Quinalt Rainforest, Washington

Happy Thankful Thursday, enjoy your day!


It was time to leave the Quiluete Resort and head south toward Ocean Shores Washington. We made a few stops along the way, some overlooks to see the Pacific Ocean and lots of Surf Scoters way out there. Also the scenic drive to the Quinalt Waterfalls, these falls are seen right from the road.



This beach was seen from one of the overlooks.  The photos do look nicer if you click on them for a larger image.

All those black tiny dots on the top left  are the Scoters and maybe a few other ocean seabirds and ducks. The sky was somewhat cloudy but at least it was not raining. I linked up some of my Scoter link   photos, so you can see up close what they look like.

Merriman Falls, Quinalt Rainforest

Below is the Bunch Creek Falls, Quinalt Rainforest. Half way up the waterfalls is a man climbing around he spooked a couple of Dippers that were next to the water.

A view of the river and Olympic Mountains. I saw a Dipper in the river, but just when I snapped the photo, the bird dipped into the water.

World's largest Spruce tree, Quinalt Rainforest. The old growth forest in the Pacific Northwest are awesome.

These scenes below are from our walk on the Quinalt Rainforest Nature loop trail which was .09 miles.  Best bird seen was the Pileated Woodpecker.

I am thankful for all things nature related, like the old growth forest, beautiful views of the mountains, oceans and rivers.
I am always thankful for your visits and your comments.


Thank you Michelle for hosting. Thankful Thursday

Thank you to the hosts of   Skywatch Friday


Thanks so much for visiting and for your nice comments. Have a happy day!

Delaware shore

I am linking up with Skywatch Friday  and Good Fences
I hope you can join in on the fun and share your fence scenes and pretty skies.

I am continuing our journey along the Delaware shore, we stopped at the Indian River inlet after leaving Bombay Hook and Prime Hook wildlife refuges and beach. The Indian River inlet is a great place to look for the seabirds and gulls.

Hubby and I getting silly with our shadow shots...at the Delaware beaches.

Another shadow shot, a pretty sky and view of the Atlantic Ocean.

There were a lot of Bonaparte's Gulls at the Indian River inlet.

A view of the bridge at the Indian River inlet.

Also seen at the Indian River inlet the Long-tailed Ducks.

More of the Long-tailed Ducks and some Surf Scoters.

It may have been a cold day but the clear blue sky made our visit worthwhile. After leaving the Indian River inlet we headed south to Ocean City, Md and our room for the night.

To see more pretty skies from around the world please visit  Skywatch Friday
and check for more fence shots at Tex's Good Fences

Thanks to Theresa @ The Run*A*Round Ranch for hosting Good Fences this past year it has been fun looking for fences for my post. Also, thank you to Sylvia, Yogi  and Sandy for doing such a great job at hosting Skywatch Friday.    I wish everyone a happy day and weekend ahead..

Nature is grand

I have a list below of memes I am joining for this week, and to save time I am doing one post for all. They are all fun memes to participate in...I hope you can join in with the fun  and check out some of the participating posts. Special thanks to all the wonderful host and their memes, I hope you have some time to check them out.

"If you truly love nature, you will find beauty everywhere." Vincent Van Gogh


This is finally the last of my Washington trip photos. On this gray day we were leaving La Push and heading south on Rt 101 near the coast. Before taking our rental car back to the Sea-tac airport we made a few stops along the way. One stop at the Grays Harbor Nat'l Wildlife Refuge near Aberdeen Washington and then the Nisqually Nat'l Wildlife Refuge near Olympia Washington.

"The sea, once it cast it's spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever." Jacques Yves Cousteau

Driving down the coast and below the resort at Kalaloch we stopped to view the beaches and the amazing numbers of Surf Scoters.

To really see this image it is best enlarged. All the small black dots are the Surf Scoters. It had to be the largest count of Scoters I have ever seen. There were more Scoters (a sea bird)  up and down the coast. It was an amazing sight to see, especially if you are a birder.

Above are some birds, the tree lined boardwalk and moss covered trees
scenes from the Grays Harbor National Wildlife Refuge near Aberdeen Washington.

Grays Harbor NWR Great Blue Herons spending time with the gulls.

Above are some images from our short visit to the Nisqually Wildlife refuge. I wish we had more time here. They have a boardwalk that is 4 miles.

A scenic view at Nisqually, the boardwalk, wetlands and sky.

For Tom's meme The Barn Collective I am sharing the twin barns at the Nisqually NWR. The two huge barns were once dairy barns built back in 1934 and the wildlife refuge was once called the Brown Farm. The forest here is a rare natural occuring deciduous riparian forest found in Washington.

I hope you enoyed the images and post. I appreciate your visits and nice comments. Thank you! Have  a happy day and new week ahead!


As always thanks to the wonderful group of hosts listed below.

Thanks to Tom for hosting The Barn Collective.

Thanks to Judith our  host of Mosaic Monday

Thanks to Monica for hosting NF Trees

Thanks to Michelle for hosting Nature Notes

Thanks to the hosting team of Our World Tuesday!

Thanks to Stewart for hosting Wild Bird Wednesday

Birding the Delaware-Maryland shore

  I am linking up with Mosaic Monday and Our World Tuesday 

If you have the time on Monday, I hope you can stop by and visit my monthly post on Birding is fun .

