#140 Mar 2017 Spring is for the Birds!

On Southern Vancouver Island spring usually arrives in February - not this year. 

Only the birds seemed to know springtime was here. We went searching for spring flowers and only found a few tiny little flowers hiding in the sand.

At least the moss is a bright green on the driftwood.

This red-winged blackbird was singing his heart out.

Island View Beach Regional Park is a short drive from Oceanside RV Resort. The path along the beach is popular regardless of the weather or time of day.

Ralph and I were very much in the minority without a dog to walk.

The endless driftwood invites the imagination.

These Barrow’s goldeneyes are frequently seen coasting close to shore.

This immature Cooper’s hawk was perched on a railing at the entrance to Mayfair Shopping Centre in Victoria. Many hawks have adapted to the urban environment but this one looked particularly out of place.

March 6^th we had snow AGAIN!

The next day the wind was coming in sideways creating impressive whitecaps and pounding the beach on the spit.

James Island is directly across from Oceanside Resort. It is a privately owned island that was listed for sale at 75 million dollars in 2014. Apparently there were no takers since the listing was removed from Sotheby’s.

This view of James Island is from Island View Beach.

This is taken from Malahat Drive across the Saanich Peninsula towards the cliffs of James Island.

The daffodil field in Saanichton was about a month behind.

This Anna’s hummingbird looked like he was trying to stay warm.

From the RV we spotted bald eagles almost every day. This one was sitting on the power pole patiently waiting for supper.

The cherry trees finally started blooming mid March.

Spring was slow to arrive but the birds came anyway. Watching nature from our site can’t be beaten.