This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_01BE1F99.57538020 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Many thanks for this most interesting report of your adventure. I enjoyed it thoroughly. Ben Poscover ---------- > From: GREGORY.B.MILLER@bge.com > To: mdosprey@ARI.Net > Subject: Thanksgiving Weekend - Dream Yr Update (part 3) > Date: Thursday, December 03, 1998 12:28 PM > > > Saturday, 11/28 > ----- > I drove back to the marina in Flamingo and arrived by > 9:00am. Today, I wanted to deal with neither the ravenous > mosquitoes or hiking through the stinky mud. I inquired about > hiring a fishing guide for half a day. The going rate was $210. > Oof. That was WAY more than I wanted to spend, but I was feeling > pretty helpless to find the flamingos myself at this juncture. I > had visited the Snake Bight area of the Everglades now three > times in the last 14 months without any success on the flamingos. > I was not really too hopeful anymore and thought this grand > expenditure would be my last hurrah. The last guide, however, > was already out fishing. I was somewhat relieved about the money > anyway. "Money is real...the flamingos are not", I told myself. > I decided to rent a canoe for the day for my last ditch effort, > even though I was still pretty beat up from yesterday's ordeal. > At the same time, a man walked into the marina with a nice > set of Bausch & Lomb around his neck. He looked serious and > seemed focused. > "Are you a birder or do you just have a nice pair of > binoculars?", I joshed. > With a perfectly straight face and a tiny, ornery twinkle in > his eye he replied, "Yes.". > "Are you looking for flamingos?", I blurted. > "Yup." > "So am I." > "He's gonna rent a canoe for the day.", offered the marina > clerk. > "I'm gonna hike Snake Bight Trail.", said the birder. > "Have you done the trail before?", I poked. > "Nope. It's my first time." > Aha. "A newbie.", I thought. "Gotta long-sleeved shirt?" > "Yup." > "You'll need it. The trail's pretty bad. You'll need good > bug juice." > "Yeah. I've heard lots of war stories." > "You'll probably have some of your own by the end of > today!", I laughed. > Considering my options, I decided that maybe being eaten by > mosquitoes wasn't all that bad. "Mind if I tag along, even > though I've missed the flamingos on the last three attempts?" > "Not a problem.", he smiled. > We walked outside and exchanged introductions. He was Ken > Allen, a Florida resident, and a birder for two years. > I was already outfitted in proper canoe garb: shorts, > tennis shoes, and a T-shirt. We chatted about how tough it was > to get any information about flamingos from the staff here in the > Everglades while I carefully laid out my long-sleeved T-shirt and > jeans on the ground and proceeded to spray each item in its > entirety with Deep Woods Off. I think Ken was amused. I sprayed > my cap and retrieved my mosquito head netting. I put on my > prepped clothing. We got into my rent-a-spec and drove the five > miles over to the entrance of Snake Bight Trail. > I loaded up my backpack at the pullout with my scope head in > the bottom, a quart of Lemon-Lime Gatorade, my trusty can of Back > Woods Off, and finally my little travel tripod set in the pack > vertically. I zippered it up and strapped it on, put on my cap, > mosquito head netting, and finally my binoculars. I was armed > and ready. > Just 100 yards down the trail, we stopped to apply more > mosquito spray. Ken admitted the tiny, Saltmarsh Mosquitoes were > pretty ferocious. It was already hot and muggy. We were > shielded from the sun by the thick canopy of leaves over the > path. The constant, annoying din of the tiny critters made me > think we were somewhere deep in the Amazon on some National > Geographic expedition. I looked over at Ken. The clouds of > mosquitoes hovering around his body reminded me of the dust > around the cartoon character, Pigpen. I had to get my hands out > of the protection of my pockets frequently to brush the > mosquitoes from off the front of my head netting, as they were > obstructing my vision. > Given the circumstances, I was surprised at Ken's patience > as we stopped to look at a couple of Great-crested Flycatchers > and an Ovenbird on the way. I was also impressed with Ken's > ability as birder, too. For only two years experience, he was > pretty sharp. A couple of downed trees on the path hampered our > progress, but we persisted. Once we reached the boardwalk at the > end of the two-mile Trail of Death, the mosquito population > dropped significantly leaving only a few hundred little peskies > whirring around our faces. > We set up our scopes and started to scan. I was prepared to > stay for a long time. Besides, I was in no hurry to go get eaten > alive again any time soon! It was about 10:30am--only half an > hour after high tide. > "I believe I've got them!", I remarked as calmly as I could. > It was too great a distance for my Swift Searcher 20x eyepiece > to make a positive ID. I was looking East from the platform > through an opening in the leaves on the bush in front of us. > Through that hole on the far shore were some orangish pink dots. > The dots had reflections that made them an appearance of having > long legs. I recalled to mind the group of two dozen Roseate > Spoonbills from the day before on the West side of Snake Bight. > Those birds were brighter, and were of a more rosy hue. I > managed to maintain my excitement with caution. > Ken came over and looked through my scope. He agreed with > my initial instincts, but both of us were desirous of better > views. I moved my tripod and he set up his rig--a Kowa with a > 20-60x zoom eyepiece. The view was better, but the birds were > still extremely distant. It was easier to tell that these birds > were tall and gangly, but their heads appeared to be tucked. I > counted 32 birds in the group. In an hour and a half of staring, > we had seen two birds raise their *pink* heads and necks > confirming positive flamingo status. Ken and I discussed trying > to get a closer look. After yesterday's experience in Florida > Bay quagmire, I was unwilling to attempt walking around the > shoreline to vie for a closer view. I must have had a convincing > argument as Ken decided against it as well. > By 11:30am, the heat distortion had increased so > dramatically that only 6 pink spots were still visible (we had a > pretty steady vigil and we never saw them fly) and were no longer > identifiable, even at 60x (only magnified the heat distortion). > At best, today's distant views were less than desirable, but it > was all we were going to get. Besides, it was more than I have > seen in the previous three attempts! > We now paid more attention to the throngs of shorebirds > around us. Least Sandpipers were abundant as were huge flocks of > dowitchers and Willets. A Whimbrel, 6 Black-necked Stilts, and a > Reddish Egret were out to our right. Ken found a Great > Black-backed Gull on the beach. I looked through his scope, > hoping of course, for some other strange oddity. Ken's initial > ID was good, though. It's still a very decent bird from this > location. > Suddenly, swarms of shorebirds rose to our right. Then more > swarms rose out in front of us. Was it a falcon? Yesss! Ken > spotted the Peregrine Falcon first far above us, yet shorebirds > were still being spooked. This bird is always a delight to me. > Other birds I enjoyed were several Bald Eagles that passed > overhead as well as a huge kettle of White Pelicans circling > effortlessly on the morning's tropical air currents. It's such a > pleasant sight! > We made our return trip hastily. I turned on the car and > let the air conditioning run for several minutes before we got > in. We unpacked, brushed as many critters off of us a possible, > and gulped down copious amounts of water. Both of us were > drenched with perspiration from our trek back to the car. Yuk. > Fermented bug juice and sweat. We got into the cool car and only > had to deal with a couple dozen of our tiny voracious friends. > I remembered well my first terrifying Snake Bight fiasco as > I came running wildly out of the woods and jumped immediately > into my car and closed the door with 58 KAJILLION > mosquitoes...INSIDE my car. I had mosquitoes then for the rest > of my vacation. Yes. It was one of a few important Snake Bight > lessons... > We ate a relaxed lunch at the restaurant in Flamingo and met > a group of British birders. After chatting briefly, I found out > that they knew Andrew Raine, who birded with me in California in > September. Small world. Their group had seen a Brown-capped > Flycatcher and a Smooth-billed Ani on the Anhinga Trail two days > ago. I immediately asked if the flycatcher was calling. Indeed, > it was. > I decided to head up to the Anhinga Trail with Ken. I had > called the Florida Rare Bird Alerts the night before. There was > no news of new year bird possibilities for me. Unfortunately, we > found neither the flycatcher or the ani. We parted ways and I > headed north to Florida City again for the evening. > I called Southwest Airlines to see if I could fly home on > Sunday. Ha! They laughed at my request. It was WAY too busy a > time to change travel plans. > > Sunday, 11/29 > ----- > I got up early and head north to Hugh Taylor Birch State > Park in Ft. Lauderdale. Even though there were no reports of > rare birds here this week, it is a location with a good > reputation for turning up many fine rarities, including two I > would be looking for today: La Sagra's Flycatcher and > Stripe-headed Tanager. I had time, so I walked all the trails, > starting the Beach Trail. I love this place. This is a > beautiful display of a small remnant of Tropical Hammock, an > endangered habitat in Florida. Today, walking this pleasant > little path made me wonder what it was like 70-100 years ago, > before all the