Since I was in the neighborhood, I drove a mile east to Vista House. I went inside and climbed the stairs to stroll around the deck. I also walked around on ground level for a few minutes, but the place was crawling with tourists, so I didn’t stay long.
The view was spectacular.
But something was missing. The view was fine indeed, but it just needed a little enhancement. Maybe something yellow …
Is that an obnoxious car or what?
Say what?
I drove down off Larch Mountain and wondered what to do next. I had a 
couple hours or so before I needed to be back at the convention for the final dinner. That wasn’t long enough to go further east, so I was limited to the area between Larch Mountain and Portland.
On the way up the mountain, I’d passed an overlook called Portland Woman’s Forum State Scenic Viewpoint. Not being a woman, I didn’t know if I was allowed to enter, but I decided to go for it. (I have no idea why it’s named that and don’t care enough to look it up and try to find out.) The view to the east down the Columbia River Gorge was amazing.
On the next point to the east, I could see Vista House. We’d seen it earlier in the week and thought it was an observatory, but from here I could see tourists stopping and walking around.
I still wanted to do some birding. The viewpoint was crowded with cars and people and kids running around. I saw a dirt road off to the side of the lot, leading down the hill. I stepped over the gate and wandered along. I didn’t see any lifers, but there were cool birds around. I’d gone maybe half a mile when I rounded a corner and came upon this:
I was below the viewpoint, but out of sight and hearing of the crowd. The view was even more spectacular because I could also see across the river to the north. Here’s what that looked like:
I stayed at my private overlook for about half an hour, taking pictures, enjoying the view and watching a pair of Ospreys circling in front of me.
vireo (to be green) huttoni (named for William Hutton, collector)
Friday, May 9, 2008 — 1:13 pm
Columbia Gorge National Scenic Area, Oregon — Larch Mountain Road
My 18th and final lifer of the trip. I drove up Larch Mountain Road, hoping to bird in the alpine area at the top. But I was blocked six miles from the peak by snow.
I drove a mile back down the mountain and found a dirt logging road. I walked along it for a couple hundred yards. There were still quite a few patches of snow at that altitude, and not many birds. I did see a couple Dark-eyed Juncos of the “Oregon Junco” subspecies and a pair of Red-breasted Nuthatches.
I also heard what may be the most monotonous bird song — a constant, steady, two-syllable whistle without variation. I could tell the bird was moving through the woods and waited until it approached the road. I got a good but quick look at it — it looked like a Ruby-crowned Kinglet on steroids, if that helps you visualize it any. It had a bold eye-ring with white lores and a thick vireo bill. After 10 seconds or so, it flitted across the road and disappeared into the trees on the other side. I didn’t see it again, but I could hear its song for the remainder of the time I was in the area.
I didn’t get a picture of the bird, but here’s where I saw it.
We spent an hour in Powell’s. The place was huge — four floors, nine rooms, floor to ceiling bookcases in each. They had one aisle about 50 feet long just on bird books. Used books and new books were mixed together. The prices were reasonable. I bought two used books — an old, cool-looking copy of Drums Along the Mohawk, by Walter D. Edmonds and Dave Barry’s Book of Bad Songs.
phoca vitulina
Wednesday, May 7, 2008 — 5:30 pm
Netarts, Oregon — Netarts Bay — Pacific Ocean
We drove four miles south of Cape Meares to our final stop of the day. Netarts Bay is supposed to be good for birds, but the tide wasn’t out yet, so there wasn’t a lot of bird life around. We drove the length of the bay and back, then pulled into a restaurant parking lot 
to get something to drink before heading back to Portland. A Common Loon, still in winter plumage, was swimming about the harbor (right).
When we first drove through town, I’d seen what I took to be a large log on the sand bar across the bay. Just before we got in the car to head home, I took one last scan with my spotting scope. The “log” turned out to be a herd of Harbor Seals hauled out on shore. Earlier in the day, at Barview Jetty Park, I saw a swimmng Harbor Seal. It looked like a dog swimming across the bay, and it wasn’t until it had dived that I figured out what it was. I decided not to count it at that time.
In Netarts Bay, we saw about 30 seals lined up on the shore at the water’s edge. Another two or three waddled out as we watched. A few of them were in the “banana” posture, with head and hind flippers raised. We watched for maybe five minutes.
Here’s a close-up of the same picture.
