Victoria's "Mini-Pelagic" Take 1

There has to be a special kind of insanity associated with standing on the bow of the MV Coho, Port Angeles bound, in the driving snow, rain, and wind. Yet there I was, traveling both directions, in temperatures that could charitably be called freezing.

I boarded the Coho for the 10:30am sailing on Saturday with visions of Cassin's Auklet and Short-tailed Shearwater dancing through my head, as February is part of the right season for these two species, along with a couple of others, and the Victoria-Port Angeles trip presents one of the best ways to find them.

As I expected, the birds were scarce. One of the beauties of a winter pelagic or "mini-pelagic" is that the birds are few and far between, but there is a greater chance of something special. Through the wind and waves, I caught sight of the occasional Common Murre and Pigeon Guillemot, most in clean breeding plumage. As the boat crossed the border I finally lost all feeling in my face, and three Ancient Murrelets flew by, followed by more murres, guillemots, and a couple of Rhinoceros Auklets. Port Angeles Harbour was teeming with waterbirds of all varieties - Red-necked Grebes (one in full breeding plumage), loons, Long-tailed Ducks, goldeneyes, scoters, and cormorants as far as the eye could see!

There is not much to do in Port Angeles, even with only two hours to fill before the return trip (four hours in summer). A little exploring for lunch, and I lucked upon Peaks Brew Pub, which doesn't look like much from the outside, doesn't look like much from the inside, but has dynamite burgers and a great selection of microbrews.

The return to Victoria was a little milder than the first crossing, with flat water all the way out to the border, and wind marking the return into Canadian waters. On the return trip, I did catch sight of a single Cassin's Auklet alongside the boat. A quick check of the GPS revealed what I had feared, that we were still officially in the US. eBird tells me it is a new bird for my Clallam County list (I didn't even know I had one), so it wasn't a total loss.

Coming into Port Angeles

The 90 minute "mini-pelagic" crossing aboard the Coho is a great trip from Victoria (in season), and one that a good number of local birders take part in every year. This trip turns up great birds at appropriate times, such as Sooty, Pink-footed, and Short-tailed Shearwater, Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel, alcids, jaegers, and the occasional Brown Pelican, to name a few. This is a trip that I plan on taking "a few" more times this year, just to see what else might be out there. For their schedule and rates, check out www.cohoferry.com.