I heard my first frog of the season at the Lonesome Duck today, 3/29/2011. It was at our pond at the Eagle's Nest cabin. I probably mistook the noise I made, anything will do, as a female in the area. It was probably a tree frog. They are abundant here. Yet, from the sound alone I don't know for sure. There are several of these medium sized species that are in the area, some quiet rare. (There is even a frog with a tail that lives within Crater Lake National Park.) I would be interesting to get a good look. The true frogs include some that breed very early in the spring, some while there is still ice(!) on the, usually shallow water bodies were they mate. Indeed, cold-blooded creatures!

The Lonesome Duck was full Monday eve, including a couple from near Frankfort, Germany. All three groups took at least one trip to Crater Lake. The snow was beautiful as were the views of the lake.

A loss of 10,000 Snow Geese and other waterfowl is being reported in areas of Lower Klamath Lake and Tule Lake National Wildlife refuges. The direct cause is avian cholera, rarely a threat to humans. The real cause is the lack of water in the refuges which concentrates the birds to unhealthy level. It looks like it is going to be a dry year. We hope there will be some water to spare for the refuges.

Yesterday, Wednesday, I fished the Klamath Canyon just below the J.C. Boyle dam. My partner was Robert West; he really knows how to fish this type of situation. It was windy with flurries but the pocket-water fishing with nymphs was good. The fish run mostly 10-14" and are beautifully colored this time of year. There were Dippers in the Canyon; strange birds that like fast mountain streams. They are related to the wrens, seemingly not very aquatic, with fairly normal feet. Not like a duck. Yet, they swim easily when they need to, but most of the time they dive under water and swim with their wings or cling and crawl on the underwater rocks with the sharp little claws on their feet. They are roughly the size of a robin but plumper. They are also known for hiding their nests behind the curtain of water at waterfalls, large and small.

There was a Rough-legged Hawk on an irrigation wheel on the Algoma flat along US 97 north of Klamath Falls as I drove to town. They are a bird of the tundra but overwinter in the Klamath Basin in large numbers. Most have left so this was a late bird. Small bills and legs for their size reflect one of their main prey up north, lemmings! I was attending another OHV (Off Highway Vehicle) U S Forest Service committee meeting in the eve in Klamath Falls. We have some spectacular areas nearby and do not want to mess them up.