development. It made me sad to think about the > loss of this unique environment. I found myself sick to my > stomach. I hurried out into the parking lot, not wanting to let > those thoughts haunt me today. I saw very little this morning, > and had lots of evil environmental thoughts flushing through my > brain. > I tried brightening my attitude on the trip north on > Florida's Turnpike, but the $11.00 fee in Orlando sapped all the > brightness I had conjured up. Gouge! I got a room not far from > the airport and found myself to be quite worn out. I was happy > for the break. > > Monday, 11/30 > ----- > I got to the Orlando International Airport around 11:30am, > checked in my rental, and headed for my gate with a muffin and my > novel in hand. I was gonna relax and wait for my 2:00pm flight > to Nashville, have a layover of two more hours, and get to > Baltimore at 6:30pm. I had only taken a couple bites of my > muffin when I heard a passenger at the gate say his final > destination was Baltimore. Baltimore? I jumped up and went to > check-in at the gate. The flight was from Orlando to Baltimore > with a stop in Birmingham, arriving at 5:30pm. Hmmm. "I could > save an hour", I thought. The plane had boarded, but it hadn't > left and there were still a few seats. I asked about the flight > from Birmingham to Baltimore. They told me I would be flying > stand-by. I believed that this was my status for all my flights > when I changed my original ticket. I thought I knew what this > meant. > I landed in Birmingham, Alabama at 12:30pm Central Time. I > read some more of my book for the next hour. I got into line for > the 2:30pm flight to Baltimore only to find out it was overbooked > and they probably would not be taking stand-by passengers! Ouch. > Overbooked is not what I heard in Orlando. I checked my flight > book. The next flight to Baltimore would leave at 7:45pm. I > asked about how full the flight was. I was told there were still > some seats available and was assured I would be first on the list > of stand-bys for this evening. I walked away at least a little > relieved. I could at least get home. I checked on a couple > other possibilities. Could I still fly back to Nashville and > find a connecting flight to Baltimore? Not possible. How about > Chicago? Several possibilities there. I walked over to the > counter to check on the next flight to Chicago. It was > overbooked, too. I decided not to worry and sat down with my > book and read. > At 6:45pm I got back into line to check-in for the flight to > Baltimore. When I got up to the desk I was told that it was > full, too and they would probably not be taking stand-bys! Panic > time! Overnight in Birmingham? I checked my book. The first > flight out wouldn't arrive in Baltimore until nearly 3:00pm. > Another hour and a half to work and--man, I'd miss a whole day's > work! I checked the first flight out of Chicago. I could get to > Baltimore by 9:30am. I could salvage a day of work if I could > get there, but it's already 7:00pm and there's only one more > flight to Chicago. I ran over to the desk and luckily, I got on > the flight! Most everyone else had already boarded. I squeezed > into a center seat between two rather large fellows. Oof. I was > just happy to be getting *out* of Birmingham. On the plane, I > noticed I might be early enough to catch the 9:45pm flight, > arriving in Baltimore at 12:30am. Hooray! I made it! To top > off a perfectly wonderful travel day (yeah. right.) I talked to a > couple of flight attendants who told me I should have flown on > Sunday because a lot of people didn't show up for their flights! > Aaaaargh. That must have been why they were all flying today! > By the time I got into my truck out in satellite parking, it was > 1:00am and I was emotionally drained from the day's stress. So > for all my travel savvy <hardy-har-har>, I got back to Baltimore > a mere 6 hours later than my scheduled arrival time. I made it > only an hour south and had to stop in Prince Frederick for the > night. Even though I was only twenty miles from home, I didn't > feel safe to drive. I have taken enough chances on pushing it to > the extreme this year. > These last two "light" days just about unraveled a near > perfect weekend. Whew! I'm very happy to be home and yes, still > very grateful to have the opportunities to travel and bird. This > year has been full of the richest birding experiences ever. I > want to thank each of you who've provided both help and support > for my own ambitions this year as well as the host of you out > there who enjoy reading the updates. I hope this one wasn't too > laborious to read! <grin> > > ---end of part 3--- > yeah...it's finally finished...you made it! > > Greg Miller, > Lusby, MD > > ------=_NextPart_000_01BE1F99.57538020 Content-Type: text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
Many thanks for this most interesting =
report of your adventure. I enjoyed it thoroughly.
