Friday, June 17, 2016

YES!! and oh nooooo...

I want to choke my own self!! Remember when I changed the Pixel Size in my camera to help with the data usage? Well I forgot to turn it back to full size today when I left home for my 3 day trip!! Therefore my first day photos stink!!

Had a one hr delay due to roadworker's picking up lane closure cones!! UGHHH

SO did the traffic!! The first leg of this trip was to head straight up I-77 north and then go west on I-40 and exit onto Sharon School Road, and onto the Lookout Shoals Lake and the Boat Access area just around Statesville, NC. 


I needed to walk around the edge of the lake on a very overused and abused trail 


littered with trash and illegal firepits...did see this one pretty flower..reminds me of a Cherokee Rose but Im not certain on that ID. 



Watched this man try out his home made paddle board---he fell into the water at least 6 times while I watched...but I couldn't get him actually falling Darn it! 



I scared a few black vultures....up into the trees, they were picking through all the trash...

SO I kept going to the spot I was looking for...here across this lake


I put this red arrow to show you the area of my interest! I know its FAR...MAN I wanted a kayak and a scope so much today...only a short paddle would have gotten me closer..to this graffiti covered rock!!


No...I didnt drive up here to see Natalie's name in white paint look to the right and just above the line of the graffiti, can you see it?  Okay enough of this mystery hunt n seek its a RARE BIRD!

 

The BROWN BOOBY! It may not be rare where you are but this one is over 200 miles inland on this ledge in this lake in central NC!  And check out the white "thing" just above this booby to the right? That appeared when I went back to the car to get my tripod, I hadn't figured out why my camera was doing such a bad job zooming in on the bird normally it can do much better.... thought of the photo size thing LATER..aww (my foot won't reach or I would kick my own **s)

Here is the first photo heavy crop...see no other white bird looking object..


but then look when I got back what is that???


I have been checking the reports every day on ebird hoping he would keep hanging till I could get there and he did!!  SO Happy cause the only hope I'd have of seeing this bird would be a Pelagic trip which I can NOT do I get sea sick just thinking of going on a ship in the Ocean...have found that out a few times.

The bird did not dive while I was watching it did move around and change positions a few times...
SCORE! I'm really happy I was able to find it and I got a good look at it via my binoculars!!  So I left the area on I-40 only this time traveling east and I drove as long as I could to make it almost to the coast of NC...
I didn't camp tonight as major rain has been moving in and out and all around

the sky this afternoon, right before the bottom fell out! 

So I'm moteling in Wilson, NC and I have FREE WiFi  I could have uploaded the largest photos EVER...grrrrrr 
Tomorrow I have about a 45 min drive to get me to Lake Mattamuskeet, Alligator NWR, and Pocosin Lakes NWR, I hope there is something there, winter is the time to visit  for waterfowl, but I went to FL on my winter trip so I hope to see some shorebirds maybe...either way its always fun to get out and see what I can find!! Oh, and I have already put the pixels back up in the camera! 
AND I'm watching my favorite TV show (I can no longer get on the antenna)
 Ancient Aliens!!
 LOVE Giorgo Tsoukalos (soo-ka-los) ...not quite as attractive as the Brown Booby tho!!!




PEACE
Eleanor Roosevelt: You must do the thing you think you can not.

16 comments:

  1. Maybe the other bird is in a nest in the crevice of that rock? I have never seen a Booby as we don't have them here at least I don't think so. What a find for you. Even with the camera on the wrong setting the pictures are not bad. Enjoy your trip and be safe

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Jo, It was such a thrill to go on this Scavenger hunt! I am still very puzzled as to what that other bird is!

      Delete
  2. Replies
    1. Thanks Diana, I'm enjoying your summer travels so good to you and Barb together!

      Delete
  3. Thanks for the route guide as I can follow you on Google Maps.It loos like a circular tour.? You said that you would like to record your routes well some GPS systems will save your route and allow you to down load the .gpx file, which you can then load up onto Google maps. That Booby was a good spot. Here seabirds often make their way well inland, cormorants are often seen fishing on inland rivers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. HI Dave! I wish my GPS was a newer model she has no bells or whistles! I was very happy to bag the booby!

      Delete
    2. Try Googling you Garmin model because sometimes there are hidden menus. My Garmin is about 8 years old but I found out that if you press and hold the speed icon a track log menu appears and you can down load your tracks when you connect the Garmin to a PC.

      That flower looks like a wild Dog Rose to me.

      Delete
    3. I will check into that info on the Garmin, mine did not come with a USB to connect with...it keeps asking to be updated but I have no way to do it! Dog Rose, I just googled it and I think you are absolutely right! Thanks!

      Delete
  4. That's so awesome!!! 200 miles inland! I wonder how long it will hang out there for, must be good fishing in that lake. I've been trying to figure out that white blob, so I did some googling. Found this photo of the same bird: http://www.carolinabirdclub.org/gallery/Martin/brbo.html And you can see some white in that corner also. Maybe you got a slightly different angle on the second photo that makes the white visible and it's just graffiti that's always there? I don't know! That's all the sleuthing I've got in me for this morning.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. OH YEAH you're so clever, I think you're right...when I came back with my tripod I may have set up a little farther to the right on more level ground and that revealed more graffiti!!And his photos are about as grainy as mine, that makes me feel better!!

      Delete
  5. Girl - your trips are just fabulous and what a bird find. How super duper cool and what's up with that other bird?! I'm sorry you've felt poorly and hope that is all over and done with. Happy exploring. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Jenn, I was very excited and no one I ran into knew what I was talking about including the "wildlife officer" he said is a bobby a bird of some kind..SO I was thrilled to find it!

      Delete
  6. I never even heard of a brown booby. That is an amazing sighting.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was a once in a lifetime chance for me to see one!! Happy Bird Face here!!

      Delete
  7. I never even heard of a brown booby. That is an amazing sighting.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I was going to try to just catch up and not comment on every post I missed, but just had to say congrats on the booby. You have great bird karma! Anytime we go somewhere to see a specific bird it is never there -- all my sightings are accidental. Thanks for sharing this even if you wren't happy with the pictures it was an amazing sigihting.

    ReplyDelete

Comments are appreciated, and reciprocated!
However I delete comments that contain links or instructions to visit a site unless it directly relates to content of the blog it is posted on. In other words DONT SPAM MY COMMENTS SECTION!!