Col Sam Smith - Vesper Sparrow, Spotted Sandpiper

[stvgarrett]

Got thoroughly chilled at Col Sam this morning, wasn't prepared for that cold damp wind.

Some consolation was found in the form of my first ever Vesper Sparrow, in the field just to the west of the southern most parking lot (north of the Marina).

Also had a Spotted Sandpiper on the rocks by the lake, western edge of the park (green arrow on this map):
http://g.co/maps/gyx6z

Also saw more swallows than I have ever seen there, congregating mostly at the eastern edge of the park on the largest of the peninsulas. Didn't spot anything other than Tree, Barn, and Northern Rough Wings.

I guess the weather was keeping the swallows and other birds on the ground - the density of birds seemed really high. There were dozens of Yellow-rumped Warblers, especially in the woods just east of the playing fields (south of the college), Yellow-throated Sparrows, and more kinglets than you could shake a stick at, assuming you wanted to shake a stick at small birds.

Also seen: Pine Warbler, Palm Warbler, Field Sparrow, and a Brown Thrasher singing in the bowl.

[stvgarrett]

By the way, if you want the Vesper Sparrow, it looked like it wasn't going anywhere. Several birders had a pretty good look at it. It was mostly in the grass, but spending a lot of time in the open near the path through the field, occasionally flying into one of the small trees in the field before descending back into the grass. Here's the location (green arrow):
http://g.co/maps/qukp3