Today I was lucky enough to have the chance to bird a restricted area on Bainbridge Island, Kitsap County, WA with the four 2015 top e-Birders.  Brad Waggoner #1, Ken Brown #2, George Gerdts #3, and Mary Ann Rossing #4 allowed me to accompany them on a monthly bird survey of the private community on Restoration Point.  Brad, George and Mary Ann are regulars for this survey, but Ken and I managed to snag an invite when another regular couldn’t make the Monday trip (usually on Saturdays but put off until Monday this month due to a wedding on the point). This is a strategically located point of land you can see jutting to the east  off the south end of Bainbridge Island.  Birds migration along the Puget Sound, especially coming southward in the fall, run right into this point, making it a great place to see usual and unusual migrants, as well as a great seawatch spot on the central sound. Visitors get, in addition to great birding, wonderful views of the Seatte cityscape.

We got an early start, arriving at Restoration point about 6:45 AM and made a figure of 8 survey of the area, designed to give us an early AM time at the tip of the point, and another stop later in the day to spend extra time at this key vantage point.  In between the stops at the point we circled clockwise around the tip of the point, through mixed forest areas and some wetlands, back to the cars for a brief lunch, and then cut back more through the center of the area visiting an orchard, a cattail marsh, and both a small forested area and an edge habitat prior to returning to the point.

Highlights for me were, in addition to just exploring a new area with top birders, were nice looks at an ncient murrelet, brief looks at a Parasitic Jaeger, long and close looks at Hutton’s vireo in the same binoculars view as its look-alike Ruby-crowned kinglet, and having all of us puzzle over a falcon that we finally called a small pale Peregrine Falcon after long study to exclude a light Merlin.

We had collectively 89 species, a high for the September surveys for Brad, George and Mary Ann.  Ken saw 2 new 2015 Kitsap County species, Parasitic Jaeger and Ancient Murrelet.  I had a great day at a new place with great birders and really fine fellowship.  Wish me many more such days.

Steller’s Sea Lions on Navigation Buoy Just off the Restoration Point.