If the shoe fits....

It is clear, I must be a dumbass, I'll be crass and say it upfront....

I was in Gambell and Nome this past week and on Sunday, I found my shoes all soaked and covered in tundra mud.  Now you might not think this is odd, but these are just Keen hikers, they are not waterproof I wore them to Gambell, took them off and put on my trademark snake boots, but on Sunday I found someone had been wearing them.
I am so stupid, I cannot figure out who?
At first I thought it was possibly one of the three bears but there are no bears in Gambell.

Our wonderful guide Aaron Lang, found a boot drier for me but that sort of helped but the inside of the three week old pair was basically trashed.  Aaron wears size 14 like me but only wears his Wellington boots and besides, the person who wore mine, cinched down the laces hard, so therefore has a size smaller feet.

In the morning I hoped the culprit would fess up and offer me a new pair or a cash payment like I would hope my wonderful daughter Lauren Elizabeth would have.  "Dad if it was me, I would just buy you a new pair of shoes and apologize." but alas no....

Maybe it was Hooey the Green Parrot or a Gooney bird....they have big feet

I'm reminded of a little ditty from Dr Seuss, well I changed it to protect for copyright

Oh Say Can You Say
Said a book-reading parrot named Gooney,
The shoes on your feet are all gooey.
When you wear them, your feet
will make slips into a seat
and you may end up in Saint Looey!

apparently this bird or whoever it was operates under a different set of golden rules than we do...I guess I am just a dumbass for being unable to figure this out but who else is here in our group in Gambell?
Ah I guess my shoe mystery must have to wait...this is about birds
Alaska Strategy Part 2  Gambell-Nome

Synopsis:
Big Year Total:  730
Coded Birds:  73
provisionals: 2

number to go to old record:  20
Miles driven.  30,855Flight Miles 97,200flight segments: 101   Different Airports: 41Hours at sea: 172Miles walked 216
showshoes 4 (isn't going to be any more)Miles biked 12states/ prov. birded: 31
Lifers seen this year:  55
nights slept in car:  9
mysterious shoe incident: 1

best mammals: muskoxen, moose, gray whales, ribbon seal, arctic squirrel

lost items, speaker, scope cap

Gambell.

You have to stop off in Gambell for a spring visit to get common ringed plover and maybe, just maybe something else to do a big year.
It isn't cheap to get here, as you have to plan ahead or use a tour group as lodging is NOT easy.  Gambell is on the edge, so near to Siberia, you can see it.

The town is a traditional native village, on the sea, located by a lake, it is dusty when the weather in't truly horrible.
view of house by near bone yard
Then after a tough tiring slog in the hills, the tundra, or a long and very cold seawatch, you hear local birding legend Paul Lehman yell "Chiffchaff!!" on the radio and everybody runs for the location, and in my case, you didn't even hear the location

but we all found the MEGA bird.....common chiffchaff


great bird great bird but it turned out to be a one day wonder.

The crew of Wilderness was awesome, Aaron, James, and Norm were great but a second problem arose that confirmed I am a dumba$$.  I forgot to read the memo.  We stayed in a house, and we forgot to bring sleeping bags.  So to sleep we piled out coats and clothing over us.  There is severe weight restrictions and as such I just assumed....back in 1997 at a moose hunt, I also assumed..........wrongly that bedding was included.  I have now done this twice, that time I just about froze, this time, we tolerated it.

Lena took to Gambell like a real pro...she is such a likeable kid, she rode bike, hiked the hills and found birds.

She looked fit and spry and I just looked and felt old.  But Craig, I did ADD to my biking total of mileage. It was a routine, that was exhausting but it was routine, and routine is good.  I showed Lena more whales...like this gray whale
I got what we needed, five coded birds and three days later, after buying our fill of ivory, we bid our farewells and went to Nome, me wearing wet and filthy shoes....who or what did this?

here is father and daughter for one last look at Gambell

Nome was more of the same, we took a while to find our car, or hotel, (we were in the Dredge 7 annex, where was that?  Other side of town.)

It took us a little over a day to get all the local birds need and then with one on the next day, we got lucky, we stumbled into some Brits with a great knot sighting and pictures, we drove like manics to the spot, it took a little over a day and it exhausted Lauren Elizabeth but I found them on a gravel bar out in the sound, well at least 2 of them, and in the process of nearly freezing in the wind and cold, got a Terek Sandpiper.  I finally find the knots without there heads tucked and then it is way out in the sound.  I made a decision..should I get closer for a better photo (it still wouldn't be very good and the Brits had perfect photos) or do I drive to the bridge and get friends to come and see birds?...I had a pretty good scope view, there was no doubt what birds I was seeing, there were 2 great knots....birding IS sharing............I drove hard to the bridge got them and got back in five minutes.....knots...gone.  dang...we looked the rest of the day....I even told the guides of the competition where I saw them...because birding IS SHARING...fault me for not getting a good photo of them but well...I sorely wished my friends would have gotten the bird...sorry Don H and Nancy.  I was too slow.

.the sun came out giving me a good photo of a long tailed jaeger which I think was responsible for putting the birds to flight

 bad bird!

