The Pursuit of Warblers

Thursday, July 30, 2026

Warblers on a trip to Oregon

Marsh at dusk from our rental house, Independence, OR, Jul 20, 2026

We left the rain and cool temps behind on Sunday when we flew down from Alaska to sunny and warm Oregon. We had a late morning flight out of Anchorage down to Portland and arrived there late in the afternoon and made the hour and a half drive down to our Airbnb in Independence. The Airbnb was perfect with lots of open space and a marsh nearby and very quiet. No warblers as we arrived fairly late in the day but did have lots of other birds (and bats).

Wilson's Warbler, OSU McDonald-Dunn Forest--Lewisburg Saddle, Corvallis, OR, Jul 20, 2026

Monday was a full day free around the Independence area before heading further south the following day. I was out early in the morning and headed down to Lewisburg Saddle (part of a forest managed by Oregon State University) to try to get some better photos of Hermit Warblers for the year. I spent almost two hours there and had a couple Hermit Warblers but no opportunities for photos. Other warblers around including Wilson’s Warblers and Orange crowned Warblers. We then headed for the coast and eventually made it there after a few traffic issues. The coast was a bit cool and cloudy but once we worked our way back inland the sun was blazing and it was near 90. Although there were few warblers for the day I at least had some and also added some ice cream and wine before the day came to an end. We spent the remainder of the warm afternoon around the Airbnb.

MacGillivray's Warbler, Forest Peak, Corvallis, OR, Jul 21, 2026

Common Yellowthroat, Forest Peak, Corvallis, OR, Jul 21, 2026

Sunrise, Forest Peak, Corvallis, OR, Jul 21, 2026

Salt Creek Falls, Lane County, OR, Jul 21, 2026

Tuesday was our day to travel from Independence over the mountains to La Pine. My goal before we started the three hour drive was to head out early to try to find a MacGillivray’s Warbler and hopefully get some photos (I had only heard the species for the year while out in Arizona in April). I headed to a series of forest roads and managed to find at least three MacGillivray's Warblers and one actually stayed out just long enough to get some photos of this less than photogenic species that loves to stay hidden in dense, low brush. I also had multiple Common Yellowthroats and singles of Black throated Gray Warbler and Wilson’s Warbler. I then headed back to pick up Sherri so we could get a walk in before it got too hot (it eventually got into the low 90’s). Although it was getting warm the walk was a success with a few Northern Yellow Warblers heard and briefly seen plus a few other warbler species. By late morning we were on our way to La Pine with a short stop off at Salt Creek Falls (the second highest waterfall in Oregon). Bird activity was low there given the time of day but did have at least one Hermit Warbler around. We finally arrived at our Airbnb in La Pine in the mid afternoon and got settled in. The day turned out to be my best day for warbler diversity for the stay in Oregon with seven species overall.

Hermit Warbler, Paulina Lake, La Pine, OR, Jul 22, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'Audubon's', Paulina Lake, La Pine, OR, Jul 22, 2026

On the first full day in the La Pine area I was out before dawn and made the drive up to an area of forest near Crane Prairie Reservoir and arrived there around little before sunrise. Warblers were few and far between with just some ‘Audubon’s’ subspecies of Yellow rumped Warblers around and all stayed fairly high up in the pines. After nearly an hour and half there I headed back and then we went up to Paulina Lake and took a few hikes there. I finally managed some better photos of Hermit Warbler for the year and had more ‘Audubon’s’ Warblers. I also managed to add a Common Yellowthroat late in the day near our lodging, so a three species day. It was another warm day with temps near 90 by late morning and then some thunderstorms in the afternoon.

