Where: Blackie Spit/Crescent Beach (Surrey) and Piper Spit, Burnaby Lake (Burnaby)
Weather: Cloudy, 8-10°C
Also known as All the Spits.
We got off to a late start, trying to work around the showers forecast for early and later in the day, so we began with lunch, then headed to Blackie Spit while it continued to shower.
Blackie Spit
Fortunately, by the time we arrived, the rain had stopped and the sun even cutely tried to come out for a few minutes before giving up. It was a bit breezy, but temperatures continue to be well above normal.
We saw cormorants, loons and buffleheads here, but they were all farther out, which is totally on brand for Blackie Spit. Some herons were a little closer, getting ruffled by the wind and looking displeased at the conditions (or everything, as they do). Several people promised us a kingfisher near the pump house, but all we got was the pump house.
The highlight was probably a pair of red-headed Eurasian wigeons, possibly off-course, but content to hang out with their American brethren.
There were a lot of giant puddles on the trails.
Piper Spit
With not a lot of light left on what was already a very dim gray dead, we opted to wrap things up at Piper Spit. Nic girded himself for the inevitable naughty people feeding the birds–and they were there. Bad people, no!
The pier itself was fairly sparse with people, though. Apparently the imminent threat of rain and the wind kept most people off it.
The land mass is still there, which surprised me after the recent deluge, so I assume most of the excess water is being fed through the gates at Cariboo Dam. The land itself was unoccupied, though, and the usual gang of seagulls was absent. The geese were also elsewhere, likely over on the sports fields to the west. Much of the shallows was filled with branches and other debris swept in by recent storms.
We did see dowitchers, but they were in full snorebird mode.
The current from Eagle Creek was unusually strong and a number of ducks were taking advantage, letting it sweep them down and past the pier. A few had to pedal furiously when they chose to return upstream, though.
There seemed to be more coots than before. Everywhere I looked there was a coot. No coot drama, though, which in itself is kind of unnerving.
The highlight here were some buffleheads, in particular a female that was diving and surfacing quite close to the pier, allowing for some good shots, notwithstanding the aforementioned dim, gray conditions.
We wrapped up about 15 minutes before sunset (if there had been sun) and escaped before the rains resumed. In all, not a bad outing, considering the forecast and the possibility of getting a wee bit drenched if the weather had shifted just a little.
The Shots
Shot with a Canon EOS R7 with 18-150 mm kit lens and 100-400 mm telephoto.
Gallery soon™.
The Birds (and other critters)
Sparrows and sparrow-adjacent:
- American Robin
- Anna’s Hummingbird
- Black-capped Chickadee
- Dark-eyed Junco
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Song Sparrow
- Spotted Towhee
Waterfowl and shorebirds:
- American Coot
- American Wigeon
- Bufflehead
- Common Loon
- Double-crested Cormorant
- Eurasian wigeon
- Great Blue Heron
- Green-winged Teal
- Long-billed Dowitcher
- Mallard
- Northern Pintail
- Northern Shoveller
- Scaup
- Wood Duck
Common:
- American Crow
- Assorted gulls
Raptors:
- Bald Eagle
Non-birds:
- A black squirrel
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