It started on June 24th with one line in an email:


Should I go?

I must have asked myself that question twenty times over the past three weeks or so. Every time Jen Brumfield would post to the Ohio Bird Listserve I would think about going. And every time I thought about going, there was something else to do. The trip to Cleveland from Beavercreek is about three and a half hours one way. It's not a real long drive, but is it too long for a day trip to "maybe" see that one bird?

My wife and I are taking a trip to San Diego in August. If you search eBird for "Brown Pelican" this year in San Diego it looks like this (map on the right).

So, why would I want to spend seven hours in the car to go see one in Cleveland? Well, in Ohio it's a very rare species. I'm not sure what "code" or "level" or "status" it is, but I know I've never seen one at the local park. (Though I did see American White Pelicans at Charles Mill Lake earlier this year.)

OK - The wife just said she has to work all day Saturday... and asked what I'm going to do... I'm going!

Saturday morning I left the house at 3:30 AM and headed north. I made a few stops along the way to see if I could find some other cool birds walk around in the dark in the rain, and arrived at the lake at exactly 9:00 AM. The view alone was almost worth the drive.


I wondered how long I would have to drive around until I found the little guy. He had been reported in Wendy Park, but I really wanted to take a look at the lake so I pulled into the marina west of the park and scanned the water. There was a large bird way out on the breakwall.

Well, that was easy... I grabbed my camera and fired off a couple of quick shots in case it took off before I could get set up. Then I put on my rain coat, grabbed my binoculars and my tripod and headed out along the break wall to get some better shots. Enjoy!!

Brown Pelican on the Breakwall near Wendy Park - Cleveland Ohio

Now I know how a fish must feel!

Hanging out with the Herons and the Cormorants

"I'm outta here!"

Parting shot