[va-bird] Fauquier County Landfill

Hola,
 
I stopped in the Operations Manager's office at Fauquier County landfill  
today to discuss access, as the gulls have built in the last few days to decent 
 
numbers.  I've done this in years past, and they've been cooperative.  
 
Birders are welcome at the landfill seven days a week, while it is open (I  
presume they are closed on holidays, but if you're planning on spending  
Christmas in a landfill, you're more twisted than most).  There is a small  
hoop or 
two to jump through.  First, as you approach, you must check  in.  It's a 
weigh station, same as just about every landfill.  There's  a chance that the 
person at the booth will tell you where to park, but sometimes  they don't.  
They 
also ask that you check out as you leave.  
 
The general ground rules are essentially common sense, extended.   Don't get 
in the way.  That's a big one.  Don't get hurt.   Another pretty obvious one.  
Don't get killed.  Sort of in the realm  of not getting hurt, but probably 
fair to mention it on its own.  Don't get  your car stuck in the mud.  They 
frown upon it if they have to haul  you out of the mud.  Don't get yourself 
stuck 
in the mud.  Likewise, I  suspect they don't want to haul you out of the mud.  
Don't park some place  stupid.  Don't be afraid to get dirty, which means 
don't walk down the  middle of a road and hold up trucks instead of stepping 
into 
mud.  It's a  nasty orange mud, and it doesn't seem to ever come off once it 
mounts you, but  it's a fact of landfill life.  Don't screw up access for the 
rest of  us.  (They didn't say that, I'm slipping it in there.)  Pretty much  
come in, bird, and leave.  Aside from stopping at the booth, it's best for  
all if we go unnoticed.  
 
The landfill boasts a pretty good list of gulls, for this inland  dump.  
Steve Rottenborn was the king of this slop, but now he's vacated the  throne 
and 
is living in California.  Some of his finds have been  Thayer's Gull, Iceland 
Gull, and California Gull.  Sue Heath has found a  Glaucous Gull there.  Bob 
Abrams found the first California Gull there in  1999.  Lesser Black-backeds 
are 
regular, as are Herring, Great  Black-backed, and Ring-billeds.  Laughing 
Gull might have been seen there  once that I know of, and aside from Hurricane 
Isabel, it would be the only  record for the county.  
 
The landfill is just east of US 29, south of Warrenton.  There's a  traffic 
light at the southern end of Warrenton, where US 29 and Business 29  meet.  If 
you turn east at this light, it will bring you into the  landfill.  It should 
be on the ADC map for Fauquier.  
 
If anyone has any further questions, feel free to ask me.  Also, I've  heard 
stories of difficult access in the past.  I can't recall whom or what  the 
problem was, but if there are any difficulties going forward, I'd be glad to  
play point on this and talk to the folks out there.  
 
Cheers,
 
Todd
 
----------------------------------------
Todd Michael  Day
Jeffersonton, Virginia,  USA
BlkVulture@xxxxxxx
----------------------------------------

You are subscribed to VA-BIRD. To post to this mailing list, simply send email 
to va-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx To unsubscribe, send email to
va-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field.

Other related posts: