We labor, we toil, we strive and strain. Shorebirds are tidally locked. We got to Moss Landing State Beach Wednesday, October 3rd, about 5 PM, lots of mudflats, hundreds of shorebirds, cold wind and poor light. The Sharp-Tailed Sandpiper was reported there a few days ago. The next AM there were no mudflats but great light, high tide, duh. We wandered over to the Common Cuckoo shrine in Watsonville, no cuckoo today and no crowds. Where do lost birds go?
Where should we go next? We drove to Rush Ranch near Suisun CA. A Barn Owl in the barn! John had taken a picture of a bird in flight near Idylwild CA that turned out to be a Barn Owl. Much better to get a real time view of a bird and better pictures. On one of the trails, we flushed a Ring-Necked Pheasant female, a fly-away tail view for John. Back on the road we turned inland on a dead end road. There was a male pheasant on the road! 660 Great view for John even though two huge trucks roared by us. Where were they going at top speed? No pictures possible.
Tweezing out possible destinations, we have decided to head for Yosemite tomorrow, Friday, October 6th, to try for the Sooty Grouse again. Maybe after, we will head for Nevada and the fabled Himalayan Snowcock.
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