Ben =
Poscover
----------
> From: GREGORY.B.MILLER@bge.com
> To: mdosprey@ARI.Net
> Subject: Thanksgiving Weekend - Dream Yr =
Update (part 3)
> Date: Thursday, December 03, 1998 12:28 =
PM
>
>
> Saturday, 11/28
> -----
> =
I drove back to the marina in Flamingo and =
arrived by
> 9:00am. Today, I wanted to deal with neither =
the ravenous
> mosquitoes or hiking through the stinky mud. =
I inquired about
> hiring a fishing guide for half a day. =
The going rate was $210.
> Oof. That was WAY more than =
I wanted to spend, but I was feeling
> pretty helpless to find the =
flamingos myself at this juncture. I
> had visited the Snake =
Bight area of the Everglades now three
> times in the last 14 =
months without any success on the flamingos.
> I was not =
really too hopeful anymore and thought this grand
> expenditure =
would be my last hurrah. The last guide, however,
> was =
already out fishing. I was somewhat relieved about the =
money
> anyway. "Money is real...the flamingos are =
not", I told myself.
> I decided to rent a canoe for the day =
for my last ditch effort,
> even though I was still pretty beat up =
from yesterday's ordeal.
> At the =
same time, a man walked into the marina with a nice
> set of =
Bausch & Lomb around his neck. He looked serious and
> =
seemed focused.
> "Are you a =
birder or do you just have a nice pair of
> binoculars?", I =
joshed.
> With a perfectly straight =
face and a tiny, ornery twinkle in
> his eye he replied, =
"Yes.".
> "Are you =
looking for flamingos?", I blurted.
> =
"Yup."
> =
"So am I."
> =
"He's gonna rent a canoe for the =
day.", offered the marina
> clerk.
> =
"I'm gonna hike Snake Bight =
Trail.", said the birder.
> =
"Have you done the trail =
before?", I poked.
> =
"Nope. It's my first =
time."
> Aha. "A =
newbie.", I thought. "Gotta long-sleeved =
shirt?"
> =
"Yup."
> =
"You'll need it. The trail's =
pretty bad. You'll need good
> bug juice."
> =
"Yeah. I've heard lots of war =
stories."
> "You'll =
probably have some of your own by the end of
> today!", I =
laughed.
> Considering my options, I =
decided that maybe being eaten by
> mosquitoes wasn't all that =
bad. "Mind if I tag along, even
> though I've missed =
the flamingos on the last three attempts?"
> =
"Not a problem.", he =
smiled.
> We walked outside and =
exchanged introductions. He was Ken
> Allen, a Florida =
resident, and a birder for two years.
