California Birding, Dec 2016

     I had vacations that were expiring by year end, which I wanted to use. It was Christmas time, and I had no plans. I looked at ticket prices to various places, and SFO had the most ecomical tickets. So, I decided to target the Gulls and shorebirds of western USA. When I made a list of birds that I can target, it became clear that multiple trips were required. I decided to go north from SFO until OR and find whatever comes my way. I also particulary wanted to see the central CA endemic 'Yellow-billed Magpie'. I got motels at various places along the coast, and one at Sacramento for the Magpie.

     I found good pelagic birds reported at Farallon Islands in the past, and on googling I found a cruise that would take me there. At least that's what I thought. I called them up explaining what I wanted, and they claimed a naturalist knowledgeable in birds will accompany us, and we would see whales and birds. The tour was to Farallon Islands, and so I assumed we would land on the island. So, I booked the cruise which was at 6:30 am. I saw parking to be very expensive at Pier 39, and found a hostel a mile away which had free parking if you stayed. Since it was a hostel, it was also the most economical stay. For the final day, I planned to visit one of the many relatives I have in that area. So, the plan was set on where to go when. 

Day 1:

     I arrived at SFO around 9:30 am and took a rental car. My spot for the day was Point Reyes. I crossed the Golden Gate Bridge, which was an experience in itself! Point Reyes is a large area and I was interested to hike Abbotts Lagoon. It was cold, cloudy and windy when I started the hike. The initial part of the trail was boring and tedious in the cold. Everyone I passed on the trail, without exception, greeted me with a smile as if they knew me for the past ten years. I was reminded of the song 'If you are going to San Franciso, you're gonna meet a lot of gentle people there'. I'm not referring to the original, but the one I'm familiar with: www.youtube.com/watch?v=6l-SnWXIEUQ

     When I reached closer to the shore, things became interesting. I got my first lifer, a female 'Barrow's Goldeneye'. I took some crappy pics of it and continued my walk to the sea. I saw the easy targets 'Western Gull' and 'California Gull'. At the sea I saw Surf Scoters. I had already seen one at Austin, but it was a young male. Adult male is much prettier. I wanted some pics of it, and went closer to the shore-line. While photographing it, a huge wave brought water about a feet above the ground. My hiking shoes were soaked. I checked the sea and the coast for other birds, and found nothing else of interest. I started the hike back to the car. I had the Barrow's Goldeneye at a closer distance at the same area I saw it earlier. It was with another duck and three American Coots. It became clear immediately that the other duck was a White-winged Scoter. I got a decent pic of all these in one frame. 

American Coots, White-winged Scoter, Barrow's Goldeneye

Two lifers in one view! With soggy shoes and socks, I made the march back to the car. About 20 meters from my car a covey of California Quails walked by. This was the fifth lifer of the day. I came to the car and changed to my slippers. The shoes would never dry up for the rest of the trip. I headed to a motel further north at Mendocino County. On the way I decided to stop at various places to look for Pacific and Red-throated Loons. They need careful study during winter, and I really needed pictures to id later, especially if they were juveniles. I saw them at a distance which did not help. When the light started fading, I got to the speed limit to head to the motel at Mendocino County.

Day 2:   

     I chose to drive on Low Gap Road, Mendocino County to try for Mountain Quail. I knew that I had to be extremely lucky to see one, and did not count on it. I went with the mindset to explore a new place and see whatever comes my way. There was a slight rain overnight which turned into a freeze. Due to time-lag between Austin and CA, I was able to getup early, and be on the road well before sunrise. The road turned out to be unpaved and narrow. The road had steep climbs at multiple places. I stopped a vehicle that was coming down to know the conditions. The lady warned me to be careful, but said I can drive until after the highest point and need to turn back due to ice. Anyway, my plan was just that - to turn back after I reach the highest point. Surprisingly the ice was a little past the highest point. I made the slow drive up, and reached a fork. I stopped for a while to determine which one to take, and saw a California Towhee hopping around. This was the first lifer of the day. 

