First outing of ANOTHER season

 It has been a year, exactly, since I posted to this blog.    I apologize for that, but it seems like I have done 'repeat' trips the past few summers, and it didn't seem blog-worthy.    So, this post is once again about my annual trip to the Ladd Marsh Bird Festival in La Grande, Oregon.

I love this festival, and it gives me a chance to go back and visit people I don't see often enough, and to get time on the marsh, which to me is quite magical.

I drove over on Friday and got settled into the Hot Lake RV Park (conveniently located right on the edge of the marsh with lovely showers and a great view).   

View from Waddles

Friday evening I met up with a couple friends for dinner and then attended the evening kick off event, which included a talk about Sandhill Crane Nests, which was pretty interesting.   They are built in the water, sometimes floating, sometimes anchored to the bottom.  They can be 8' across sometimes, and must be rebuilt every year.   Sorry, I don't have any photos of them.

Went to bed early and rose VERY early to get onto the marsh as the sun was coming up.   It is delightful to be on the marsh as it wakes up.

Sunrise over the Marsh

Sunrise over the small fishing pond on the Marsh

I met up with another friend early and we wandered the marsh listening to Marsh Wrens, Common Yellow-Throats, a Bittern, Tree Swallows, Geese, Ducks, and more.      Another friend joined us and we visited a number of the 'stations' where bird experts, with spotting scopes, help see and identify birds.    There was lots of water on the marsh, and I didn't take many photos.

Egret

Tree Swallow

Nesting Tree Swallow

In the afternoon we drove around the area, visiting old familiar places, and ended up at the Haines Steakhouse, which I had not been to in many many years.   It hasn't changed much!

Early to bed for yet another VERY early morning on Sunday.    I had signed up for the Birds & Botany of the Pine Forests field trip.  Same one I did last year because it was a wonderful excursion.

The down side of the area we visited is that it is a popular camping and 4-wheeling area, which kind of kills the mood of a quiet walk in the woods, but it was early enough to not be too bad.

Lunch break

The Forest Service has put out a lot of nesting platforms for Great Grey Owls, because, apparently they are not great nest builders.  These platforms are used every year.   Most are in locations not revealed to anyone, but there are/were 4 which birders could visit, with the caveat that they not be disturbed.   Unfortunately in the past year, 3 of those 4 have been destroyed.   One was hit by lighting, one simply fell down, and the 3rd was being so disturbed by photographers parking themselves under it, and well meaning (I hope) people picking up baby owls that had fledged out of the nest, but were not yet able to fly (this is normal), that the Forest Service took the platform out.    

We were fortunate enough, on our field trip, to get to see, at a distance, the one platform that remains.    There was a female on the nest, and while we were there the male came in and gave her some food.    If the field trip guides had not pointed out where the platform was, it would have been nearly impossible to find.    This is a good thing, as while we were there a couple 4-wheelers drove by (we pretended to be looking at something in a very different direction) and some people who had expressly come out to  photograph the owls and had been looking for days without finding them, came by.    Our guides educated them on the situation and they were very appreciative.   I didn't get any photos of the owls as they were a long way off and my camera lens is not that good.  Along the way we saw lots and lots of flowers in bloom and saw & heard lots and lots of birds.    It was another great field trip and it was nice to be back in the Pine forests.

Here is your overload of flower photos!

Arnica

Camas

Dandelion with Bugs!

Mariposa Lily

Oregon Grape

Shooting Star

Star Flower ?

Wild Iris

Wild Strawberry

We stopped along the creek on our way back to town and it was lovely.

That afternoon I visited a friend on her fabulous deck-with-a-view, where we saw Lazuli Buntings and more.

I went back to Waddles and relaxed after a couple LONG days.    I was sitting inside, unwinding, not paying much attention to outside.    I decided to walk to the showers and this is what I encountered!!!   It was spectacular.   This is thunderstorm country, so the clouds are amazing.   There are also fires happening up in Canada right now which are sending smoke our way, which always contributes to beautiful sunsets.

Another wonderful Waddles trip to Ladd Marsh!    I will try to do better on blogging this year!

First Outing of the Season

As you probably know, I used to live in La Grande, so not only is this festival a chance to go birding in one of my favorite places, I also get to visit with lots and lots of friends I don't see often.   I stopped off in Pendleton and had lunch with friends there, and then proceeded to La Grande, and got Waddles settled in at the Hot Lake Resort RV park.    I met up with another friend for dinner, and then attended the kick-off event for the Ladd Marsh Bird Festival.    I got back to Waddles at about 8pm and had new neighbors on both sides.   It was a bit close for me, but I knew the people on one side, so it wasn't too bad. 

Waddles in a Puddle

 I had intended to get up before dawn and get onto the marsh for the 'Dawn Chorus', but woke to the sound of pretty heavy rain on Waddles' roof, so went back to sleep for a few hours, deciding that starting my day soaking wet was not the best plan.    The Festival sets up birding stations, staffed by competent birders, who are ready by 6am.    This year they set up canopies to keep themselves, and the birders, out of the rain.    I managed to make it through the day without getting very wet, and the birding was good.

The Marsh
I spent the day mostly at two of the stations, seeing lots of water birds, and a thicket full of many different warblers (which are difficult to photograph so I have none).    In the afternoon, after the festival stations closed, a friend and I drove around the valley looking for more birds.   It was delightful, even though there were some heavy downpours: the kind where the windshield wipers, on full, can't keep the windshield clear.

