Arizona - California Trip ~ October 2, 2014

My plan was to try for a few 'life' birds in Arizona and take a pelagic trip out of San Diego, California. I flew from Philadelphia to Phoenix, arriving mid-morning, and drove the short distance to Encanto Park in Phoenix. There, I found several Rosy-faced Lovebirds, my first target species, near the top of a palm tree.

A Northern 'Red-shafted' Flicker worked another palm tree nearby.

I was planning on driving to Bill Williams National Wildlife Refuge to try once again for the Nutting's Flycatcher, but the bird had not been recently seen in the accessible area for months and the road to the spot was reportedly in bad shape from the record-setting heavy rains that had fallen a week before. So, I decided to drive directly over to San Diego, getting there just before dusk. I would spend the next three nights at the Dolphin Motel in Point Loma.

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Arizona - California Trip ~ October 3, 2014

I headed over to Mission Valley and birded the area along the San Diego River located behind the Town & Country Hotel. The area around the footbridge produced Anna's Hummingbird, Nuttall's Woodpecker, Western Wood-Pewee, Black Phoebe, White-crowned Sparrow, Common Yellowthroat, the "Audubon's" form of Yellow-rumped Warbler, and Townsend's and Orange-crowned Warbler.

Soon after, I found several Scaly-breasted Munias, also known as Nutmeg Mannikins, along the edge of the parking lot behind the hotel.

From there, I drove up to Point La Jolla. Heermann's Gulls and Western Gulls were present at Ellen B. Scripps Park.

Brown Pelicans and Brandt's Cormorants were on the rocks along the shore with California Sea Lions.

Several Double-crested Cormorants were perched in the nearby trees.

Other birds noted there included Snowy Egret, Wandering Tattler, Black Turnstone, and Caspian Tern.

The next stop was at the San Diego National Wildlife Refuge near Imperial Beach. Many Marbled Godwits, Willets, and Black-necked Stilts were present. A Long-billed Curlew stood amongst them.

One of two Western Meadowlarks perched atop the scrub along the highway.

In addition to them were Great Egret, Black-bellied and Semipalmated Plover, American Avocet, Greater Yellowlegs, Black Turnstone, Western and Least Sandpiper, Short-billed and Long-billed Dowitcher, Red-necked Phalarope, Elegant Tern, and the "Belding's" race of Savannah Sparrow.

Later, Eurasian Collared-Dove and Cassin's Kingbird were spotted along Monument Road near the U.S. border.

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Arizona - California Trip ~ October 4, 2014

Today's agenda was a pelagic trip out of Point Loma on the 'Grande'. A Black-crowned Night-Heron and a Western Grebe were seen from the dock. On the way out to the Pacific, we saw a small group of birds on shore that contained Black Oystercatchers, an unusual American X Black Oystercatcher hybrid, and a few Whimbrel. Some Elegant Terns and an Eared Grebe were spotted near the point. Along the Mexican border, my first of many Black-vented Shearwaters zipped past.

Good numbers of Red-necked Phalaropes and smaller numbers of Cassin's Auklets were found along several stretches of the trip. At and around the '30-Mile Bank', I got to see my 'life' Black Storm-Petrels and, soon after, some Least Storm-Petrels. Back at the '9-Mile Bank', a few Pink-footed Shearwaters flew in, one of them nice and close.

I was lucky enough to see the two Craveri's Murrelets sitting on the water as we approached, my fourth 'lifer' of the day! Their grayish underwings were noted as they flew off.
A Striped Marlin put on a show, making several lunges out of the ocean.

A Humpback Whale surfaced just long enough for me to get a photo of the tail as it dove.

Other notables that I saw included an Ashy Storm-Petrel, several Pomarine Jaegers, and a Sabine's Gull. I also saw one of the Leach's Storm-Petrels, but it was so far out that I couldn't even consider counting it as my life bird.

As we headed back towards Point Loma, I had the good fortune to be able to talk with Guy McCaskie, "the godfather of California birding." I mentioned to him that I was planning on looking for the Red-throated Pipits at the Dairy Mart sod farm the next morning. I had seen them in Alaska but never in the 'lower 48'. He said he was going there, too, and let me know what kind of vehicle to look for.

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Arizona - California Trip ~ October 5, 2014

As I pulled into the Dairy Mart sod farm, a Long-billed Curlew was standing right beside the dirt road.

I drove around to the other side of the sod farm where Mr. McCaskie was. He told me that he had just seen two of the Red-throated Pipits, but they had flown off to another section of the farm. It wasn't too long until most of the birds returned to the same field and he refound one. I got a look at it through his scope. Both of us searched the same general area and we eventually found four of them among about 30 American Pipits. The streaking on the back, the bolder streaking underneath, and the pinkish legs were diagnostic. I took a long-distance, documentation photo of one of them standing on one of the irrigation pipes.

Guy asked if I wanted to follow him over to the 'Bird & Butterfly Garden' and I easily agreed since it isn't every day that you get the chance to spend the morning with such a knowledgeable birder. Once there, we found a "Western" Flycatcher (likely a Pacific-slope), Black and Say's Phoebe, Bushtit, California Towhee, White-crowned Sparrow, and Orange-crowned and "Audubon's" Warbler. At the nearby 'community gardens', additional finds included Lincoln's Sparrow, Common Ground-Dove, and Eurasian Collared-Dove.