Low Gap Road, Mendocino County

I continued the drive up and it turned scenic and colder. I saw a bunch of Band-tailed Pigeons at a distance, which was my second lifer of the day. I continued a little after the highest point on the road, and saw my third lifer 'Varied Thrush'. The males are one of the most beautiful birds I have seen. They were not cooperative for photos, staying high up on the trees. The only photo I managed was a crappy pic in low-light when one came down to drink water from a puddle. I turned back hoping to see if a Golden Eagle makes an appearance. There were some Sparrows that made me stop. I could not get a proper look at them, but I have seen all the Sparrows species that occur here. The stop turned out to be useful as I saw an 'Oak Titmouse' moving around on a tree, which was my fourth lifer of the day. I made a slow drive down the mountain, and saw nothing else of interest. 

MacKerricher SP - Glass Beach sunset

     I then decided to head to the beach to look for some shorebirds. I decided on Virgin Creek Beach, Fort Bragg. I had to park at an elevation, then go downhill to access the shore. I saw my fifth lifer of the day 'Black Oystercatcher' immediately. I walked a while along the shores and saw distant views of a couple of 'Pelagic Cormorants' (sixth lifer of the day). I saw a group of Harlequin Ducks which are always good to look at. I went to another beach nearby called Glass Beach (MacKerricher SP). There were a lot of tourists and less birds. I saw a few 'Harbor Seals' lazing around on distant rocks and a bunch of usual birds. When the sun started setting I saw a White-tailed Kite hovering above for a final meal. I realized that this was a good sunset spot and regretted not getting a tripod. I decided to stay for the sunset and relax. After dinner and some tea, I drove to Eureka,CA for the night.

Day 3:

     

     My first stop was Samoa Dunes Rec Area - North Split. It was cold and cloudy with rain predicted. Some shorebirds were my target. The shoes did not dry up, and I had to walk in slippers. Quickly I found 'Black Turnstone' and 'Surfbird'. Both were lifers. I met a birder from Texas who was joined by his local friend. We birder together for a while. I hid along some rocks and waited for a couple of Loons to come closer for a picture. One was a clear 'Common Loon'. The other was Pacific/Red-throated. Whatever it was, it was my third lifer of the day. At that point I thought it was Pacific, but on consulting an expert later, it turned out to be a Red-throated Loon. I parted ways with the other birders and explored a few other areas which weren't productive. I met the birders again after I continued on the loop road. They had a distant 'Red-necked Grebe', which was my fourth lifer of the day. While finishing the loop, I had a relatively closer look at the Red-necked Grebe. At least I could get id'able pics. It was with a Horned Grebe which confused me for a while until I saw both at the same time. Grebes dive into water and resurface some distance away. So both were doing this, and I was seeing them alternatively before realizing that there were two of them. I saw what appeared like a pure 'Glaucous-winged Gull', some Mallards and Teals and other usual birds. My next stop was Arcata Marsh and Wildlife Sanctuary to see if I could get a Eurasian Wigeon. I did a bit of driving along the ponds and a little hiking. I got good looks at 'Cinnamon Teals' and other ducks. There were quite a few birders, and a birder struck a conversation with me to id some duck. She said she was also looking for Eurasian Wigeon, but did not get it. I was ok not to get the duck since it is also present in India. It started drizzling heavily, and I went back to my car. I saw that 'Cackling Goose' was reported in huge numbers nearby at McKinleyville Bottoms. This should be easy I thought. I drove to the spot and without getting out of the car I saw 100s of them. This was the fifth lifer of the day. I saw reports of  'Golden-crowned Sparrows' around that location. So I drove until the road ended and parked. The drizzle became slight rain. I wanted to check out if the sparrows were present. I started walking towards a river constantly looking around.