Yellow rumped Warbler 'Audubon's', Crater Lake NP, OR, Jul 23, 2026

Hermit Warbler, Crater Lake NP, OR, Jul 23, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'Audubon's', Crater Lake NP, OR, Jul 23, 2026

Wizard Island, Crater Lake NP, OR, Jul 23, 2026

For the last full day in Oregon we made the drive south to Crater Lake National Park. Before we left I was out early and headed down to an area known as Gilchrist Crossing. It is a known area that has Northern Waterthrush as a breeder..a very rare occurrence in the state. I arrived a bit after sunrise with some fog hanging down. I immediately had both Common Yellowthroats and Northern Yellow Warblers quickly followed by at least one (possibly two) Northern Waterthrush. Initially it called a few times and then eventually sang a little. I had brief looks and got some recordings. Would have loved to stay longer to track more stuff down but we wanted to get down to Crater Lake as early as possible to beat some of the crowds. We arrived in the park right around eight and the views were spectacular with mostly clear skies (except for a little wildfire smoke off to the north). I was last at Crater Lake in 1999 and it is just as impressive as I remember it. The complete loop around the lake was not open as road repairs kept a small portion closed so the day involved a little backtracking at times. We made our first walk the one we knew would get crowded later and that was the Castle Crest Wildflower Trail. I had three species of warblers along this walk (Yellow rumped Warbler ‘Audubon’s’, Hermit Warbler and Orange crowned Warbler) and these would be the only three species I would find in the park for the day. By the time we finished that walk it was getting busy so we headed out to circle the remaining part of the park with a few brief stops at various lookouts before arriving at the Plaikni Falls Trail where we hiked the mile out to the falls. We finally left the park in the early afternoon to drive back up to La Pine. Tally for the day was a respectable half a dozen species of warblers.

Northern Yellow Warbler, Gilchrist Crossing, OR, Jul 24, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'Audubon's', Gilchrist Crossing, OR, Jul 24, 2026

Friday was the final day of the trip and would end with a red eye flight back to Boston. I started my morning by heading back down to Gilchrist Crossing in a vain attempt to get some photos of Northern Waterthrush (I heard one singing repeatedly and another calling but never got a look at one). After about two and a half hours there I had added half a dozen species of warblers for the day. I returned to our rental house to pack up last minute stuff and we headed out to make the long trek back toward the airport. The numerous wildfires modified are plans a bit and we had to hot some different places than originally planned. I didn't find any new warbler for the day beyond the ones I had during the early morning.

During my time in Oregon I had a total of ten species of warbler and my state total stands at eleven species of warblers.

Wednesday, July 29, 2026

Warblers during a trip to the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska

Orange crowned Warbler, Seward, AK, Jul 13, 2026

Exit Glacier, Kenai Fjords NP, AK, Jul 13, 2026

Resurrection Bay, Tonsina Creek/Caines Head Trail, Seward, AK, Jul 13, 2026

After my time in Minnesota and Wisconsin I was up early again to catch a flight up to Alaska to meet Sherri. It was warm and sunny in Minnesota (a low temp of 74 overnight) and we traded that for cloudy and rainy conditions in Alaska with temps in the 50’s. Thankfully both of our flights getting into Alaska were on time and we were able to start our drive south to Seward on the Kenai Peninsula. A return trip to Alaska had been discussed for years without the plans ever coming to fruition until this year (we were last in Alaska on our honeymoon back in 2004). Birding opportunities were slim for the day and I only had one species of warbler with a couple Orange crowned Warblers around our rented cabin in Seward.

For the first full day in Alaska started off much as the first day ended…with rain. With my body still on east coast time I was up very early and despite some drizzle I attempted to get a walk in at nearby Lost Lake Trail. I made it into the woods about ten minutes before getting rained out. The rain continued to pick up and I tried a few other places before heading back to pick up Sherri. We then headed to Exit Glacier and despite the light rain, hiked up to get closer looks at the glacier. The low clouds lifted enough to give us some views of the area and there were a few warblers around including Wilson’s Warblers and Orange crowned Warblers (with both species seen carrying food) plus a few Yellow rumped Warblers….no photos as I kept the good camera out of the rain. Once we were a bit wet from our walk at the glacier we decided to head south to take another hike to the outflow of Tonsina Creek. It was about a mile and a half through the forest each way to get there with a steep decent at the end to get onto the beach. There were a few warblers along the way with no new species for the day in the mix. We spent about three hours hiking there before finally coming back for lunch and some relaxation. A total of three species of warbler for the day.

