NOT Birding By Boat

Our scheduled trip for Friday was called Birding By Boat. The group would ride in rafts, gently floating down the New River (I was assured it wouldn't be the white water section), taking in the lovely scenery along the way. We'd been having quite a bit of rain, mostly in the mornings and I wasn't enthused about sitting in a wet raft. I was OK with getting off the bus in the rain for birding but actually sitting on a wet seat? Mmmm...not for me. I had had a major "hit the wall" the evening before. I'm not complaing at all. I had heard and seen so many remarkable birds that day but I was feeling like a super-saturated solution. Dig back in your brains and find that chemistry term. Need help? This from Wikipedia:

The term supersaturation refers to a solution that contains more of the dissolved material than could be dissolved by the solvent under normal circumstances.

Small particles (seeds) can trigger the separation of the dissolved material from the solvent. In solid form these seeds can lead to the formation of crystallites or even large single crystals.

In simpler terms, if I tried to identify or photograph ONE MORE BIRD- My brain would turn to stone. I had run into Jeff Gordon that afternoon and he asked me if I'd had a good day. YEAH! Did you get any lifers? YEAH!

What did you see? Mmmm...can't remember.

Who were your trip leaders? Uhhhh...can't remember.

Where' did you go? Duhhhh...I don't know.

I was fried. Dinner was fun, a chance to chat and laugh and relax. Five minutes into the after-dinner program my eyes slammed shut. I didn't want to disrespect the speaker or embarrass myself so I quietly left the room and headed back out to my car. I passed Geoff Heeter on the way and told him that I really needed some down time and because the weather forecast was for heavy rain the next day, I would not be attending Birding By Boat. He asked me to rethink my decision and at least check the weather in the morning. OK.

Early the next morning, Mary tapped on my door for wake-up and she told me that the Birding By Boat had been cancelled! Heavy rains with possible lighting meant no river travel. Geoff Heeter and Jeff Gordon would instead lead a bus trip they quickly dubbed "Winging It". I had slept well and felt my brain had decompressed so I dressed to go.

On the bus, Jeff asked everyone if there was a particular bird that they wanted to see. Having been mocked by Carolina Wrens during my whole trip to Cape May last October, I mentioned that I'd REALLY like to see one. I know for a fact that a Carolina Wren would not be a lifer for anyone on that bus but me, but Jeff promised to get one for me. Our first stop was a golf course. Hardly off the bus, Jeff called out Northern Rough-winged Swallows. LIFER! Jeff's head perked up as he heard a Carolina Wren singing just up ahead. He played a little birdjam (Hi Jay!) and called that baby right in. HA! GOTCHA! LIFER! Jeff made sure I got a good long look at the Wren. My pictures are lousy, but I don't care. I travelled many, many miles to get that delicious bird.

Thank you Jeff.

Within minutes Geoff and Jeff had an Orchard Oriole in sight. LIFER! That's three lifers in about five minutes. Am I glad I went? Yes, yes, yes.

We started walking across the grass toward a stand of evergreens when suddenly one of the leaders (Jeff or Geoff) called out "Cape May Warbler." I stopped in my tracks with a lump in my throat. Way back when I bought my first field guide Birds of Eastern and Central North America by Roger Torey Peterson I thumbed through the book, looking at all the wonderful birds, making a mental list of the ones that really tugged at me- either for their beauty in form or flight or for the bit of natural history that told of their lives. The Cape May Warbler was on that list. And there it was.

Geoff quickly got it in the spotting scope and I could barely see it through the tears in my eyes. After everyone got a good look, Geoff cranked up the magnification and offered looks again. I was speechless.

Thank you Geoff.

I cannot tell you how many photos I took of this bird. I'm thankful for digital.

This Cape May Warbler made four life birds for me in about fifteen minutes.

Here's the Jeff/Geoff team looking like the professionals that they are. Awesome birders, generous and patient, and lots of fun. Thank you guys!



Later we stopped along the river and I got another lifer:
Warbling Vireo


It was a beautiful spot along the river.

We made a quick stop just to grab pictures of this lovely waterfall. Happily, no lives were lost crossing the wicked, steep, curved hill. We were told that road carried a lot of commuter traffic (at high speeds).

Another stop along the day was this park with clearly marked signs.


"Come on everybody! Let's go this way."


A sweet Yellow Warbler sang for us.

All together it was an EIGHT LIFER day for me!

Warbling Vireo
Purple Martin
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Carolina Wren
Cape May Warbler
Orchard Oriole
Yellow-throated Warbler


Our dinner that night was at the Cathedral Cafe. Jane, Kathleen and Mary brought "a few" bottles of wine to have with our dinner.

After a delicious dinner prepared by Dave Pollard and his family, Kathi read a poem she had written called "Birding With Bill." It was sweet and funny and very well crafted. Julie Zickefoose gave the talk later, sharing stories of some of the birds that have affected her life and the lives of her family. I was so touched that Julie included me in a section on Turkey Vultures and was delighted to know that she and I share strong feelings for this spectacular bird. She spoke of totems and their meanings and how important TUVU's have been to her at various times in her life. I am comforted to know that there is someone else out there who understands my depth of connection to this bird that most find less than attractive.
Thank you Julie.

I love this picture. I took it from what I'm guessing was the choir loft. I can see so many of the people that I got to know at the New River Birding and Nature Festival, people who shared their knowledge and mad birding skilz. People who shared their stories and laughter, smiles and hugs. Seriously folks, if you're thinking of attending next year- do it.

Beth brought her cement chicken to serve as the Flock Mascot. It weighed a TON but did a gooood job!