Sept.15 trip had great weather and was very enjoyable, but very few birds that day. See below.
Sept.16 trip was cancelled.
SUNDAY TRIP Sunday Sept 16th:
The public Sept.16 Sunday trip will run at 2pm, as its normal Classic Lighthouse Cruise, although I will not be there. There were remarkably FEW birds on Sept.15th on this route. So, go if you would like, it is a beautiful ride, but do not expect a lot of birds along the route.
SATURDAY TRIP RESULTS SUMMARY (and letter grades!), for Saturday trip 2-4pm Sept.15, 2018:
A: Weather, ship and route were all excellent.
A: Partners were excellent: S.Gifford, R.Gowing, D.Jernigan, M.Peretto, T.Robben.
C: Birds were not excellent; they were few and far between. And distant. I had many more birds in August in these waters. The only groups of birds on-the-water were 25 Common Terns flying and diving for fish about half a mile SSE of Avery Point, and about 300 distant gulls sitting on the water in a long line, just off the north shore of western Plum Island (see photo/s below).
D: I twisted my bad leg on Saturday, making it worse, and making it difficult for me to do this trip again Sunday. Therefore, I will NOT be doing the Sunday 9/16 trip (and I believe that tonight I have contacted/notified everyone who told me they will be taking the Sunday trip), but it is a public trip (the "Classic Lighthouse Cruise"), and you can still go. It is a pleasurable trip, but be warned, there are fewer birds out in those waters than usual! Many of the recent birds have headed south for the winter, especially tern species, and the hurricane is too far south to send us any bird-benefits. Sit on the open top deck (the highest of 3 decks), near the back, and enjoy an excellent (very windy-- your hat will blow off) ride, but expect very few birds. Good luck.
More details coming within 24 hours, here, including photos.
I took videos of several distant bird concentrations, and will analyze them shortly, to see if we overlooked any good species.
Our Sept.15 trip was right after maximum high tide in Eastern Long Island Sound:
Montauk tidal tables for Sept.15th: H12:05am, L5:39am, H12:50pm, L6:44pm.
Montauk tidal tables for Sept.16th: H12:51am, L6:23am, H1:49pm, L7:56pm.
From: September / 2018 - Montauk Point Tides :: Montauk-Online.com
See also: Tide times and charts for Montauk, New York and weather forecast for fishing in Montauk
Water temp 72F. Air temp 70-75F. Wind about at least 5mph, varying from NE to SE.
Cloud cover 2%. Sunlight was bright and reflections off the water made some viewing difficult.
Bird were unremarkable, in ad hoc order :
Shearwaters, none.
Storm-petrels, none.
Jaegers, none.
Waterfowl, none.
Passerines, none.
Shorebirds, one, Am.Oystercatcher.
Uncommon terns, none.
Common Tern, 25 in a group, plus about 20 scattered around our route.
Forster's Tern, 1, flying near the group.
Great Black-backed Gull, 200 at multiple islands and rocks.
Herring Gull, 200 almost all on island and rocks.
Laughing Gull, 10 scattered along the route, plus possibly in the large distant group near Plum Island.
Other gull species, TBD shortly, pending studying of long-distance photos.
Double-crested Cormorant, 20 scattered around the water, plus 300 on various island and rocks.
Mute Swan, 4 along shoreline of islands.
Am. Oystercatcher, one on islet at mouth of New London harbor.
By far the largest group of birds-on-the-water was a long line of at least 200-300 gulls, in a mixed flock (including some Herring and some Laughing Gulls), about 100 yards off the north side of western Plum Island. Our ship did not get close to this distant flock, and here is part of it, this frame grabbed from my video at 1,000mm (that is like 20x) and then also highly cropped (making it the equivalent of approximately an image-stabilized 100x scope)....
One week later on Sept.23rd Matthew Male reported a flock of gulls just west of Great Gull Island plankton feeding on crab larva (of unknown crab species, but identified by gull vomit and pellets), on 9/23 and for a week before that. So it is possible that these are the same gulls, and were feeding on crab larva on Sept.15th also, but around the north side of Plum Island.
