December 15th - Putting a Bow on the Year

Port Townsend

I woke up at the Harborside, finally feeling moderately well rested. The view out the window of my room was lovely - I may have missed the official sunrise, but this felt pretty close. 

Breakfast was provided. I really need to stop and consider this benefit. Especially when it's a hotel breakfast buffet, it can be a quick, easy, fulfilling start to the day - often meaning smaller meals later on. Especially on multi-day trips, I may seek these situations out more frequently. 

Where to? I had two birds to chase - the first was a Canvasback at a lake just south and west of town. 

Discovery Bay Pond

A pond named after a bay. . . sure. I'll allow that. The pond in question sits spitting distance from the bay in question. It sits just inside the curve of Discovery Road, as its westward path turns north (or southward path turns east... hopefully that tracks). I've birded here before in deathwish conditions, pulled off mostly on the side of a narrow, busy, two-lane road. Steve Hampton set me up with a better plan. 

Driving past the west end of the lake, one finds a gated pulloff, which is legal parking.

Returning back along the road (still a little deathwishy, but far less so), one can eventually see a little break in the Nootka Rose brambles. From there, you can slide through, and there is room for approximately one person to set up with a scope. 

I almost immediately landed on the Canvasback - Bird 194 for the year for the county. 

Lighting was pretty poor for the pictures. Additionally, I believe I am poor with a camera in these long-distance situations. I got satisfying scope views, and barely identifiable images through the camera. Success!

West Valley Road

A Rough-legged Hawk had been seen from this road, hanging around at Short Farm. I stopped and scoped from a few different spots, scanning over all fence posts. Eventually I found my final bird of the year, perched about midway out towards Center Road.

195!

This was extremely satisfying. I did an internal check, just to make sure that I was still okay not getting to 200. I was. It was ... well, satisfying is just a good word for it. It was a satisfying year. And what a fun bird to finish with! I love the oreo blizzard look of these birds, with the creamy white and the dark dark chocolatey brown/black. 

The Arts and Crafts Fair

North Beach painting nearly at center here
Picture taken before I had taken a closer look

I had been told the previous evening (at Finnriver) that I should really visit the arts and crafts fair at Chimacum High School. I do like taking in as much of the local scene as possible during these years, but figured that this would be lower on my to-do list. However, I landed in Chimacum soon after it started, and I saw a slow flow of cars filling up the parking lot. So, I gave it a look. 

Amazing stop! I paid my five dollars at the entrance and started strolling stall to stall. The very first stall hit me hard. The artist had numerous paintings with a focus on local places. I saw North Beach, and just got slammed by how much it was North Beach. 

I make a point time and time again in the blogs that I really love taking something abstract (like a map, or a birding checklist), and getting to concretely experience it. I talk about it as if it's the end all be all of life - go out and *see* things! But here it had come full circle. I read about places, went to see them, and now got to see an abstract interpretation of one of those places. And it just hit me hard. Maybe it was in part from the emotions of being "done" with this project. I don't know, but I had to leave the stall, and wander off to others, pretending to look things over carefully. 

I actually did get some good shopping in! A couple of bowls, and a beautiful puzzle. I even stood staring at some cribbage boards for many long minutes. I need to use my present cribbage board more often before I can really justify the purchase of another. 

On my way out, I stopped and told the artist how I could not buy one of the paintings, but I could confess my emotional reaction. "Thank you! That's why I do it!", he told me, seeming genuinely happy to hear it. 

And then. . . Olympia! I had a chance to meet up with a very dear friend for the afternoon. I could have stopped in Kitsap, maybe tried again for an American Dipper, or American Coot, but contentedness and balance won the day. 

195 for Jefferson in 2024. 155 for Kitsap. A fine end to the year.