Lindly and Glen were the only DNCBers enjoying the sunny calm cold day around Drayton Harbour. There was not a single car ahead of us at the border crossing on the way down or the way back. We waited a while at the first lookout location just in case someone else decided to join us, but all we saw was tons of Mallards, American Wigeon, Northern Pintails, some Canada Geese, and one Kingfisher.
We moved on to the Marina, wandering out to the end of one of the wharfs, and were rewarded with only crunchy ice on the decks and still waters. On the breakwater we saw 2 crows, one Great Blue Heron and a large number of no-longer-in-use nests (Cormorants?). As we wandered out to the Pier, we started to see more action in the water including Lesser Scaup, Surf and White-winged Scoters, 2 Harlequin Ducks, a Red-breasted Merganser, a Barrow’s Goldeneye, a few Horned Grebe, a few Common Loons, a cluster of Pelagic Cormorants trying to get some heat from the early morning sun, and one Kingfisher … likely the same one as before.
Driving around the bay, we stopped just after Dakota Creek and pulled over to see what was out on the water. First things first – we startled some peeps at the shoreline and the challenge began – what sound, what marking, one stripe or two, check with our resources? Thinking there was only one stripe, we considered Semipalmated Plover, but they shouldn’t be here at this time of year. We left it for the photos to inform us and – spoiler alert – they were Killdeer. A few more of the same ducks floating out in the bay, a Bald Eagle nest high up in a tree with 2 adults tending it, and a Kingfisher flew past and perched across the inlet … likely a different one from before.
At the corner where we turned back north, the water was full of Pintails. Lindly was trying to count them when they all took wing, as did the field behind us which was full of Canada Geese. What a racket! No idea what roused them. There were also a few more Killdeer in the long grasses by the shore. But no Kingfisher at this stop.
At the park at the start of the spit, we stopped to look at the water on both sides, hoping we might see a Black Scoter here. All we saw were more Pintails, Surf and White-winged Scoters, some Buffleheads, a Common Goldeneye, a few Red-breasted Mergansers (diving as soon as you try to focus on them), a bunny, a Spotted Towhee, a female House Finch and some juvenile White-crowned Sparrows. Most everything out in the water was WAY out in the water, and all we had was a pair of binocs and a 600 mm lens.
Finally, at the Semiahmoo Resort, we started at the floating dock which had 50+ Pelagic Cormorants on it, and one Black Oystercatcher. The nearby trees had a good-sized flock of House Finches. A few ducks in the water, but only “more of the same”. Nothing in the Marina area as we walked around the point. We were disappointed in the state of the pier there, all closed off so we can watch it fall apart into the sea. From the last bit of lookout deck, we saw more Horned Grebes and some Red-necked Grebes too, several Common Loons and many more Red-breasted Mergansers, and finally a Double-crested Cormorant. We had hoped for some Long-tailed Ducks, especially with the calm waters making for good viewing, but we were disappointed. Oh, did I mention the Kingfisher? Probably the same one as we saw at the very start.
The restaurant and pub were closed, but we stumbled onto the resort’s Café and decided a bowl of soup was just the thing before heading home. Not a bad outing for 2 people – we had 35 species!
Glen Bodie
Delta Naturalists Society 
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