Yesterday, a gorgeous sunny day, I drove south of Anchorage to Girdwood and ultimately walked for a while along the Trail of Blue Ice that goes out of the Moose Flats Day Use Area on the Portage Highway. The photos (yes, they all are right-side-up) show scenes along the way including two Trumpeter Swans at the foot of an avalanche from last winter.
At the Girdwood gas station, a Northwestern Crow was sunning itself on the roof.
In the marshy area just south of Girdwood I pulled over to see what was around and immediately heard a Red-winged Blackbird. It appears to be a young male, and I may also have seen a female dart into the grasses.
There were also Cliff Swallows dipping down to the water and flying low around me.
On the Trail of Blue Ice, warblers were singing everywhere – Northern Waterthrush (photo) and Yellow-rumped, Orange-crowned, Wilson’s and Yellow Warblers as were both Varied, Hermit and Swainson’s Thrushes. There also was a Rusty Blackbird off in the marsh.
On the way back I found a couple of singing Song Sparrows along the highway between the Portage Highway and Girdwood.
I drove over to Alyeska and walked the trail (Winner trail?) for a while. There I found the usual Pine Siskins and White-winged Crossbills, and both of my goal birds, Townsend’s Warblers and Golden-crowned Kinglets (photos).
Back in Anchorage I checked out Hood Lake and found that the Red-throated Loon was more cooperative than it had been recently. The Red-necked Phalaropes were also still there hidden in the vegetation at the edge of the water, and of course Red-necked Grebes were around.
Today I go birding in the Anchorage area with two birders from California.
Lynn Barber's Birding Blog 