August 26 2014
Bird of the Day
American White Pelican
It looked like it would be a good day for birding. Bill checked out the birds in the "Whooping Crane" yard and spotted a juvenile and a mature Cedar Waxwing.
Our hostess, Christine, treated us to her specialty, French crepes, for breakfast. Barbara and Donald had a good chat about Parks Canada - Barbara used to work for Parks and Don is a policy officer at Wood Buffalo NP.
As we wanted to hike, they directed us to the Slave River in town. At Kaeser's grocery store, Bill got a fishing license (no fee for Canadian seniors but you still need a license) and we bought some sandwiches for lunch and then walked to the river. An American Kestrel left his perch on a spruce and glided overhead. We followed a steep trail down to the rapids to hang out with some rapid-loving acrobatic American White Pelicans.
On the forest trail we were lucky to find an American Redstart, a Black and White Warbler, a Blue-headed Vireo and a Northern Flicker. Ravens were common. We saw some bear scat too.
Alex had kindly booked a trip for us to Wood Buffalo National Park Salt Plains.
http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/nt/woodbuffalo/index.aspx Wood Buffalo is the largest national park in Canada, well known for both its buffalo and its whooping cranes.
In the afternoon, our guide, Craig Robinson, drove us to the Salt Plains with two of our canoeing companions, Karen and Peter. As well, a group of children joined us at the park. Interestingly, Craig told us he had brought astronaut, Roberta Bonder, and Prime Minister Stephen Harper's wife, Laureen Tesky, here a few days ago. Craig patiently explained the features of the salt springs and answered our many questions about the wildlife. Bird sightings included a family of American Kestrels, a Mallard, a Northern Harrier, and a Red-eyed Vireo.
And we saw a huge wood buffalo on the road on the way out!
Back in town, we got ready for dinner and hiked with Karen, Pete and Jim to the Pelican restaurant where we would join the other Canoe Arctic paddlers for dinner. A large group of juvenile Cedar Waxwings chirped as we walked by.
