BIRDING TRIP

I had mentioned in a previous posting that my wife was an avid birder. I don't mean a person who looks out the window and watches the birds at her feeders (not that there's anything wrong with that). I mean a person who will go through hell and high water to catch a glimpse of a bird that is not on her "life list". The two of us took a trip to the Sheboygan area very early on Tuesday to look for a bird that had been reported on the Wisconsin Birding List. This is an Internet Wiki that bird brains (and I mean people very knowledgable about birds) report sightings. The site is ....... http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/WISC.html
We went to Sheboygan searching for the "Purple Sandpipers" that had been reported in the area. These are arctic birds that normally don't visit Wisconsin.

The people we met at North Point Park were amazing. Many were bundled up in gear suitable for dog-sled racing, but they had all their binoculars, scopes, and cameras with them. They had also come from substantial distances (Racine, Madison, etc.) because they also had seen the notation on the Birding List. It turns out that the Purple Sandpipers were no longer there. We did see and photograph some Long-Tailed Ducks, Buffleheads, Black Ducks and Goldeneyes. North Point Park is a very nice place which gives great credit to the Sheboygan community. We swore to come back in warmer weather.