We had an early morning trip to the Haystack reservoir north of Bend. Steve Shunk and I were accompanied by Steven Holt, wildlife photographer and his dog Coot. Mr. Holt and Coot car camp from a Geo Metro that has seen better days. Holt is a charming birder, knowledgeable but not overpowering. He worked at a natural history museum in Philly, curating a collection of bird photographs. I am tempted to order one of his enlargements, perhaps one of his black oystercatcher shots. Along the way to the reservoir we stopped at a river crossing, where we saw the owl sitting quietly in a tree near the river. The reservoir was very foggy and cold. Steve peered at ducks through the scope at maximum magnification, I looked through it and saw only grey. We saw some excellent raptors on power poles along the highway. We saw a dead cow lying on its side in a field, with legs and udders firmly outstretched. We saw ravens feeding on a dead deer.

On the way home, The Tick rolled over 100,000 miles. And still going strong. Particularly with over 1/2 a gallon of new anti-freeze in its system. Spoon!

In the afternoon, I bought wool socks and pens. In the evening I did my crossword puzzle while attending Steve's Community Feedback Forum.