Wilson's Warbler, Bear Lake Trail, Seward, AK, Jul 15, 2026

Townsend's Warbler, Bear Lake Trail, Seward, AK, Jul 15, 2026

Orange crowned Warbler, Bear Lake Trail, Seward, AK, Jul 15, 2026

Mountains over bay, Lowell Point, AK, Jul 15, 2026

Exit Glacier, Kenai Fjords NP, AK, Jul 15, 2026

Tuesday we had booked a six boat tour of the Kenai Fjord National Park leaving out of Seward. I was up early again and was met by fairly heavy rain so no chance for a walk before the boat tour and instead had to hang around the lodging. The boat tour continued with rain and wind for almost the entire trip…not great. No chance for warblers until we got home cold and wet early in the afternoon and the only warbler for the day was Orange crowned Warbler around our cabin.

The next day the early morning dawned cloudy without rain beyond a little drizzle from time to time. I was (of course) up early so did a few walks before Sherri got up. I started along the Resurrection River Trail and three species of warbler in the dim early light including my first Northern Yellow Warbler for Alaska. Too dark for photos at that location but a stop along a trail closer to Seward produced better photo opportunities, especially for Wilson’s Warblers. I headed back to the house a little after seven and we took a short walk on a trail near town before heading to Bear Lake Trail. This produced another new warbler for the day and the state with a few Townsend’s Warblers. By the time we got done hiking it was near noon so we took a break for lunch and then with the sun really coming out for the first time on the trip we headed out again with stops at Lowell Point and the road to Exit Glacier. I added one more warbler for the day at Lowell Point with a Yellow rumped Warbler, giving me a five warbler day! Quite an accomplishment on this largely rainy trip in an area without a ton of warbler diversity.

Orange crowned Warbler, Bear Lake Trail, Seward, AK, Jul 16, 2026

Townsend's Warbler, Bear Lake Trail, Seward, AK, Jul 16, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Bear Lake Trail, Seward, AK, Jul 16, 2026

Wilson's Warbler, Bear Lake Trail, Seward, AK, Jul 16, 2026

The last full day in Seward started out with no rain and even some breaks in then clouds and I was up early to head out to see what I could find. After briefly checking the harbor in Seward I headed back to the Bear Lake Trail where I had four species of warbler with all species seen carrying food (Wilson’s Warbler, Orange crowned Warbler, Townsend’s Warbler and Yellow rumped Warbler…in order of abundance). I headed back to the lodging to get Sherri a little after seven and we tried a walk at Lost Lake Trail before deciding to return to the spot I was at earlier in the morning. Had the same four species of warblers I had earlier in slightly reduced numbers. By late morning the rain started up again and continued for the remainder of the day.

Orange crowned Warbler, Cooper Landing, AK, Jul 17, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Cooper Landing, AK, Jul 17, 2026

Friday was a travel day from rainy Seward up to equally rainy Cooper Landing further north. Thankfully the rain was intermittent during the early morning and I got a few short walks in right around the town of Seward. I had a few warblers with nothing out of the ordinary. Late in the morning we drove up to Cooper Landing and got some short hikes in before the rain started again. We got to our Airbnb in mid afternoon and despite the rain had a few warblers around. By the end of the day I managed four species.

Young Moose with mom, Potter Marsh, Anchorage, AK, Jul 18, 2026

Saturday was the last full day in Alaska and we had booked a river rafting trip for the morning starting around 9:30. I had a couple hours free in the morning to try to track down some warblers in the rain. I headed west and got out of the rain somewhat and traded that for loads of mosquitoes! Very quiet for warblers during those early hours. Although we went back and forth on if we should even try the float trip due to the rain and finally decided we would go. Only warblers on that trip were a few Yellow rumped Warblers. In the end I only had two warbler species for the day (Orange crowned Warbler was the other). With even heavier rain and strong winds forecast for later Saturday into Monday morning we changed plans and headed north to stay our last night northeast of Anchorage to be closer to the airport.

