Jan. 20/05 - CATCHING UP WITH THE PACIFIC LOONS - Despite my careful vigilance all winter from Deep Bay to Nanoose, the Pacific Loons had eluded my radar. It was time to check out the surest loon location in the area - Lantzville. The sunny Georgia Strait scene was postcard-pretty as I parked at the end of Oar Rd. A quick glance towards Winchelsea Island immediately revealed the white necks of 2 Pacific Loons. If I were a lister, I could say I had my first Pacific "Loonatick" of the year. But, I don't keep lists so I'll leave that to someone else. Within minutes, a flock of 20 more loons flew in from the south. It was an impressive sight for my first encounter with the Pacific's this winter. They were too distant for photos which allowed me to enjoy the phenomena without peering through a lens.
All right, I did take a couple of shots just to document the event, but for the most part, I was a spectator. After the loon scene, I focused on a pair of male Common Mergansers. They were surprisingly friendly as I edged closer to the water. Normally, they would have taken flight before I was this close, but I wasn't complaining. I was too busy tracking them through my lens and waiting for the proper angle when the light reflected off their eyes. There was a small creek running into the Strait by the Mergansers. I think they were drinking the fresh water. There was one female with the two males. There wasn't any courtship behavior as I would see later with the Mallards at Macgregor Marsh. Further down the beach, I discovered 2 ducks lounging in the sun. The first was a male Common Goldeneye. I expected the 2nd to be the female Goldeneye, but it was the female Greater Scaup. Jan. 24 - There are times when you have to have faith in the weatherman so despite gloomy overcast conditions, we headed off to Campbell River to deliver 3 books to BOOK BONANZA. Yes, 3 books! A money-losing proposition to be sure, but an excuse to do a little birding. It didn't look promising as the clouds grew darker and eventually we were smothered in fog. That made the trip north a little quicker as there were no Redtails or other birds to look for. The skies did lighten at Campbell River, and heading back to Comox, patches of blue materialized. There would be time for a little birding. To make sure I took at least one picture, we stopped just south of Campbell River for a "Cormorant on the rocks" photo. I had my choice of a Pelagic or Double-crested so chose the D-C because it was larger and the orange sac and bill would show up better. The sun was shining on the Trumpters at Comox Bay Farm unlike the last 4 times I was in the area. There was a large group by the road at the northern end of the field. My wife caught a glimpse of a brown bird among the Trumpeters, but we were on the wrong side of the road to stop. We turned into the farm, and I took a couple of Trumpeter shots before heading back north. Nearing the Trumpeters, my wife was able to identify a gorgeous male Asian Ring-necked Pheasant. It was hunkered down in the grass which was ideal for me to set up the camera and move into position. 5 minutes later, the pheasant got up and started grazing again. Unfortunately it headed away from me, but not before I got a couple of reasonable pictures. After a sale's visit to the BLUE HERON BOOKSTORE in Comox, we stopped at the Courtenay Airpark. With all the people around, you would have thought it was a weekend. I was surprised to hear my voice called as I was focussing on a Red-breasted Merganser in the River. It was MILLIE and BILL. I had never met them but Millie guessed it was me because of my camera. It it had been Boundary Bay, she would have had 5 cameras to choose from. Anyway, it was a pleasure to meet them, and I did get the Red-breasted Merganser. We saw about 7 Wilson's Snipes and 1 Western Meadowlark that I wasn't able to photograph. Our next stop was to be Deep Bay, but the clouds rolled in so we rolled all the way home. It was a good day. NANAIMO - BACKYARD WILDBIRD & NATURE STORE SAVE-ON FOODS (WOODGROVE) SAVE-ON FOODS (COUNTRY CLUB) CHAPTERS FALCONER BOOKS COLE'S PORT ALBERNI - CLOCKTOWER GALLERY COURTENAY - GRAHAM'S JEWELLERS SAVE-ON FOODS SIDNEY - VICTORIAN BIRD HOUSE COMOX - BLUE HERON BOOKS BOWSER - LIGHTHOUSE GIFTS DEEP BAY - SAANICH - WILD BIRDS UNLIMITED VICTORIA - BOLEN BOOKS MUNRO'S CAMPBELL RIVER - CAMPBELL RIVER MUSEUM BOOK BONANZA SAVE-ON FOODS DUNCAN - VOLUME 1 BOOKSTORE CHEMAINUS - LITTLE SHOP OF NOVELS LADYSMITH - SALAMANDER BOOKS NANOOSE - SCHOONER COVE MARINA SOOKE - SOOKE HARBOUR HOUSE
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