At that point, I thanked Guy for his time and hit the road for Arizona. I was hoping that there might be another chance for a 'lifer' in California or Arizona, but that wasn't the case, so I decided to head for Madera Canyon. I took I-8 east over the Laguna Mountains and down through Mountain Spring Pass into California's Imperial Valley.

Just before reaching Arizona, the interstate passes through the Agodones Dunes.

After passing Gila Bend, I-8 enters the Sonoran Desert National Monument with its impressive stands of Saguaro cacti.

I reached Madera Canyon in the late afternoon and stopped at the Santa Rita Lodge to check out the feeders. There was still a nice selection of seven hummingbird species zipping in and out. Gambel's Quail, Canyon Wren, and Lesser Goldfinch were also present. A striking sunset appeared as I coasted down Madera Canyon Road.

I spent the night at a Tucson 'Motel 6'.

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Arizona - California Trip ~ October 6, 2014

I headed back to Madera Canyon. On the way up into the canyon, a Greater Roadrunner ran across the road----what else would you expect it to do? A stop at Proctor Road produced Say's Phoebe, Black-tailed Gnatcatcher, Canyon Towhee, Black-throated Sparrow, and Varied Bunting. Just above Proctor Road, I noticed something slowly moving across the road, which turned out to be a Tarantula.

I spent most of the morning at the feeders at the Santa Rita Lodge. The hummingbirds are the main attraction here. Even as late as early October, there were still six species present. I managed to get photos of four of the six, the exceptions being Black-chinned and Broad-tailed.

Anna's Hummingbird

Adult Magnificent Hummingbird

Immature male Magnificent Hummingbird

Broad-billed Hummingbird

White-eared Hummingbird

In addition to the hummingbirds, Wild Turkey, Acorn Woodpecker, Bridled Titmouse, and Lesser Goldfinch, there were several other interesting birds also seen at the lodge.

Red-naped Sapsucker

White-winged Dove

Mexican Jay

Arizona Woodpecker

I walked a little farther up the canyon to Madera Kubo, which also had Magnificent and Blue-throated Hummingbirds and a Townsend's Warbler. I left the canyon in the early afternoon and began the 4-1/2 hour drive to Flagstaff. A Loggerhead Shrike perched on a wire along the way back down to I-19. I took I-10 to Phoenix and then I-17 north, staying the next two nights at a Motel 6 in Flagstaff.

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Arizona - California Trip ~ October 7, 2014

I was hoping that there would be another life bird to try for after the planned October 4th pelagic trip, but that wasn't the case. My backup plan was to drive up and see the Grand Canyon's South Rim. My wife and I had visited the North Rim along with the Utah national parks several years ago, but I had never seen the South Rim. So, I headed up there from Flagstaff, getting there just after sunrise. At around 7000 feet elevation, the temperatures were in the low 40's. The cool temperatures coupled with the early morning hours were most likely the reason that I had most of the viewpoints to myself until around mid-morning. Anyone who has seen the Grand Canyon will tell you that there is no way to photograph it to show just how immense it is. It has to be seen to be believed.

The viewpoint at Grand Canyon Village, looking northwest.

The viewpoint at Grand Canyon Village, looking north.

Western Bluebird below Grand Canyon Village.

The viewpoint at the Village Route Transfer, looking north. Note the two people standing on the cliff face just right of center.

Maricopa Point, looking north-northwest.

Maricopa Point, looking northwest.

Powell Point, looking northwest.

Powell Point, looking north.

Hopi Point, looking northwest. The Colorado River is near center.

Hopi Point, looking northeast. The Colorado River is near center.

Mohave Point, looking northwest. The Colorado River is near center.

The Abyss.

Pima Point, looking northwest, taken with the camera sitting on a bench and set on 'self-timer'.

Pima Point, looking north.

Pima Point, looking northeast.

Yaki Point, looking northwest.

Yaki Point, looking north.

Yaki Point, looking north ten miles across the canyon at the Grand Canyon Lodge on the North Rim.

Yaki Point, looking northeast. Wotans Throne is just left of center and the Vishnu Temple is the sharply-pointed peak just right of center.

Yaki Point, looking east to the Desert View Watchtower. For scale, the tower is 70 feet tall.

Yavapai Point, looking northwest.

Yavapai Point, looking northeast.

Yavapai Point, looking northeast. The tiny section of river visible just below center is where the Phantom Ranch is located.

A telephoto shot of the Phantom Ranch area from Yavapai Point. The river is about 4400 feet below (over 8/10 of a mile)! Note the yellow river rafts on the beach in the lower left. For scale, the black suspension bridge near center is 120 feet long.

A telephoto shot of the Phantom Ranch area from Yavapai Point. Note the yellow river rafts heading out on the river.

Hopi Point, looking west. Note the people on Mohave Point at the top left.

Hopi Point, looking east. Note the people on Powell Point at the top right.

Grandview Point, looking northwest.

Grandview Point, looking north-northeast. Note the sharply-pointed, light-colored Vishnu Temple located just above and left of center.

Grandview Point, looking northeast. Note the Colorado River winding through the canyon located just above and left of center.

Grandview Point, looking northwest at sunset.

In addition to the Western Bluebird, I saw Western Scrub-Jay, Clark's Nutcracker, Mountain Chickadee, and Orange-crowned Warbler. Despite looking, I did not see any California Condors. Mule Deer and Elk were present along the park roads. After sunset, I drove the hour-and-a-half back to Flagstaff.

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