February 1 - San Juan Island

Marty and I left Mt. Vernon and headed for Anacortes, getting in line for the 2:10 Ferry to San Juan Island.  While there is no longer a “Mosquito Fleet” in Puget Sound, the Washington State Ferry system connects communities on both sides of the Salish Sea, and provides the only public access to the San Juan Islands, with landings on Lopez, Shaw and Orcas Islands, and at Friday Harbor on San Juan Island.

Washington State Ferry M/V Hyak

There is a city park with a boardwalk from the Guemes Channel trail that terminates (or begins) just below the ferry landing parking lot, and a flock of American Wigeon were feeding in the beach wrack.

One of the wigeon was a “Storm Wigeon”, with a lot of white in his cheeks, rather than the gray cheeks of the majority of the drakes of the species.

A wetland on the landward side held a pair of Hooded Mergansers.

I talked a bit with a City Parks employee who was hoeing out some of the Poison Hemlock (Conium maculatum) that grows as a weed all along the beach area.

I scoped the water from the park, picking up a distant pair of Long-tailed Ducks, as new species for the year, then it was time to board the Ferry.

This "Olympic" Gull was already aboard

The ride on the M/V Samish takes a little over an hour, and passes through some wonderful scenery,

South tip of Blakely Island at Thatcher Pass

and provides the opportunity for a birder to stand on deck and see a number of water birds.  On this trip, I picked up Red-throated Loon, Pigeon Guillemot, Marbled Murrelet, and Common Murre for new ‘year birds’.  There were lots of Brandt’s Cormorants and Mew Gulls on the trip.

Cormorants like to sit on the channel markers

Mew Gulls were seen all along the route

We drove through Friday Harbor and out to the Oak Knoll Farm, which Sarah Pope and Adam Greene operate as a Sheep Farm raising North Country Cheviots.

I had never seen sheep feeding on Douglas Fir branches before this, but Sarah's animals were munching down on Christmas tree branches! 

They have been here since buying the farm in 2016, and are doing a lot of improvements on the place.

They no-till seeded grasses and forbs into the old pasture

The County Land Bank acquired this land to protect its important scenic and agricultural resources.  Continued agricultural use is encouraged and additional farm buildings are permitted. The property features an exceptional stand of mature Garry oak trees.

Up here they call them "Garry Oaks"; I grew up calling them "Oregon White Oaks

Marty was getting oriented to the farm, as she is teaching a workshop on Pasture and Hayland Evaluation here tomorrow for the San Juan Agricultural Summit.

Marty is "Outstanding in her Field"

The summit is sponsored by the Washington State University Extension Service and the County Conservation District:

Marty Chaney, Agronomist for the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Olympia, will lead a field workshop focusing on the science and methods that can help landowners improve the condition of their pasture. Whether a beginner or experienced producer, you will learn about using soil biology and plant ecology as a foundation, how to use established and proven management techniques along with proper seeding choices. With this workshop, you can develop a program that can lead to increased forage for livestock grazing, hay production or even temporary cover crops to assist with soil management. The workshop will highlight No-Till seeding, soil amendment and rotational grazing practices to help manage sheep, llamas and horses at Oak Knoll Farm. WSU will also share updates about on-going pasture aeration and organic fertilizer research conducted on San Juan Island farms. Speakers: Marty Chaney, USDA-NRCS Agronomist; Brook Brouwer, WSU Extension

It was getting dark, and was time to leave, so local WSU extension agent Matt Claussen showed us the way to his horse farm, the Red Roof Acres, where he and his wife Amy offer an AirBnB where we are staying for the weekend.  The website notes that the farm “offers your own adorable barn loft apartment, capable of sleeping up to 5, complete with a full kitchen, newly-remodeled bath, large private deck and nestled amidst 23 beautiful acres of pastures and woods.”  It truly is a nice place to stay, and we highly recommend it.

The AirBnB at Red Roof Acres

Anacortes Ferry dock eBird Checklist is Here

Anacortes to San Juan Island eBird Checklist is Here