FreeLists / tn-bird / [tn-bird] Whirlwind day through east TN!

[Mikectodd@xxxxxx]

July 11, 2002

Don Manning and myself began our day at 4:00 AM on what we had hoped would be 
a successful trip to Chattanooga for the Brown Pelican. Our day ended 19 
hours and 850 miles later.

We arrived at the Gold Point Marina in Chattanooga at 8:15 and before we had 
walked out to the last dock we saw the juv. Brown Pelican in flight in the 
distance. We watched the bird for the next 20 minutes or so as it flew around 
the area, but never saw it take a perch. The morning was very hazy, and I was 
only able to get one poor quality shot of the bird in flight from a long 
distance. We lost the bird in the haze as it flew, although we were sure it 
was still in the area, we weren't able to relocate it.  

As it was not yet 9:00, and we were in the East end of the state anyway, I 
talked Don into heading up to the Smokies for some year birds (and the fact 
that I haven't birded the Smokies in the last 3 years I've been back into 
birding). We arrived in the mountains at about 11:00 (central) and the 
mountain atmosphere was very refreshing, the crowd of course, wasn't.

Our fist outing was the Alum Cave Bluff trail, where we saw the 1st of many 
Black-throated Blue Warblers, one of our targets for the trip, and always a 
treat for us west TN birders. Things were pretty quiet as expected, with the 
exception of Blue-headed Vireos which were singing everywhere. We journeyed 
on up the mountain and went a ways up the Newfound Gap trail. We knew we were 
a long way from west TN in July when the Juncos, Winter Wrens, and Veeries 
began singing. They were joined by the Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Red-breasted 
Nuthatch, Black-capped Chickadees (target bird), and Black-throated Blue and 
Canada Warbler.  On the way up to Clingman's Dome another target bird sailed 
over us, a Common Raven. Shortly after this the rain set in and we called our 
day quits at about 4:00 (central) without our last hoped for target bird, Red 
Crossbill. When we rolled into McKenzie at 11:00 PM we were glad we had gone, 
but also glad to be home.

Good birding!!!!!

Mike Todd
McKenzie, TN
Carroll Co.
mikectodd@xxxxxx
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