Sky Lark

It sure was early this morning when I got up and Joyce drove me to the airport.  Once there I was reminded by the agent at the counter that my flight was an international flight which required that I have a passport.  And of course my passport was home in the dresser drawer.  So I called Joyce on her cellphone and told here where I thought it was.  It was there, and she brought it back to me at the airport in time for me to get checked in and catch my flight.  From that point onward, everything worked out well.  I got a couple of hours of sleep going to Chicago.  I got an aisle seat going to Vancouver.  Canadian customs and immigration was very mild.  My very short (14 minute) flight to Victoria was on time.  And most importantly Barbara Beggs, the Vancouver Island's caretaker of their Sky Larks, was waiting for me when I emerged.  We went to a nearby area where Sky Larks occur and walked slowly through the field, flushing three birds which we heard and saw well (web photo).  We did a little more birding and then she took me to the motel where I checked in and left my luggage.  Later she dropped me off back at the airport and I picked up the rental car and returned to the motel to work on the blog and listen to the Cardinals game (they won!).  John's first flight of the day was delayed, upsetting his remaining connections.  The outcome was that he wouldn't arrive in Victoria until after 6pm.  When he did arrive, I drove to the airport and picked him up, and we went straight to the field where I had the Sky Larks earlier.  After two circuits of the area and no Sky Larks, I was getting a little apprehensive, but decided to take one more loop.  That worked!  We found six in a cluster and got great looks at several.  We celebrated with a nice dinner at a nearby restaurant that Barbara had recommended.  We also set up a rendezvous with a young birder to help us see a Sooty Grouse tomorrow.  The Sky Lark was bird #691.