> =
I was already outfitted in proper canoe =
garb: shorts,
> tennis shoes, and a T-shirt. We =
chatted about how tough it was
> to get any information about =
flamingos from the staff here in the
> Everglades while I =
carefully laid out my long-sleeved T-shirt and
> jeans on the =
ground and proceeded to spray each item in its
> entirety with =
Deep Woods Off. I think Ken was amused. I sprayed
> my =
cap and retrieved my mosquito head netting. I put on my
> =
prepped clothing. We got into my rent-a-spec and drove the =
five
> miles over to the entrance of Snake Bight Trail.
> =
I loaded up my backpack at the pullout =
with my scope head in
> the bottom, a quart of Lemon-Lime =
Gatorade, my trusty can of Back
> Woods Off, and finally my little =
travel tripod set in the pack
> vertically. I zippered it up =
and strapped it on, put on my cap,
> mosquito head netting, and =
finally my binoculars. I was armed
> and ready.
> =
Just 100 yards down the trail, we stopped =
to apply more
> mosquito spray. Ken admitted the tiny, =
Saltmarsh Mosquitoes were
> pretty ferocious. It was already =
hot and muggy. We were
> shielded from the sun by the thick =
canopy of leaves over the
> path. The constant, annoying din =
of the tiny critters made me
> think we were somewhere deep in the =
Amazon on some National
> Geographic expedition. I looked =
over at Ken. The clouds of
> mosquitoes hovering around his =
body reminded me of the dust
> around the cartoon character, =
Pigpen. I had to get my hands out
> of the protection of my =
pockets frequently to brush the
> mosquitoes from off the front of =
my head netting, as they were
> obstructing my vision.
> =
Given the circumstances, I was surprised =
at Ken's patience
> as we stopped to look at a couple of =
Great-crested Flycatchers
> and an Ovenbird on the way. I =
was also impressed with Ken's
> ability as birder, too. For =
only two years experience, he was
> pretty sharp. A couple =
of downed trees on the path hampered our
> progress, but we =
persisted. Once we reached the boardwalk at the
> end of the =
two-mile Trail of Death, the mosquito population
> dropped =
significantly leaving only a few hundred little peskies
> whirring =
around our faces.
> We set up our =
scopes and started to scan. I was prepared to
> stay for a =
long time. Besides, I was in no hurry to go get eaten
> =
alive again any time soon! It was about 10:30am--only half =
an
> hour after high tide.
> =
"I believe I've got them!", I =
remarked as calmly as I could.
> It was too great a distance =
for my Swift Searcher 20x eyepiece
> to make a positive ID. =
I was looking East from the platform
> through an opening in =
the leaves on the bush in front of us.
> Through that hole on the =
far shore were some orangish pink dots.
> The dots had reflections =
that made them an appearance of having
> long legs. I =
recalled to mind the group of two dozen Roseate
> Spoonbills from =
the day before on the West side of Snake Bight.
> Those birds were =
brighter, and were of a more rosy hue. I
> managed to =
maintain my excitement with caution.
> =
Ken came over and looked through my scope. =
He agreed with
> my initial instincts, but both of us were =
desirous of better
> views. I moved my tripod and he set up =
his rig--a Kowa with a
> 20-60x zoom eyepiece. The view was =
better, but the birds were
> still extremely distant. It was =
easier to tell that these birds
> were tall and gangly, but their =
heads appeared to be tucked. I
> counted 32 birds in the =
group. In an hour and a half of staring,
> we had seen two =
birds raise their *pink* heads and necks
> confirming positive =
flamingo status. Ken and I discussed trying
> to get a =
closer look. After yesterday's experience in Florida
> Bay =
quagmire, I was unwilling to attempt walking around the
> =
shoreline to vie for a closer view. I must have had a =
convincing
> argument as Ken decided against it as well.
> =
By 11:30am, the heat distortion had =
increased so
> dramatically that only 6 pink spots were still =
visible (we had a
> pretty steady vigil and we never saw them fly) =
and were no longer
> identifiable, even at 60x (only magnified the =
heat distortion).
> At best, today's distant views were less than =
desirable, but it
> was all we were going to get. Besides, =
it was more than I have
> seen in the previous three =
attempts!
