Category: Port Orchard

As much as I pride myself in living in the moment since I retired, refusing to make too many commitments because I want the freedom to get up and go when I feel like it, I’m amused by the ruts I find myself in. I spent a good part of today, for instance, at my usual 6:30-8:30 YMCA workout, my half hour walk with Skye, and my monthly volunteer work for the Tahoma Audubon Society.

As a result, today’s entry is a continuation of yesterday’s Belfair trip. Ever since I accidentally discovered how many birds can be seen on the Port Orchard Docks, I complete the Belfair trip with a trip to the dock and to my favorite lunch destination.

This is the first time I’ve seen so many Horned Grebes gathered at the dock in a long time. I can hardly wait until they begin to don their breeding colors.

Though most of the birds aren’t afraid of people, or they wouldn’t be in such a heavily traveled area, almost invariably they will start to paddle away like this

when you point the camera at them, which is why I think this might be my favorite shot of the day. I can’t remember ever getting a head-on shot of a Barrow’s Goldeneye like this one,

though I was also fond of this shot showing both a male and female Barrow’s Goldeneye.

I’m always a little amazed how different the males and females of a species can look.

One of the real advantages of retirement, especially here in the Pacific Northwest, is that you’re able to squeeze all the joy possible out of what little sunshine there is. Without plans — and I try never to plan too far into the future — you’re able to jump in the car with your camera equipment as soon as the clouds part, and if you’re quick enough you can get some good pictures before the darkness descends once again.

Strangely, every time I’ve gone out this week, I’ve run into Horned Grebes. They seem to be everywhere, even stranger since I never managed to get a shot of one in breeding colors before this year. When I ran down to Ruston Way Tuesday, there was a considerable flock of them floating just offshore, and even though it was still somewhat overcast, those that were in full breeding colors were spectacular.

So spectacular that I couldn’t ignore them, even though it would be difficult to improve on the shots I’ve already taken this year. Still, if you sit around long enough, one of them will strike a new pose:

Sometimes if you sit and watch long enough, something will happen to break up the party. Tuesday it was a horbor sea that came up in the middle of the flock.

That’s all it took to scatter the flock and disperse them across the harbor,

effectively ending my birding for the day.

As much as I enjoy these brief outings, though, the pictures you get never quite match the quality of pictures you’re able to get on a bright sunny day like we had Wednesday. Although my shot of the Red-Breasted Sapsucker is by far my favorite of the day, I couldn’t resist shooting more shots of Horned Grebes, particularly one like this which made it clear why they’re named â€?”horned,”

and this shot of another Grebe seemed to say â€?”sunshine” better than any other shot of the day.

One of the best parts of birding is that you’re constantly learning, particularly when you know as little about birds as I did when I started out a few years ago. Five years ago I’d never heard of a â€?”grebe,” much less a Horned Grebe. I’ve been observing them for a couple years now, though, and I knew that they looked different in breeding colors, but last Thursday those changes were indelibly etched on my brain at Port Orchard.

Here’s a Horned Grebe that’s just starting to change into breeding colors,

another just starting to change colors,

one that’s nearly completely changed,

and one in full-breeding colors.

It’s hard to believe that they’re the same bird.