January 1

 With our New Year's Eve party ending at midnight, I set off at 12:05am to try to get a couple birds close to the house.  A friend has always said that beginning the year with a House Sparrow or some other "trash" bird is bad luck....so I always make it a point to find a "decent" bird to start the year.

I made a quick 5 minute drive over to the causeway and pointed my car headlights towards the water.  Then, at 12:12am, my first bird of the year...a Redhead!  This was quickly followed by 9 more species, including Snowy and Piping Plovers.  A good start to the year.  

Morning came early at 6am (especially after going to bed at 1:30am) and I was off to try to get a few target birds that were "close" to home.  

My first stop of the day was the Fulton Beach Road in Rockport where a few Black Scoters have been hanging out.  I spent about 30 minutes scanning the bay into horrible light, but no sign of the scoters.  I decided to give up and try for them later on in the day with better light.  It was now off to Calhoun county to look for Nelson's and Seaside Sparrows.  The wind was calm and it was perfect conditions for both species.  This made for a quick, successful stop with great looks at both species.

After getting the sparrows, I made the 30 minute drive to Riverside Park in Victoria.  My target bird here was a Red-Headed Woodpecker that has been over-wintering.  Again, almost as soon as I get out of my car, the woodpecker appears!  I was also able to add quite a few other species for the year including a Yellow-Throated Warbler.

After Victoria, I made a quick run to the Aransas NWR where I added about 15 more year birds including Horned Grebe and a Mountain Bluebird on the way out of the refuge.  Mountain Bluebird is normally extremely rare in South Texas, but this winter has been exceptional.  

Now it was back to Rockport to look for the scoters.  About 15 minutes before I got there, I got a call from my parents saying that they were looking at the scoters!  I increased my speed to only about 10 MPH over the speed limit and got to the location and easily found the Black Scoters.

I decided to head back home for the day, making a couple quick stops in Portland and picking up a few more year birds.  All in all, a very good day.  After January 1, my count is at 118.