> We now paid more =
attention to the throngs of shorebirds
> around us. Least =
Sandpipers were abundant as were huge flocks of
> dowitchers and =
Willets. A Whimbrel, 6 Black-necked Stilts, and a
> Reddish =
Egret were out to our right. Ken found a Great
> =
Black-backed Gull on the beach. I looked through his =
scope,
> hoping of course, for some other strange oddity. =
Ken's initial
> ID was good, though. It's still a very =
decent bird from this
> location.
> =
Suddenly, swarms of shorebirds rose to our =
right. Then more
> swarms rose out in front of us. Was =
it a falcon? Yesss! Ken
> spotted the Peregrine Falcon =
first far above us, yet shorebirds
> were still being spooked. =
This bird is always a delight to me.
> Other birds I enjoyed =
were several Bald Eagles that passed
> overhead as well as a huge =
kettle of White Pelicans circling
> effortlessly on the morning's =
tropical air currents. It's such a
> pleasant sight!
> =
We made our return trip hastily. I =
turned on the car and
> let the air conditioning run for several =
minutes before we got
> in. We unpacked, brushed as many =
critters off of us a possible,
> and gulped down copious amounts =
of water. Both of us were
> drenched with perspiration from =
our trek back to the car. Yuk.
> Fermented bug juice and =
sweat. We got into the cool car and only
> had to deal with =
a couple dozen of our tiny voracious friends.
> =
I remembered well my first terrifying =
Snake Bight fiasco as
> I came running wildly out of the woods and =
jumped immediately
> into my car and closed the door with 58 =
KAJILLION
> mosquitoes...INSIDE my car. I had mosquitoes =
then for the rest
> of my vacation. Yes. It was one of =
a few important Snake Bight
> lessons...
> =
We ate a relaxed lunch at the restaurant =
in Flamingo and met
> a group of British birders. After =
chatting briefly, I found out
> that they knew Andrew Raine, who =
birded with me in California in
> September. Small world. =
Their group had seen a Brown-capped
> Flycatcher and a =
Smooth-billed Ani on the Anhinga Trail two days
> ago. I =
immediately asked if the flycatcher was calling. Indeed,
> =
it was.
> I decided to head up to =
the Anhinga Trail with Ken. I had
> called the Florida Rare =
Bird Alerts the night before. There was
> no news of new =
year bird possibilities for me. Unfortunately, we
> found =
neither the flycatcher or the ani. We parted ways and I
> =
headed north to Florida City again for the evening.
> =
I called Southwest Airlines to see if I =
could fly home on
> Sunday. Ha! They laughed at my =
request. It was WAY too busy a
> time to change travel =
plans.
>
> Sunday, 11/29
> -----
> =
I got up early and head north to Hugh =
Taylor Birch State
> Park in Ft. Lauderdale. Even though =
there were no reports of
> rare birds here this week, it is a =
location with a good
> reputation for turning up many fine =
rarities, including two I
> would be looking for today: La =
Sagra's Flycatcher and
> Stripe-headed Tanager. I had time, =
so I walked all the trails,
> starting the Beach Trail. I =
love this place. This is a
> beautiful display of a small =
remnant of Tropical Hammock, an
> endangered habitat in Florida. =
Today, walking this pleasant
> little path made me wonder =
what it was like 70-100 years ago,
> before all the development. =
It made me sad to think about the
> loss of this unique =
environment. I found myself sick to my
> stomach. I =
hurried out into the parking lot, not wanting to let
> those =
thoughts haunt me today. I saw very little this morning,
> =
and had lots of evil environmental thoughts flushing through my
> =
brain.
> I tried brightening my =
attitude on the trip north on
> Florida's Turnpike, but the $11.00 =
fee in Orlando sapped all the
> brightness I had conjured up. =
Gouge! I got a room not far from
> the airport and =
found myself to be quite worn out. I was happy
> for the =
break.
