And we are off!

 Day 1 is under our belt.  It was a mostly easy day to Northeastern Washington.    Waddles and I got a pretty early start.

Everything on Waddles is working perfectly, all my food fit nicely into the fridge.  Early on I had 14 motorcycles pass me on the highway and I had the thought that they might be heading for Sturgus, South Dakota, which I will be passing through.  I had to look up the dates to see if that gathering would be going on when I was there, and fortunately it is not.   That would be a madhouse I would rather miss!

The drive was nice and in familiar territory so I don't yet really feel like I am on a big road trip.   Tomorrow will change that feeling I am sure.

Tonight I am mooch docking in front of a friend"s house.  Went out for a lovely dinner with friends and had a good visit.   It will be early to bed, and early to rise for this girl!  Tomorrow I head into uncharted territory.  

It appears that comments are being posted as Anonymous, including my responses, so I ask that you include at least your first name in your comments.  THANKS   I will do the same.

Planning

 After a lot of years of just making short trips, of 3-5 days, I am planning another long road trip to visit my sister and her family in the midwest.    I am thinking about how different this planning is, than it was the first long trip I took.  That trip, in 2016, was RIGHT after I purchased Waddles.   It was all new to me, and I had only taken her out for a short 2-night outing close to home.    What I remember about that planning experience is I wanted to make sure I had EVERYTHING I might need.   I had a big camp table, a Coleman stove, lots and lots of food and other do-dads I might need.     What I learned from that experience, and from all the Waddles trips I have gone on since, is that I don't need a lot of stuff.     I feel pretty comfortable with the bare minimum.   Kitchen stuff, some food, a small screen tent for shade, and bug abatement, chair, shower stuff, and clothing.    For this longer trip, I am taking laundry stuff, and extra set of sheets.  No extra stove, big table (only a small folding table), minimum of clothing and 'might need' things. 

I have had my car checked and serviced, I have new tires (because the old ones were very worn), I have had my resident mechanic work on the Waddles wiring because my lights have been acting funny.   Turns out the ground wire on the trailer was brittle and had broken.  It has now been fixed and is working just fine.    Have I mentioned that having resident mechanic is very handy?

I have gone through my entire car, and Waddles, emptied out EVERYTHING and got rid of duplicates and other things I do not need to have.    I am debating about taking some sort of heat source.  I have a small electric heater and a small Heater Buddy propane heater, both of which I have used successfully on past trips.    Because this trip is in July, I don't think I will need heat, but I haven't decided yet.    I did check the Air Conditioner (which I have never really used) and it seems to be working fine.     I have extra fuses, a good spare tire (for both the car and Waddles) and i have AAA on my speed dial, just in case.  I have the trailer registration in hand, my passport (because who knows, I might decide to come home the long way).

I also have a SPOT tracker, for emergencies, and so my family can keep track of where I am.

I have reservations at a KOA Campground near my sister, but plan to just wing it for the rest of the trip.    The small concerns I do have are 1) it is peak vacation season, so campgrounds may be full, and 2) it's gonna be HOT and HUMID in the midwest.    AND I will deal with both of these things.

I have piles; what goes in the car, what goes in the kitchen, what goes in Waddles.  I have books to read, knitting to knit, sketchbooks to draw and paint in, camera to shoot with, binoculars for birding.   

Essentials 

Sorting the kitchen

In the kitchen and the car

Things to do

 

In the car

I have about a week before the trip, and I think I will be ready.  I am excited to be hitting the road with Waddles.   Stay tuned to this blog for trip updates as I go.

What are you doing with your summer?

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?