Egret on the Marsh

Kestrel

Red-Tailed Hawk

Western Kingbird

Crawled into Waddles early because I was signed up for a Birds and Botany of the Pine Forest field trip at 6:30am.      

The full moon was spectacular!

We met up in town and then drove out to the area around Spring Creek and parked the cars.  It was a lovely, mostly dry day, though the ground was saturated.   We walked in rather than attempting to drive through the swimming pool sized puddles in the muddy road.     

It was a bit muddy

But no rain, and lots of birds

We saw lots and lots of birds and wildflowers, and managed to find the Great Grey Owl nest box, with the mama peeking her head up.    

Glacier Lily

Grass Widow

Old Mans Beard

We continued on through a lovely, very wet, meadow and someone spotted the male Great Grey flying low through the trees.   He landed on a branch and we were able to watch him for quite a while.    They are such amazing birds, and it is a rare treat to seem them.

Watching a Great Grey Owl

Great Grey Owl

Moss, Lichen & Flowers Oh My!

Lovely Meadow

After the field trip we picked up some lunch and went out to visit another friend.   We sat on her porch with a spectacular view.   There we saw a Lewis's Woodpecker, Western Tanagers and Lazuli Buntings.    It was a perfect day.   That night was the full lunar eclipse.   It was mostly clear sky, so I was able to watch it.

Full Lunar Eclipse, just past totality

I spent one more night in Waddles and got up early to drive home.    Waddles is happy to be on the road again, and we will be doing more as the weather warms.    

This weekend I am going drift boating & flyfishing on the Deschutes River, but Waddles will be staying home.

Let the adventures begin...

 It has been a while since Waddles and I checked in.    That is, of course, because Waddles has been tucked snuggly into the garage for the winter.    It is time now to shake off the cobwebs and get her back on the road.   Though the weather is cool and wet, we are getting ready for our annual trip to the Ladd Marsh Bird Festival, in La Grande, Oregon.    I'm hearing that there is lots of water, and lots of birds.   This is always a fun event, and a chance for me to visit with many friends, since I used to live there.

So, stay tuned as the Wandering Waddles adventures begin.     What adventures to YOU have planned?

Paulina Lake

 It seems I'm doing almost back to back camping trips, which feels good!!!    This trip was an annual get-together with former Forest Service GIS co-workers.   I missed last year because of the virus, but this year felt a bit safer, so off we went.    

Paulina Lake is part of the Newberry National Volcanic Monument in central Oregon.     It is a wonderful place for exploring and learning about the geology of the area.   We rented a group site, so had lots of room for tents and campers and trailers, lots of trees and great waterfront access.

Plenty of opportunities to take the boats out on the water and we had a variety of boats; canoes, kayaks and a SUP, for water sports.

Looking at Paulina Peak

This trip was scheduled to coincide with the Perseid meteor shower, and the beach front property we had was perfect for viewing.   I didn't take any night photos, but there were some spectacular meteors that streaked across the very dark sky.

There are many hiking trails to choose from around the lake and we hiked up to Little Crater, for more great views, and geology.

                              Huge Lava Flow 

 There was concern this year about the smoke and the heat, but neither seemed to be a problem at the Lake.   Elevation near 6000' meant cooler temperatures; nothing much above 80 degrees most days, and cool nights.  The smoke rolled in one evening, and rolled out almost as quickly.   The last night and last morning there was enough smoke to make for beautiful sunsets and sunrises, but not so bad the breathing was an issue.

Looking at East Lake from Paulina Peak

Sunset from Paulina Peak

Looking at Paulina Lake from Paulina Peak

Sunrise paddle before heading home

I hope for a couple more outings before the end of the season.   What great places have you been exploring?

A little repair

 About a month ago I noticed that the trim that runs along the outside edges of Waddles was broken, and starting to peel off.   This is not uncommon, and is not a structural problem, simply cosmetic.  This trim covers up the screws along the outside edges.      

I have read that replacing this trim is not a hard job, so I ordered up a roll of 1" trim.  100', which should be way more than I'd need.

Today is hot outside, and Waddles is in a cool garage, so I decided it was a good day for this job.     

 I did the left side first, removing the screws under the trailer that hold either end of this trim piece.     Easy enough.   Then I had to figure out how to get the handles and covers off, as the trim runs under them.    This was a bit more difficult.   It really was just taking out a bunch of screws, but there is a lot of goo that the screws run through and under where the handle attaches to the trailer.   I had to break the tubes of goo that the screws run through, but I don't think that is a big deal.

Once all that was removed it was very easy to pull out the old trim.    

 Then to put in the new stuff.    First I started under the front of the trailer, and re-installed the screw at one end, then worked my way up and over the trailer, then under the back of the trailer, attaching the second screw.

Putting the handle and covers back on was not too bad.   I could not see where the screws went through the new trim, so I had to mark those spots and work a bit to get the angle of the screws just right so they lined up.   

First one done, and I just repeated the process on the second side.   Lining up the screws on the yellow cover was a bit trickier on the second side for some reason, but I got it done.  I globe some aquarium glue over the ends of the trim and where it turned the corner from under the trailer to keep out dirt and moisture.

So now Waddles is all shiny and pretty with no broken parts, and ready to roll.   Next trip is to Paulina Lake, Oregon, unless the smoke gets too bad.