This weekend , hubby and I made a quick overnight trip to the Delaware and Maryland shores.  We stopped in a few places birding along the way..

 Our first stop was at Bombay Hook NWR. Above is a pair of Hooded Mergansers, Pied Billed Grebe, Coot, Yellowlegs and a GB Heron.

The Northern Shoveler is a pretty duck, love its colors and the cool bill..This duck seemed to be a common sight in Bombay Hook NWR.

 Our second stop was Prime Hook NWR, a pretty view of the wetlands and the birds. Above are the Northern Shoveler, Osprey, GB Heron, Osprey nest, Yellowlegs and another Osprey.

My first sighting of the Osprey this year, seen in Port Mahon, Delaware.

One of our last stops was Ocean City, Md were we spent the night.. We enjoyed seeing the sea ducks at the inlet and watched the sunset.

A pretty view from the balcony of our OC room..

The Sea Ducks above are the male and female Surf Scoters.. The male has a colorful bill. They winter along the Atlantic Coast.

I hope you enjoyed this week's post on our getaway to the shore and seeing all the cool birds.


Thanks for visiting my blog. I always appreciate your comments.
Join in on the fun and for more wonderful photos please visit  Mosaic Monday and more
 from  Our World Tuesday

 Thanks to our host: Mary our host of Mosaic Monday and to the hosting group of Our World Tuesday: Arija, Gattina, Lady Fi, Sylvia, Sandy and Jennifer.  I wish everyone a happy week ahead!
I hope you enjoyed our quick visit to the shore and seeing the birds. 

Oregon coast..Yachats

I am linking up with Mosaic Monday and Our World Tuesday


Can you believe I have MORE Oregon photos? These are some shots from our 2 nights stay on the Oregon coast in the town called Yachats. We were happy with our room 18 at the Fireside Motel. We arrived a little early so we let them know we were there and were told to come back in a couple of hours. No problem there, we drove down the coastal road 101 to do more sightseeing.

In the mosaic above I have some coastal scenes around Yachats and a Surf Scoter

Before going on our trip to Oregon I did a lot of research on Trip Advisor. I found out that Strawberry Hill  was a great place to see the tidal pools at low tide. We were not disappointed. We saw many sea stars ( I always called them starfish), the sea lions were sunning themselves on the rocks, the sea anemones were beautiful. We were lucky to be there during the low tide which made walking around on the rocks easy.

 We had a huge picture window with great views of the ocean. On the first night we were able to watch a couple of whales feeding right from our room. How cool is that?  I was thrilled with our view and seeing the whales. The coast was a great place for me to add a few more lifers to my list. YEAH!!!

 In this mosaic, I have some shots from Strawberry Hill tidal pools, sea lions, my lifer the Pigeon Guillemots, the view of the ocean from our room, and a view of the coast from a overlook.

The ocean was filled with my lifer the Pigeon Guillemots, Surf Scoters and Harlequin ducks and Gray Whales. I will be doing a separate post just on the Pigeon Guillemots. I saw them often along the coast.

We stopped on RT 101 at various overlooks that had beautiful views like this one above.

This is the Heceta Head Lighthouse beach.  The Lighthouse is being renovated and is covered up but we did enjoy a walk on the beach.

The view from our room 18 at the Fireside Motel. The pathway outside the hotel is a trail called Yachats 804 trail that goes for 3 miles along the beautiful coast.



To see more wonderful photos and mosaics please visit Mosaic Monday and Our World Tuesday

Thanks for stopping by to see my post and thanks to Mary the host of Mosaic Monday and to the host of Our World Tuesday: Arija, Gattina, Lady Fi, Sylvia and Sandy. I wish everyone a safe and HAPPY week ahead. 

I'm Loony over birds

I am linking up with World Bird Wednesday  and Nature Notes

This weeks post is on the Common Loon and a couple of female Surf Scoters I saw during my visit to Delaware's Indian River Inlet.

The Common Loon winters on the coast with a few found on inland reservoirs. I believe my Common Loon is the non-breeding adult/subadult.

A different look at the Common Loon

Two female Surf Scoters. The female shows a distinctive dark cap.

Please visit Springman's World Bird Wednesday   and Michelle's Nature Notes.  Thanks to Springman and Michelle for hosting these fun memes.

I hope you enjoyed my Loon and Scoters and to see more wonderful birds and nature photos please click on my links.


Thanks for stopping by to see my post, I appreciate all the visits and comments. I hope everyone has a wonderful week.  HAPPY Birding!

Ocean City Birds

Last week after visiting Blackwater we continued driving to Ocean City, Md. I was hoping to pick up a few lifers at the Ocean City inlet. My lifer was the Surf Scoter, we also saw what I believe are Common Loons, Ruddy Turnstones, lots of seagulls and maybe a Purple Sandpiper.


The Surf Scoter are cool looking birds because of their unique bill. The Male is impressive with its colorful bill. They are seen in large wintering flocks on ocean coasts where they feed on shellfish.



Please click to see larger image and a better view of the bill.

The Surf Scoters are my entry for Bird Photography Weekly  to see more great bird photography please click on the link.

To see more great birds and wildlife go and visit The Friday Ark.

Thanks for stopping by to see my birds and commenting.