Golden-crowned Sparrow

Within a few minutes, I had a bunch of Sparrows, and when I put binocs onto it, bingo! I went back to my car to take my camera, which I did not want to risk taking out in the rain initially. I put it in a bag and went a little closer to the Sparrows for some pics. This was a six-lifer day. Rain started becoming heavier. I checked that the next day was to be spent at Bodega Bay, which was quite a drive away. It was 14:30, and I started the drive south. I stopped at a place for coffee just for a break from the long drive. The coffee was surprisingly good! The weather in this part cleared up, and the next day was supposed to be cloudless.

Day 4:

     

     Bodega Bay is the place where Alfred Hitchcock shot the film called 'Birds'. That in itself was appealing to me! It was a 'cool' little town by the sea. There were a lot of good birds being reported here, and I was excited. I saw distant views of a lot of birds, and I could make out 'Brant' Geese, which was my first lifer. I drove along a U-shaped road along the water to check what was present. I saw Common Loons, Western Grebe, Bufflehead, Red-breasted Merganser and the usual birds. A couple of Brants offered me closer looks. A group of birders were looking at raptors, and I joined them. One of them said he had a 'Rough-legged Hawk', which would be new to me. After a wait it appeared above a hill, and then soared almost directly above us. This was my second lifer. I wanted to see some gulls, which included 'Mew Gull' which was reported a few days earlier in that area. The birder mentioned 'Sonoma Coast SP - Salmon Creek' for them. So I headed there after I looked at whatever was present at Bodega Bay. I got off at a beach access and waked a bit. 'Surf Scoters' were trash birds by now. Anyway, I was checking them all out to see if there was a Black Scoter, which I did not end up getting on this trip. I saw a 'Peregrine Falcon' on the way back to my car, which was my third lifer of the day. I started driving further north, when I saw another beach access. From the parking lot, which was at an elevation, I noted a huge group of gulls. I decided to walk down and check them out. There were the usual suspects 'Western' and 'California' Gulls. I found two smaller gulls with thin yellow beaks, which were the 'Mew Gulls' I was looking for. I got my fourth lifer.

Mew Gulls

I drove north a bit more to Goat Rock to check what I could get. I drove up and down the hills, and parked close to the beach. The beach was crowded with people. I decided to walk on a trail parallel to the shoreline, and a little away from the sea. This place was supposed to have a lot of 'Harbor Seals'. There was a huge water body with a lot of ducks. I had Surf Scoters and Common Goldeneyes predominantly. After a while I saw a male 'Common Merganser' which was my fifth lifer of the day. I went to the place where the seals were resting, and had good looks at about 100 of them lying around. A group of gulls nearby just had the usual suspects. There was plenty of day-light left, and I decided to head back to Bodega Bay. I drove the U-shaped road again and found nothing new. I then headed to Doran Regional Park nearby to try for any other Gulls. Again just the usual suspects. Sun had set by now, and I went to eat dinner at a nearby restaurant. After four days of intense birding and driving, I started feeling tired. I drove the remaining distance to Sacremento.

Day 5:

Yellow-billed Magpie

     This was the day I wanted to get 'Tundra Swan' and the CA endemic 'Yellow-billed Magpie'. My first destination was 'Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area'. As I was driving along the highway with the wetland on the sides, I could see huge flocks of swans flying overhead. I knew that they had to be Tundra Swans which winter here, but I could not count them as I needed proper looks. I drove to the entrance of the wetland, but the gates were closed. A truck was waiting for the gates to be opened, and I was thinking it would be opened at 9 am, which was just a few minutes away. A guy came to open the door for the truck, but stopped me and said the area was closed for public due to flooding. So it has to be some other time for Tundra Swans. I decided to find the Yellow-billed Magpie. I headed to 'Wood Duck Lake', and in quick time found them. This was my only lifer of the day. I had good birds along the roads and fields, but nothing from my target list. With not much birding hotspots around, I decided to check various places for Purple Finches. I went to Babel Slough, American River Parkway--Waterton Way access, and Effie Yeaw Nature Center. Birding-wise nothing was exciting. I went back to a road near 'Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area' to check for Tri-colored Blackbirds and maybe a chance sighting of Tundra Swans. This place was on the way to SFO, which was where I needed to go anyway. I checked all the Red-winged Blackbirds to see if I could make any of them into a Tricolored. I had no luck with either of them. This was the most disappointing day of the trip. I drove to the hostel at SFO for the night. I had to get up early tomorrow and walk to Pier 39 for the cruise. 