>
> Monday, 11/30
> -----
> =
I got to the Orlando International Airport =
around 11:30am,
> checked in my rental, and headed for my gate =
with a muffin and my
> novel in hand. I was gonna relax and =
wait for my 2:00pm flight
> to Nashville, have a layover of two =
more hours, and get to
> Baltimore at 6:30pm. I had only =
taken a couple bites of my
> muffin when I heard a passenger at =
the gate say his final
> destination was Baltimore. =
Baltimore? I jumped up and went to
> check-in at the =
gate. The flight was from Orlando to Baltimore
> with a stop =
in Birmingham, arriving at 5:30pm. Hmmm. "I =
could
> save an hour", I thought. The plane had =
boarded, but it hadn't
> left and there were still a few seats. =
I asked about the flight
> from Birmingham to Baltimore. =
They told me I would be flying
> stand-by. I believed =
that this was my status for all my flights
> when I changed my =
original ticket. I thought I knew what this
> meant.
> =
I landed in Birmingham, Alabama at 12:30pm =
Central Time. I
> read some more of my book for the next =
hour. I got into line for
> the 2:30pm flight to Baltimore =
only to find out it was overbooked
> and they probably would not =
be taking stand-by passengers! Ouch.
> Overbooked is =
not what I heard in Orlando. I checked my flight
> book. =
The next flight to Baltimore would leave at 7:45pm. =
I
> asked about how full the flight was. I was told =
there were still
> some seats available and was assured I would be =
first on the list
> of stand-bys for this evening. I walked =
away at least a little
> relieved. I could at least get =
home. I checked on a couple
> other possibilities. =
Could I still fly back to Nashville and
> find a connecting =
flight to Baltimore? Not possible. How about
> =
Chicago? Several possibilities there. I walked over to =
the
> counter to check on the next flight to Chicago. It =
was
> overbooked, too. I decided not to worry and sat down =
with my
> book and read.
> At =
6:45pm I got back into line to check-in for the flight to
> =
Baltimore. When I got up to the desk I was told that it =
was
> full, too and they would probably not be taking stand-bys! =
Panic
> time! Overnight in Birmingham? I checked =
my book. The first
> flight out wouldn't arrive in Baltimore =
until nearly 3:00pm.
> Another hour and a half to work and--man, =
I'd miss a whole day's
> work! I checked the first flight =
out of Chicago. I could get to
> Baltimore by 9:30am. =
I could salvage a day of work if I could
> get there, but =
it's already 7:00pm and there's only one more
> flight to Chicago. =
I ran over to the desk and luckily, I got on
> the flight! =
Most everyone else had already boarded. I squeezed
> =
into a center seat between two rather large fellows. Oof. I =
was
> just happy to be getting *out* of Birmingham. On the =
plane, I
> noticed I might be early enough to catch the 9:45pm =
flight,
> arriving in Baltimore at 12:30am. Hooray! I =
made it! To top
> off a perfectly wonderful travel day =
(yeah. right.) I talked to a
> couple of flight attendants who =
told me I should have flown on
> Sunday because a lot of people =
didn't show up for their flights!
> Aaaaargh. That must have =
been why they were all flying today!
> By the time I got into my =
truck out in satellite parking, it was
> 1:00am and I was =
emotionally drained from the day's stress. So
> for all my =
travel savvy <hardy-har-har>, I got back to Baltimore
> a =
mere 6 hours later than my scheduled arrival time. I made =
it
> only an hour south and had to stop in Prince Frederick for =
the
> night. Even though I was only twenty miles from home, =
I didn't
> feel safe to drive. I have taken enough chances =
on pushing it to
> the extreme this year.
> =
These last two "light" days just =
about unraveled a near
> perfect weekend. Whew! I'm =
very happy to be home and yes, still
> very grateful to have the =
opportunities to travel and bird. This
> year has been full =
of the richest birding experiences ever. I
> want to thank =
each of you who've provided both help and support
> for my own =
ambitions this year as well as the host of you out
> there who =
enjoy reading the updates. I hope this one wasn't too
> =
laborious to read! <grin>
>
> ---end of part =
3---
> yeah...it's finally finished...you made it!
> =
> Greg Miller,
> Lusby, MD
>
>