Getting busy out there

 Well it took a while but things are starting to get busy!

we finally got some rain which cleared out the smoke that had settled over the area but has done little to raise water levels...

despite that, the Chum Salmon are arriving and managing to spawn.

and with the arrival of the salmon, the Bald Eagles are showing up as well.

this was out on the flats yesterday morning...

and in close, lots of gulls are showing up, especially these Short-bill Gulls with dive in among the spawning salmon after the eggs.

over at Harrison Bay, we've never seen the water levels quite this low, 

but way out there, on what water there is, lots and lots of American Coots and American Wigeon

Mallards out there as well.

and.....the first swans of the season!

not just birds on the river either, we've been seeing quite a few Harbour Seals.

hopefully some of the rain forecast for the next week or so will raise these water levels.

It is time to get back on the job

 I just checked.  I've been neglecting this since May, time to get back to work!  Normally by this time we would be welcoming the salmon and the eagles and looking forward to the swans arriving.....but there is nothing normal about this year.  Summer arrived late and now simply will not leave.   We have had no moisture for over 2 months now and none forecast in the foreseeable future.  There are salmon out in the rivers....but the spawning areas are high and dry...

here is the log bay as of this morning (October 9, 2022)

and there is the first bay....

a few things are normal, like Great Blue Heron staking out areas....this fellow seems to have caught a catfish the other day....

and this Glaucous wing Gull seems to have found a salmon....we are hearing lots of gull activity way out along the river.

There have been no ducks at all yet....there were a few shorebirds before the water dropped even further...

Pectoral Sandpiper back on September 23rd

and Killdeer for a few days around the same time...

we even had an exciting discovery of a small flock of Horned Larks....the first time in several years...

and if you want to talk about 'exciting' - this was yesterday afternoon

small herd of Roosevelt Elk out on the estuary.  Magnificent buck and his harem.

here is a look at the bull....

here they were starting to move off towards the tree line.

So it is really hard to say how things are going to play out this fall/winter.  Only time will tell I guess.....