Birded the Layhill Park today. It was quite birdy but not that many species. No warblers but the sparrows were moving (White-throated, Field, House and Swamp); lots of Flickers and Red-bellied WPs and a Coppers Hawk. Among others were the Towhees, Goldfinches, Phoebe, Peewee and Belted Kingfisher. Yesterday I tried the NE Branch, starting from Randolph Rd. The first problem was figuring where to park and where to access the area. I parked on the gated old Randolph Rd, off the new Randolph. I came in on the east side of the stream and had to cross several small branches and downed trees. How do you do this Ric; do you start on the west side? I would be interested in following you or Gail around when you do this area to learn of your approach and favorite areas. The area was not very birdy but I did find a small group of passing warblers (BT Blue, BT Green, an Ovenbird and some I was unable to identify). There was a group of 7 Wood Ducks on the stream, 4 males, 2 females and a juvenile. A raptor flew among the trees, but there was not enough of a view for me to ID it. I was in Cape May all day last Friday and Saturday mourning (met with Bob Augustine's group). A front moved through on Wednesday night, making the raptor flight the best in several days on Thursday. On Friday at Higbee Beach it was a super day for the warblers, with lots of activity. I was on the dike and Michael O'Brian was nearby; what a fantastic birder. I left this area about 11:30 and the activity was still good. The State Park, the Meadows and Brigantine were slow. On Thursday several people had seen a Hudsonian Godwit but no one was reporting it on Friday. On Saturday it was not as good but still birdy; on this day the people outnumbered the birds. Bob's group was going to Brigantine Sat. PM, maybe they saw the Godwit. I hope so! Some of the best birds for the 2 days-Philadelphia Vireo, Great Crested FC and a Yellow-billed Cuckoo. Joe Halpin Silver Spring, MD halpinj @juno.com ___________________________________________________________________ Get the Internet just the way you want it. Free software, free e-mail, and free Internet access for a month! Try Juno Web: http://dl.www.juno.com/dynoget/tagj.