On Tuesday morning, I revisited Hardy Bay, this time on a rising tide. While this is the ideal situation for shorebirding, I gave the bay a quick scan before turning to the sandbars and mudflats. Much to my surprise, one of the first birds I saw was a Yellow-billed Loon, a very much wanted, but not expected bird for this trip. Some years, they are around in good numbers. This year, none had been reported to eBird or the BCVIBIRDS list. The bird was on the other side of the bay, but through the scope, I had great looks at it. The best I could muster with my camera, though, was an “evidence” shot.
I had tea and scones with Kristina Kezes, Shea Wyatt and their new baby Maya before heading towards Tofino via Port McNeill. Guy Monty had advised a stop at the Port McNeill mudflats if I had the time, so that’s exactly what I did. It was a good thing, too, as a Long-billed Dowitcher flew in, giving a few loud “peek” calls to confirm its identity. There were three Short-billed Dowitchers and several other peeps there as well, but by then the tide was going out and so were they!
While in Port Hardy, I had received several bird messages of interest. I had been without email for a couple of days, and was inundated by sightings from Victoria (of course). Thankfully, most were of species that I will likely get, and those that were rarer (like American White Pelicans and Grey-crowned Rosy-Finch) were not really chaseable birds. Still, it was a little frustrating to see so many reports all at once. There was an interesting report from Campbell River, though. A Yellow-headed Blackbird had been seen in a protected area on Spit Road. I arrived fairly late in the day, but the spot looked like it had a lot of potential. And there was an RV park right down the road, so I decided to stay the night so I could continue my search in the morning.
The Thunderbird RV Park was a long way from Winter Harbour, but it had one thing in common–no people. The park was almost full, but the office closed at 6 pm. Thankfully, there was a sign on the door saying to choose an empty spot and settle up in the morning. I may have mentioned that my van feels like a tank to me as I usually drive a Honda Fit, but it was teeny in comparison to pretty much everything else at the park.
I saw very few people in the first few hours I was there, and by the time that I made a trip to the washroom, there didn’t seem to be anyone else still awake. That was only a concern as the washrooms needed a code, and I didn’t have it! I had the same problem with internet access. Good thing the view was good! The park is right on Tyee Spit, right across from the deepwater dock. Unfortunately, there was a ship in port which ran its engines 24 hours a day. There was an audible hum throughout the night.
In the morning, I checked out the estuary and waterfront.
There were huge flocks of Bonaparte’s gulls, as well as Pacific Loons and Horned Grebes in breeding plumage.
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Eurasian Starlings had an active nest in the tail of a parked airplane. Somehow, I don’t think they knew the implications, but it looked like this one might have been parked there for a while.
It reminds me of a story that Dave Fraser once told of Tree Swallows (if I remember correctly) nesting in a piece of heavy equipment at an industrial site. The parents would follow the truck around all day, feeding their young. If this plane was sky-worthy, I don’t think the starlings would stand a chance!
The Yellow-headed Blackbird did not put in a repeat appearance, however. Overall, the area was easy enough to bird before 8 am, but as soon as the businesses started to open, the noise level made by-ear birding next to impossible. It was time to leave town!
When I stopped for lunch and to post my last blog in Courtenay, I got a text from Jilllian Johnston with a tip about another Yellow-headed Blackbird sighting nearby. I tried that spot as well, but still no blackbird love. With that it was time to make the trek towards Tofino.
I was anxious about the Alberni Highway, especially since it had started to rain and the roads were wet. It went reasonably smoothly though, and I was greatly relieved to be past the twisting and turning when I reached Port Alberni. I was in for a big surprise on the next leg of the journey. Between tight turns and slick roads, it was something of a harrowing experience. The van definitely doesn’t drive like the FIt! En route, near Wally Creek if I read the signs correctly, there was a section of chain link fence at one of the viewpoints. It looked like several locks were attached to it. I inquired about that when I was at the Shorebird Festival, but no one seemed to know about it. Turns out there is a trend to festoon fences and other structures with “love locks” sometimes to the point of causing failure of the structure!
I was relieved to finally get to the Wya Point Campground and meet up with Karen Ferguson who was also in town for the festival. We hit the beach to get some new birds for my eBird county list, including a couple of Whimbrel. As on Grant Bay, Velella was washed up all over the beach. Then it started to get drizzly. It was nice to be able to make and drink a cup of tea in the van. I enjoy staying in it much more than driving it!