Snow on Cross Mountain is probably near its maximum for the year.
Clear, cool, and breezy, but warmer and less windy than yesterday.
Today’s highs reached into the low 40s.
Crescent Bay was white capping today, but north of the channel breakwater was not. The wind and gusts were down from yesterday, but also seemed to have shifted to have a more easterly component. With the complex terrain, it’s not always easy to tell what the primary wind is, and what is a result of shadowing and funneling due to terrain.
Seeing Crescent Bay so stirred up, I decided to check out Silver Bay.
Lucky Chance rises up from the end of Silver Bay
Thimbleberry Bay was also covered in whitecaps, but the mouth of Silver Bay was not. Looking down the bay I could see whitecaps between Bear Cove and the elbow of the bay where it turns out to Eastern Channel.
Bald Eagles were finding something to go after in Sawmill Cove
I apparently just missed a good show of eagle acrobatics at Sawmill Cove. I saw handful of eagles taking turns swooping at the water, but only for a couple of minutes. Folks in another car told me they had been watching for 20 minutes or so as the eagles used the wind to help position themselves for a dive to grab things off the water. I’m guessing it was morts from the hatchery facility, but I’m not sure.
I got a note about Lapland Longspurs at the airport this morning.
While I was out this afternoon, I went for a walk in the area to see if they were someplace where I could see them.
I made a loop by going through the cleared staging area, passing up through the alders and walking down airport road, then coming back along old airport road.
At the old long term parking area, I noticed a hummingbird fly by. I suspect a Rufous Hummingbird given the time and location, but I did not see it well enough to be sure.
Water in the ditch was as low as I remember seeing it. The smell of muddy bank was in the air. I’m not sure what produces the smell, but it’s a familiar one that I’ve also noticed in Idaho (or at least it seems similar to me).
I went behind the berm hoping it would serve to block the wind while I laid back against my backpack and enjoyed the warmth of the sun.
The old alder leaves there were very dry. It wasn’t the only time I noticed how dry things seemed. Between the wind, sun, and very low for here (~25%) relative humidity.
Alpenglow on Verstovia
I’ll look into it more in the coming days, but it looks like we may be seeing record low average daily humidity marks for the date at the Sitka 1 NE station – though those records only go back to 2005. If I’m reading things correctly, it looks like there are only a handful of days ever at that station which have an average relative humidity below 40%. Depending on how today and tomorrow turn out, they could approach the record. (This makes me curious about the lowest measured relative humidity at any time as well – though that information will take a little more work to dig out.)
At the house, at least one of the rats has figured out how to climb up into the feeder. I watched it climb up the post this afternoon. It even took a break from eating to go get a drink out of the bird bath attached to the feeder.
I woke up this morning hearing what I’m pretty sure was a Dark-eyed Junco alarming in my yard. I couldn’t easily place where it was calling from since I was inside. I looked out the window and could not see it. A Song Sparrow joined in lightly calling. I could see it on the fence between my two neighbors to the south. Shortly after the Song Sparrow started, the junco quit, and the Song Sparrow didn’t keep it going. I’m wondering if there was a cat somewhere near the fence.
When I stepped outside a bit later, I heard a Fox Sparrow singing in the low continuous way that I tend to assume is a young bird practicing. It was in the brush pile, and I heard it again this afternoon singing even more quietly.
My iNaturalist Observations for Today
