers (all
except South Polar Skua).  Thanks to Debra Shearwater and
Bert McKee and all the competent leaders of this
well-organized [and lucky] trip.  Happy and exhausted, I
drove another 4-5 hrs to Chico, CA to meet birders Richard
and Jane Redmond.

Sun 9/6
-------
   We met Richard and Jane's friend Mike and headed out
before dawn.  Destination:  Honey Lake area near Susanville,
CA.  Target:  Sage Grouse.  Although I was happy to see Sage
Thrashers and Sage Sparrows and Black-billed Magpies in good
numbers, the Sage Grouse eluded us.  We searched in vain
throughout the day.  Unfortunately, my timing on this
ill-fated trip was not too great.  Only two days of the year
is open season on Sage Grouse.  Labor day weekend happened
to be the time.  I secretly hoped the hunters were as
unlucky as I...  Due to extreme fatigue, I decided not to
drive down to Mono Lake for a second attempt on the Grouse.
My eyes were swollen and bloodshot.  My voice was so tired
it was raspy.  My speech was slurred and sloppy.  It
frightened me.

Mon 9/7
-------
   Slept for 9 hrs.  I can't remember the last time this
happened!  Rejuvenated, Richard and Jane took me to a local
Chico park (Upper Park) and we hiked for several hours.  It
was very hot and although I expected nothing new, it was a
particular delight of mine to see 3 Lewis' Woodpeckers.
Drove down to Stockton, CA for the night.

Tue 9/8
-------
   Travel day back to San Jose, CA.  Drove through some good
birding areas on the way (J17/Rt 130) West from I-5.  Drove
through Del Puerto Canyon and San Antonio Canyon.  Found a
flock of 30+ Yellow-billed Magpies.  Heard a few Wrentits.
Arrived home at 2:00am.

   Many thanks are due to all the wonderful people I've
encountered who've offered great help, driving, birding,
tips, pointers, a host of email site suggestions, and
general support.  I've been most impressed with everyone's
genuine desire to help me achieve my goal.  THANK YOU ALL!!!

-Greg Miller
http://www.erols.com/gregorym (will be updated soon)
home) gregorym@erols.com
work) gregory.b.miller@bge.com