I got home from our California trip yesterday and was excited to get back out birding in #WA and especially looking forward to getting out with Ken again.  We met at his house at 7 AM and headed out for Green Mountian, really the only place in Kitsap County to get birds of higher elevation.  Target birds were Sooty Grouse, Western Bluebird, Gray Jay, and Ruffed Grouse.  We got lucky on the early part of the hike up the Gold Creek Trail and both heard a Ruffed Grouse drumming just past the second brown trail-marker after the turn in the trail. After that it was tough going with fog keeping us from seeing much at the top, no Sooty Grouse calling, no bluebirds in the clearcuts, and not even the expected Gray Jays.  On the way up we hit a logging operation blocking the trail, tried to walk around it to the right side, and got into pretty thick and steep terrain trying to get back to the trail.  Using Google maps we found the parking lot and out of the woods.

Nothing special on the walk down.  Stopped for an Osprey on a power pole near a nest platform on the way home.  Ken added just the Ruffed Grouse to his Kitsap list, but it was good to get out together again.