Day 6:

     On arrival at the point to take the cruise, I saw normal tourists while I was expecting to see birders. It turned out to be a pure whale watching tour and I was fooled into it. I had a chat with the naturalist who knows about birds. It did not take long for me to figure out that she knew little about birds. Anyway, I thought it would matter little. I had Heermann's Gull and Thayer's Gull on my targets. I expected to see some new birds in the sea. The large boat started into the ocean and we were going quite fast. The idea was to go to a place where whales were likely to be seen. After a point I asked the naturalist if we were really going to land at Farallon Islands. She said that I needed special permission for that, and only scientists and researchers get them! Now, I realized that I have really been fooled. I'm sure some birders might do some trips too. Anyway, I saw whatever birds there was to see. I got 'Common Murres', and saw hundreds of them.

Common Murres

This was my first lifer. I saw a Cormorant deep in the ocean, and I took pics of it suspecting it to be a Brandt's Cormorant. This was proved later, and so it was my second lifer of the day. There were no whale sightings, and so we were told that we can keep doing the same trip free of cost until we see a whale. On the way back and closer to the shore, I got network connectivity. I looked at possible locations to go to on the way to my cousin's place. I wanted Heermann's Gull and Thayer's Gull. After the hard trip about 25 miles into the sea and back, I got out of the boat hungry. Just when I was getting down I saw a loon which was not a Common Loon. I had to take pics - it could be either Pacific or Red-throated. At that point I thought it was Red-throated and I consulted an expert to confirm it later. I was thinking this to be a lifer, but the Pacific Loon I thought I had at Samoa Dunes was actually a Red-throated Loon. I continued climbing on the ramp back to the dock, when I saw a Gull in the noisy environment which I immediately identified as a Heermann's Gull. Now, I need not go to some of the locations I just searched for! This was my third lifer of the day. I was pleasantly surprised after a disappointing ride into the sea. 

     I started my walk back to the hostel where I had the car. On the way I saw a restaurant with my home-town's name 'Chennai', and decided to try it out. I ordered Idly, Vadai and a coffee. I wished it could have been better, but idly and vadai is still idly and vadai. I decided to try for Thayer's Gull, which winters on the west coast. My feeling was it would lift a lot of burden when I look for the other birds in the future. I took the rental car and drove to Pillar Point Harbor. I looked at all the Herring Gulls in detail. I ignored the first year and second year gulls.

Thayer's Gull - juvenile

I could not make anything into a Thayer's. I decided to try one more place before sunset, and headed to 'Half Moon Bay SB--Venice Beach and Pilarcitos Creek Mouth'. I parked my car and walked south. I found nothing interesting. I turned back and walked north. At a distance near the sea I found a group of gulls. I felt I had nothing to loose and did a long walk to the access point that took me down the hill and then another walk on the beach to where the gulls were. The sun had just set now, and I thought it better to study the juvenile birds. I clicked pictures of the unique ones and compared google images. One of them matched a Thayer's, and I was confident I got it! This was the fourth lifer of the day. I anyway wanted to consult an expert later to check my id, and it turned out to be right. 

     I went to my cousin's place to take a shower and eat. I got up at 4:30 am next day to go to SFO airport for the morning flight to ATX.

     This was my first trip where I flew exclusively for birding. I was tired after the driving mainly, and I decided to cut down on driving time in the future trips. This trip got me 27 lifers. 

Photos:

www.flickr.com/photos/57507254@N04/sets/72157676655549461