Hi all,
 
 I had my first Hermit Thrush of the year in a tree in the wooded area just off the trail on the south side of Ashland near the NCR trail today.  I watched him for about 5 minutes or so; at first, he was in a tree about 20 feet above my head, then he flew  to a lower branch around eye level.  He had a grayish brown back and red tail, with a small amount of streakiness on his breast and a very slight eye ring.  His beak was orange with just a slight bit of black on the tip.  I got killer looks of him when he was in the lower branch.  He looked at me and then turned twice so that I saw him lengthwise and with his tail facing me before he flew off to forage on the ground.
 
 Good birding,
 Richard
 
Richard L. Wood, Ph. D.
Computational Chemist
Cockeysville, MD 21030