Corvallis to Marys Peak backpacking - 6/10
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Lisa Millbank
Jun 16, 2010, 12:42:09 AM6/16/10
to Mid-valley Nature
Don
& I backpacked to Marys Peak, starting at our apartment. So, we strapped on
our packs at about 6:45 AM Thursday morning (6/10) and just walked out the
door! Our trip would have been much more difficult if it had not been for a
friend of ours who very kindly let us stay on his property about midway up Woods
Creek Rd.
We got some puzzled looks and jeers from passing cars as we walked along Philomath Blvd. and through Philomath. While in urban areas we got a good variety of common birds, in addition to a few birds that would have been easy to miss, like ACORN WOODPECKER and OSPREY.
Along Hwy. 20 there was a nerve-wracking incident when we were confronted by an aggressive pit bull running loose. On the bridge over Marys River, a NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOW made an appearance. While boating down the Marys River in the past, we've seen their nesting tunnels in the riverbanks.
Finally we reached Woods Creek Rd. and enjoyed seeing the gigantic aquatic saxifrage growing in Woods Creek, Darmera peltata or INDIAN RHUBARB. It was finished blooming and now had seed pods forming. A light rain began to fall and we had to suit up in our rain gear. But the rain washed the road dust from the plants along the way, and the flowers glowed beautifully despite the cloudy sky. Patches of RED COLUMBINE, TALL CHECKERMALLOW, COMMON MONKEYFLOWER, TALL LARKSPUR, ORANGE HONEYSUCKLE and FORKTOOTH OOKOW cheered us along. A few unusual plants, MENZIE'S LARKSPUR and WOODS MONKEYFLOWER were exciting surprises.
The light rain didn't discourage the birds one bit, so we listened to songs of all kinds. A few of the most conspicuous singers along the lower part of Woods Creek Rd. were WILSON'S WARBLERS (video), BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAKS, WARBLING VIREOS, and PACIFIC-SLOPE FLYCATCHERS.
We got some puzzled looks and jeers from passing cars as we walked along Philomath Blvd. and through Philomath. While in urban areas we got a good variety of common birds, in addition to a few birds that would have been easy to miss, like ACORN WOODPECKER and OSPREY.
Along Hwy. 20 there was a nerve-wracking incident when we were confronted by an aggressive pit bull running loose. On the bridge over Marys River, a NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOW made an appearance. While boating down the Marys River in the past, we've seen their nesting tunnels in the riverbanks.
Finally we reached Woods Creek Rd. and enjoyed seeing the gigantic aquatic saxifrage growing in Woods Creek, Darmera peltata or INDIAN RHUBARB. It was finished blooming and now had seed pods forming. A light rain began to fall and we had to suit up in our rain gear. But the rain washed the road dust from the plants along the way, and the flowers glowed beautifully despite the cloudy sky. Patches of RED COLUMBINE, TALL CHECKERMALLOW, COMMON MONKEYFLOWER, TALL LARKSPUR, ORANGE HONEYSUCKLE and FORKTOOTH OOKOW cheered us along. A few unusual plants, MENZIE'S LARKSPUR and WOODS MONKEYFLOWER were exciting surprises.
The light rain didn't discourage the birds one bit, so we listened to songs of all kinds. A few of the most conspicuous singers along the lower part of Woods Creek Rd. were WILSON'S WARBLERS (video), BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAKS, WARBLING VIREOS, and PACIFIC-SLOPE FLYCATCHERS.
As we approached the property that was our stopping point for the night, we found a dead BUSHY-TAILED WOODRAT and a dead PACIFIC JUMPING-MOUSE. It was sad to see these poor little dead critters. It did give us a clue about some of the rodent life in the area. Fortunately, there were plenty of healthy and perky TOWNSEND'S CHIPMUNKS and those little chatterboxes, the DOUGLAS' SQUIRRELS (video).
We looked for a place to camp on our friend's property and admired the uncommon TALL BUGBANE (Cimicifuga elata) that grew on a moist slope with PIGGYBACK PLANT and ENCHANTER'S-NIGHTSHADE. It rained on and off through the night, but one time we both woke up to the "Who cooks for you, who cooks for you all?" call of a BARRED OWL.
To be
continued....
Lisa
& Don
Bird species on 6/10, in order:
|
|
| Black-headed Grosbeak |
| European Starling |
| American Crow |
| American Goldfinch |
| Dark-eyed Junco |
| Evening Grosbeak |
| Western Scrub-Jay |
| Violet-green Swallow |
| Spotted Towhee |
| Savannah Sparrow |
| Western Tanager |
| Mourning Dove |
| Lazuli Bunting |
| American Robin |
| Song Sparrow |
| Bushtit |
| House Sparrow |
| Brewer's Blackbird |
| Osprey |
| Western Bluebird |
| Cedar Waxwing |
| Black-capped Chickadee |
| Brown Cowbird |
| Pacific-slope Flycatcher |
| Barn Swallow |
| Northern Flicker |
| Acorn Woodpecker |
| White-breasted Nuthatch |
| Downy Woodpecker |
| Warbling Vireo |
| Common Yellowthroat |
| Yellow Warbler |
| House Finch |
| Bewick's Wren |
| Turkey Vulture |
| Orange-crowned Warbler |
| Lesser Goldfinch |
| Western Wood-Pewee |
| Cliff Swallow |
| Northern Rough-winged Swallow |
| White-crowned Sparrow |
| Black-throated Gray Warbler |
| Rufous Hummingbird |
| Chestnut-backed Chickadee |
| Steller's Jay |
| Wilson's Warbler |
| Swainson's Thrush |
| Winter Wren |
| Purple Finch |
| Hutton's Vireo |
| Band-tailed Pigeon |
| Pileated Woodpecker |
| California Quail |
| Brown Creeper |
| Red-breasted Sapsucker |
| Olive-sided Flycatcher |
| House Wren |
| Hairy Woodpecker |
| Golden-crowned Kinglet |
| Great Blue Heron |
| Barred Owl |
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