The days were long and in the end, we got it all.  We ate dinners which tired me out and in the morning we were at it again.  Even writing this blog is tiring me out.  I'm not as witty and I have been gone for oh so long...I need the hug of a good woman.  Mine is the best.

The list of birds:Gambell June 3-6
711.  eye-browed thrush
712.  common ringed plover
713.  common greenshank
714.  red-necked stint
715.  white wagtail
716.  King eider
717.  Common chiffchaff (Siberian)
718.  eastern yellow wagtail

Nome June 6-8
719.  Long-tailed jaeger
720.  Spectacled eider
721.  Arctic loon
722.  Arctic warbler
723.  Bristle thighed curlew
724.  Bluethroat
725.  Northern wheatear
726.  Bar-tailed godwit
727.  Pacific golden plover
728.  wandering tattler
729.  Terek sandpiper
730.  Great knot

Least auklet on rock

eye-browed thrush

common green shank


red-necked stint

white wagtail

bluethroat
Northern wheatear

short-eared owl

One day for almost the whole day, I had my chip in my camera backwards as like I said, I am a dumba$$.  I had a nice photo of my daughter next to the Nome 61 sign..rough legged hawk nesting...other birds.....and muskox but no..nothing.
I am actually somewhat embarrassed to admit, my total has risen to 730.  If anyone asks and if I tell them, I don't say it excitedly.  I kind of look down....it isn't an honor calling attention to oneself, it is too many, and to be honest, I'm sort of pot committed to this big year now to use a poker term.  One thing, I WILL NOT ever EVER tattoo my final number on my chest, my arm, nor even my hairy a...bum.  why?  My life is much more than a number.  I will not have it on a license plate.  I may, MAY in small writing on my birding card write "big year 2016 total 7XX".  Nothing more nothing extra.  The number more important is my daughter's number of 487...WOW!!!!!!  I feel worse we missed a Sabine's gull for her in Nome.
I think my first part of my Alaska plan worked well.  Now I wait for fall, or chase....I will finish up breeders in a little over a week.
Many have asked why?the reason is multifactorial but here is some of my thoughts1) I needed something to do for a year, I'm sort of retired now and at 50, waiting out a non-compete is difficult for me.  2) I needed something to make me work out get in shape and loose a little weight, I've lost 15 #s3) I wanted to bond with my daughter this year as I am doing much of it with her.  In fact I wish I could do all the rest with her.  I miss her when I'm not birding with her.  I also deeply deeply miss my wife plus my two sons off at college...that is hard, but to see her get 500 birds!!!! how cool is that.4) I had all this legwork done to speed through the breeding birds.....that would slowly be lost to time, do it now or never5) could my plan get me to 700?  Yes it has
John P, from Seattle a guide and a man I respect told me that us big year birders should come together to promote the hobby.  As I think about it, it would probably be a good idea which I say again, this is all about the hobby, saving birds, maybe I should just save the money and buy 40 acres of habitat?  IDK...but some thoughts on this.
1) I don't think the other big year birder will do it.2)  I don't think the ABA cares about this or about me to do this.  I doubt very much anyone in the ABA hierarchy reads my blog although I am a member  FWIW.  I sort of don't think the ABA, (or Cornell) or any place would want me as an endorsee.  I tried a little to get Leica to sponsor me, since I proudly advertise my Leica bins...but alas they don't want me, they sponsored Greg Miller and his 2016 efforts not that I deserve anything.  **please note, this isn't a knock on the ABA, more of a comment as to who am I?  which is a fairly insignificant birder who has just seen many birds this year.    3) this is really about the birds..whatever I get for a number, it is the birds that matter...I am featured once or twice a month during this year in the Watertown Public Opinion (SD newspapers) I write this blog....
but well I still doubt I'm ever going to get any calls...there is no movie in my future, Greg Miller, Sandy Komito, Neil Hayward, Bob Oke, Ben Basham....they are the faces of big year birding.......not me. 
Here are two faces of birding...holder of the largest life list Macklin Smith and Paul Lehman (left) "king" of Gambell, Alaska and seabirding expert....these should be the faces of birding....but alas, not even sure the ABA is interested in them either or maybe that is old news.    
 Yea, maybe my year number is higher than some or quicker or maybe will be higher but Olaf?  Really?  No....I am me, there will never be a picture of us together, nothing......and did I also mention I am a dumba$$?So John, good idea, but well I don't expect the telephone to ring.
I really had fun on this trip to Alaska, except one thing....my d$mn shoes.  Now I have to stop in Minneapolis and get a new pair.  This isn't as much fun as my Boobies Peckers and Tits project but it is getting here.
Olaf fans.......If the shoe fits........don't wear them!  Especially don't wear them in the tundra...dang, who wore those shoes?  I liked these shoes.Does anyone know?  Maybe it WAS the gooney bird?
My thoughts as I see them
20 to go, thanks Nome, thanks Gambell, and thank you Lauren, for just being the greatest daughter a father could ever have, let us get 13 more together!
the sign says it all

Olaf