6 am - 1 pm Saturday May 17, 2008    

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On Saturday, May 17th, we will make a birding expedition to another of the habitat management
units along the Snake River between Ice Harbor and Lower Monumental dams in Franklin County.

Located due west and just across stream from Hollebecke HMU in Walla Walla County, Lost
Island would seem the ideal place to search for nesting Yellowbreasted Chat. Yellow-breasted
Chats are easily found at Hollebecke at this season, but I have yet to add this species to my Franklin County life list. Past experience combined with current weather predictions suggest that an array of migrating sparrow and warbler species should still be moving through and local nesting species should all have arrived and be on territory. Additionally, with the completion of the Columbia Plateau Trail built on the roadbed of the abandoned railroad right-of-way running between Ice Harbor and Cheney, our ability to bird the three Franklin County HMUs (Big Flat, Lost Island and Snake River) has been much enhanced because this improved hiking trail transverses the full northern boundary of each of these sites. 

We will depart at 6 AM from the parking lot next to Lampson office building at foot of the Cable Bridge on Hwy 397 in Kennewick and plan on returning by 1 PM.
This somewhat early beginning—dawn will arrive at
4:27 AM and sunrise at 5:14 AM on May 24th—will
assure that we see and hear the maximum number of
birds and bird species which, after all, is what it’s all
about. The weather will be great and so will the birds.

Note: We will be walking 3 + miles sometimes over uneven ground and sometimes at a brisk pace.

REGIONAL FIELD TRIPS

Dennis Rockwell leads occasional half- and whole-day field trips to sites in the Columbia Basin, as well as an annual camping field trip of 2-4 days in areas of special interest in the Pacific Northwest.

Participants enjoy making a trip list of all bird, mammal and plant species encountered. The occasional rarity is a pleasing bonus, but our emphasis is always on camaraderie and appreciation of the natural world.

• Beginners encouraged !
• Scopes are welcome.
• Arrive a few minutes early
• Wear seasonally appropriate footwear & clothing
• Always take a lunch, drinks & snacks for trips that go beyond midday.
• Carpool guidelines are 35 cents per mile per vehicle - total expenses to be divided by number of riders excluding the driver.
• NO pets.