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Butte, AK, Jul 19, 2026

The night before our flight we stayed north of Anchorage and I was able to get out a little in the rain before making the drive down to the airport. I managed to find three species including Blackpoll Warbler, Northern Waterthrush and multiple Yellow rumped Warblers with the first two new for me for the trip. The ride to the airport in the heavy rain was an adventure but we made it and the flight down to Oregon got out on time.

Overall for the trip I had seven species of warbler with Orange crowned Warbler and Wilson's Warbler being the most common followed by Yellow rumped Warbler and Townsend's Warbler and then just single examples of Northern Yellow Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler and Northern Waterthrush.

Sunday, July 26, 2026

Short stop in Minnesota and Wisconsin nets Kirtland's Warbler, Golden winged Warbler and Connecticut Warbler

Kirtland's Warbler, Marinette County, WI, Jul 10, 2026

Kirtland's Warbler with leg bands, Marinette County, WI, Jul 10, 2026

Kirtland's Warbler, Marinette County, WI, Jul 10, 2026

Jack Pine habitat, Marinette County, WI, Jul 10, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Marinette County, WI, Jul 10, 2026

Nashville Warbler, Marinette County, WI, Jul 10, 2026

Mourning Warbler, Marinette County, WI, Jul 10, 2026

Golden winged Warbler, Marinette County, WI, Jul 10, 2026

Brewster's Warbler, Marinette County, WI, Jul 10, 2026

American Redstart, Marinette County, WI, Jul 10, 2026

Northern Waterthrush, Marinette County, WI, Jul 10, 2026

I just returned from a two week plus trip away from home. Although the trip was planned months ago we were not sure we would actually take the trip due to Wilson. Thankfully he was doing well enough for us to to take the trip. It was to be a three part trip with first part being a solo trip on my part to Minnesota and Wisconsin searching for the last three species of warblers I still needed to see for my big warbler year in the US. The three remaining species I needed to find were Kirtland’s Warbler, Golden winged Warbler and Connecticut Warbler (I would still need to see a couple species in Puerto Rico for a true big warbler year in the US but the three mentioned above were the last three in the continental US still needed for the year). After my short stay in Minnesota and Wisconsin I would take a flight to Anchorage to meet Sherri and begin the Alaska portion of the trip and then we would finish the trip with several days in Oregon (more on these portions of the trip in future posts). I flew out out of Hartford to Minneapolis late morning and arrived there in the early afternoon and after a bit of a hassle with the rental car I was finally on the road to make the nearly six hour drive across Wisconsin to my Airbnb on the Michigan border. I eventually made it to my lodging around 7:30pm and settled in as quick as I could, ate a small dinner and then was off to bed to try to sleep. Unfortunately the place I rented was a basement location and the noise from above was super annoying and sleep was in short supply…the place had gotten great reviews and somehow no one mentioned how loud the noise was from the homeowners on the floor above.

