June 25 - Creston Barn Swallows and Cranbrook Water Birds

Our second day of travel involved a fair amount of driving. We left Grand Forks quite early and set out for Wycliffe, a very small town located between Kimberly and Cranbrook.

There are two places I like to visit in the Kootenays, the Creston Creston Wildlife Management Area and Elizabeth Lake near Cranbrook. When we arrived at the Creston location there were warning signs for Grizzly Bears, so I didn't venture too far from the visitor centre!

On the entrance boardwalk I heard a familiar call and snapped one shot of a Western Wood-pewee.


Western Wood-pewee - Creston Creston Wildlife Management Area, Creston BC

At t back of the visitor center is a covered deck with some picnic tables. At this time of year it is taken over by Barn Swallows. There are four to six nests in the area with three or four nestlings in each. The parents are darting in and out continuously with food for the young.

This is the first nest we saw as we entered the area.


Barn Swallows - Creston Creston Wildlife Management Area, Creston BC

Here's a parent taking a respite from the feeding activity.



I caught sight of a small bird hopping around on the picnic tables. It turned out to be a Song Sparrow.


Song Sparrow - Creston Creston Wildlife Management Area, Creston BC

There were some hummingbird feeders in the area, but traffic was sparse. I was hoping for a Calliope Hummingbird, but the only bird I saw was a Rufous male.


Rufous Hummingbird  - Creston Creston Wildlife Management Area, Creston BC

I went out into the open to walk the short trail around the center. It was almost noon now and there was little bird activity except for the Swallows



I did spot an Eastern Kingbird near a small creek. It was a struggle to get a good exposure in the noonday sun.


Eastern Kingbird - Creston Creston Wildlife Management Area, Creston BC

I headed back in and took a zoom shot of one of the other Swallow nests. It looks like the two on the left side of the photo think it's their turn next.


Barn Swallows - Creston Creston Wildlife Management Area, Creston BC

I did a quick tour of the gift shop and admired some of the taxidermy on display. This photo shows the size difference between a Sharp-shinned (left) and Cooper's Hawk.



We left Creston and drove east to Cranbrook. Just to the south of Cranbrook is a small wildlife area name Elizabeth Lake Sanctuary. The lake sometimes provides close-up views of Ducks and Grebes. It was fairly quiet on this day but there were a few waterbirds on the lake.


Ruddy Duck - Elizabeth Lake Sanctuary, Cranbrook BC


Lesser Scaup - Elizabeth Lake Sanctuary, Cranbrook BC (Female at back)

Farther out as an Eared Grebe, perhaps performing a mating display.

Eared Grebe - Elizabeth Lake Sanctuary, Cranbrook BC- 2017 Bird #169

We stayed the night at a fantastic Bed and Breakfast overlooking the St. Mary River in Wycliffe BC. The last bird of the day was a Robin just before sunset.

American Robin - Wycliffe BC

My last photo of the day was this interesting cloud formation: