I planned my dentist trip to Dentus in Vancouver, WA, so I could spend two or three hours at the Ridgefield Wildlife Refuge. Life apparently had other plans for me; the gate was locked when I got there and discovered it had unexpectedly closed for the day. Later, we found that I wasn’t the only one disappointed but apparently no one knew exactly why it was closed.
So, what do you do when your plans fall apart, and you have three extra hours on your hands? If you’re me, you gripe a little and think of nearby places you can bird instead. It certainly helps when you’re familiar with the area, having lived there for thirty-plus years.
We ended up walking Salmon Creek, where we saw lots of skittish birds singing their hearts out but hiding from the many visitors on Spring Break. Only some brave Black-Capped Chickadees were willing to pose for shots
We had to walk a little further to find the Wood Ducks that we’ve seen there on previous visits. The male Wood Duck certainly rivals my personal favorite, the male Harlequin Duck.
This Salmon Creek pond is a bit of a miracle. I feel lucky every time I see a male Wood Duck because I rarely see them, and never see them in most places I frequent. Yet, I usually see several on this pond, and they seem so accustomed to people that they don’t fly off as soon as you point a camera at them.
I wonder if this pond serves as the local bar for Wood Ducks, the perfect place to find a mate.
Salmon Creek doesn’t have nearly as many of birds or as great of variety of birds as Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge, but you can find birds at Salmon Creek that you wouldn’t see at Ridgefield.