With little sleep I headed out before dawn to drive to a spot to the south about 40 minutes away to try to find my first target…the Kirtland’s Warbler. I would have a much better chance to catch up with a Kirtland’s Warbler in their core breeding range in the lower peninsula of Michigan but I really didn’t want another three plus hour drive each way to get there. After lots of messages with a few people ‘in the know’ as far as possible locations for the species in Wisconsin and possibly the upper peninsula of Michigan, I had what I hoped would be a productive plan to find one. The species came close to extinction just a few decades ago and after lots of effort to provide suitable habitat (they need Jack Pines at a height of five to fifteen or so for breeding locations) and control of Brown headed Cowbirds the species has rebounded and has now been taken off the endangered species list. Wisconsin and the upper peninsula of Michigan are at the periphery of the range and the area I would be checking has just a few nesting pairs and the locations are kept secret to protect the species. With the best chance seeming to be the few pairs in Wisconsin I picked that as my destination for the day. I arrived in one spot before sunrise and almost as soon as I arrived I heard one singing! I then spent the next hour or so trying to get looks, photos and recordings. I had at least two males and a female present in a roughly 60 acre pine lot with the perfect height trees present. One of the males had color bands and I’ll see what I can find out about the history of the individual. I also had a number of other warbler species present with Nashville Warblers being the most prevalent (a theme that continued all day). I moved around the area a bit over the next few hours and found another pair of a Kirtland’s Warblers as well as great selection of other species (warblers and others). With the Kirtland’s Warbler in the bag my next target was Golden winged Warbler. I checked a few good looking spots before eventually seeing one and by end of the morning I had seen several including adults carrying food and fledglings being fed. I even had a Brewster’s Warbler hybrid feeding typical looking Golden winged Warbler fledglings. By midday it was heating well up into the 80’s and after a walk in the area of my lodging I came back to get a shower and some rest. It was a super successful day with perfect weather with lots of sun and cool temps that warmed quickly once the sun came up. Two of three targets seen with lots of great looks at multiple individuals of both species and it would not have been possible without some great information from a number of people. Overall for the day I had a total of 14 species of warblers plus a hybrid.

Magnolia Warbler, Sax Zim Bog, MN, Jul 11, 2026

Mourning Warbler, Sax Zim Bog, MN, Jul 11, 2026

Blackburnian Warbler, Sax Zim Bog, MN, Jul 11, 2026

Chestnut sided Warbler, Sax Zim Bog, MN, Jul 11, 2026

Boreal habitat, Sax Zim bog, MN, Jul 11, 2026

After a very productive Friday with two targets down, it left me with just Connecticut Warbler to see for the year. Without the need to stay around Wisconsin for another day of searching I made the decision to try for a Connecticut Warbler (this species was not as critical for the trip as I certainly would have a chance to find one in the fall at home). With this in mind I was out the door even earlier on Saturday to make the long drive back to Minnesota with the destination being the Sax Zim bog area a few hours north of Minneapolis. A well known birding spot during the winter for owls and other birds of the north, the summer holds the chance of finding a number of species, including Connecticut Warbler. The downside of heading there was another long drive and to get there early enough to have a chance of getting birds while they are still singing meant another very early morning. Even getting up early I still did not get there until around 7AM (it’s a nearly five hour drive so tough to get there at first light in summer!). The habitat there certainly had the look and feel of the boreal forest. Not long after I arrived I heard a Connecticut Warbler sing in the distance and despite lots of effort on my part I never got eyes on the bird and I only heard it sing one more time and at that point it was even more distant. Although I would have loved to have gotten a look at the bird and perhaps some photos, I was very happy to finally hear this warbler sing on its breeding grounds. I have actually never heard the song in real life until that morning as the birds that migrate through in the fall don’t sing. There were a number of other warbler species around with Common Yellowthroat and Nashville Warbler the most common with lesser numbers of several other species. I then tried a few other areas to try to find another Connecticut Warbler before I returned to the original area before heading toward the airport just after noon. I had no luck with finding any others or seeing or hearing the original one again. Nonetheless the warbler became warbler species #51 and the last one I needed for the year in the continental US. This was also the one of only warbler species I never got a look at so far this year and with any luck I will get to see at least one in fall as they migrate through on their way to South America (the other species was MacGillivray's Warbler). Once I finished the three hour drive to Minneapolis I made a short visit to the nearby Fort Snelling State Park and despite the high heat I added a few warblers for the day. I had a total of 13 species of warblers for the day and a total of 18 species during my brief stay in Wisconsin and Minnesota with three of those new for the year…a brief but very productive visit.