Today we took two dedicated birders out for the Sonoma Co. Christmas count.
Lisa Hug and Alan Hopkins rode up on the open flybridge on this cold, clear winter morning as we cruised along the shore from Bodega Head to Russian Gulch, then south out to a point four and a half miles west of Salmon Creek, where we stopped for a while to see what would come in to a slick of cod liver oil. We traveled as far south as the mouth of the Estero Americano before heading in to enjoy the afternoon ashore.
We saw nothing really remarkable, but Lisa and Allen were kept busy recording the many winter ducks and geese, egrets, grebes, loons, and pelicans in and around the harbor, and the alcids and gulls up the coast.
The highpoint of the trip for me was a line of six Ancient Murrelets in breeding plumage that allowed us to approach and get very good looks and photos of these small, shy birds.

Vince
These are the good ol' days