Steve arrived on Sunday afternoon. Finding a level spot for his Lance trailer took a bit of doing, but all went well. We wined and dined and turned in early. First morning on the lake.

Here on the lake, a sweet Calliope Hummingbird is back in a new nest right over the deck.

Early the first morning, we head over to the Marchi Ranch where the family of Great-horned Owls were ever-present last year. Parent Great-horned Owls--very shy and distant. We walk the entire property trying to find the nest, to no avail.

Ruby-crowned Kinglet, perhaps?

Red-tailed Hawk

Magpie

Kinglet?

Bullock's Oriole flitted by.

Ever-present Robin. We watched as she swung and looped this very very long worm so she could carry it more easily. Quite a maneuver!

Cedar Waxwing Comedy Team

Red-winged Blackbird with yellow showing. At first I thought this was a tri-colored, but no, the books say that outside of California where only the red shows, most Red-winged Blackbirds have a yellow stripe as well.

We left the ranch and drove the back roads over to the Ninepipe Wildlife Refuge, first heading down Duck Road. True to its name, it housed many ducks, among them these Ring-necked, first sighting for me.

Muskrat gathering nesting materials

Long-billed Curlew

Wilson's Phalaropes

Nesting Stilt

Redtailed Hawk

Trumpeter Swans from very very far away . . .

Readhead

Readheads

Yellow-headed Blackbird

Ninepipes (Great-Blue in foreground)

It was raining off and on in various places all day. Our last stop was Pablo Reservoir, where there were no birds at all, but a great view of a downpour over Polson.

Red-naped Sapsucker--captured the one morning Steve slept in!