We had the benefit on Sept.15th of a modified (41-mile shortened, 1hr55min) route, dropping the long run down to Bug Light in favor or more time around and a closer approach to Plum Island and Plum Gut.. usually birdy areas (e.g., with gannets in winter and terns in summer) although both areas had unusually few birds today (perhaps partly because of the high tide, and mid-afternoon time of day)...
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| Our actual route on 2018 Sept 15. The circuit departed New London CT and went clockwise around the route, doing a close pass around the SOUTH of the two Gull Islands this time, and going no further west than Plum Gut, which gave us a better than usual look at western Plum Island. |
CURRENT STATUS of the 9/16 weekend trip, as-of 1am Sept.16.
The organized bird trip for 9/16 is CANCELLED, because of so few birds out there on Sept.15th (and my bad leg getting worse), but the ship will sail this beautiful route on 9/16 (the 2pm "Classic Lighthouse Cruise"), and you may want to go and enjoy the pleasure of it. But do not expect many birds there currently.
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| Beautiful weather on Sept.15, 2018 crossing The Race, LIS, NY. Click on this panoramic image to enlarge it, and then press ESC key to return. |
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NOTE that this is a new trip, on a new ship, with some new people who have never been to this dock, or birded these waters, so please forgive all the details in this post. Most of you know all or most of this material.
SUMMARY OF THE PLAN:
WHEN: Saturday and Sunday, September 15 and 16, two trips. Park around 1:15pm. Buy ticket around 1:30pm. Board ship ASAP. Ship leaves dock 2:00pm sharp. Returns to dock between 4 and 4:30pm.
WHERE: Cross Sound Ferry main building, 2 Ferry Street, New London, CT 06320. Buy your ticket here.
MEET AT: Onboard the ship! Probably on the top deck. Meet us ON the ship, docked 100feet from ticket office. We will not wait in the ticket office. We will board ship as early as possible. Call me if needed.
PARKING: At that address or parking building across the street (5-minute walk). See details in Q&A below.
COST: Ticket for ship is $30. Buy it at the ticket office (main building) at the ferry dock (phone reservation is optional, but recommended, to 1-860-443-5281).
CONTACT if needed: Tom Robben, robben99@gmail.com (mobile: 860-922-1098)
WEBSITE: CSF Classic Lighthouse Cruise We are joining this scheduled "Classic Lighthouse Cruise".
CAR-POOLING: If you want to try to car-pool, email to me and I will try to arrange something with others.
HURRICANE FLORENCE:
Q: Is Hurricane Florence too distant to have any impact on LIS and its birds? TBD.
HURRICANE WEATHER MAY FORCE SHIP OWNER TO CANCEL THIS TRIP. THE TRIP Go-NoGo STATUS WILL BE POSTED HERE AS SOON AS WE HEAR FROM THE FERRY COMPANY, PROBABLY FRIDAY LATE.
During Wednesday & Thursday Sept.12 & 13, Hurricane Florence turned further to the south, increasing the probability that our ship will leave the dock, but decreasing the probability that we will see any "hurricane birds" all the way up here in LIS (we are probably too far north of the hurricane).
THIS IS A NEW, AD HOC TRIP, AN EXPERIMENT: NOTHING IS GUARANTEED. Parts of this route have not been heavily birded. We may see a few good post-hurricane-birds, or we may see nothing, because of the trajectory of this hurricane.
One of our (highly unlikely) target species, which the hurricane may displace: Sooty Tern...
See also: Sooty tern - Wikipedia
The unusual trajectory of this hurricane may bring in more pelagic bird species to New England, or nothing, since landfall is so far south of New England, and the storm did not swing through the Caribbean. As of Friday 5am it is clear that this storm, instead of turning right/north, it kept turning left, into South Carolina, reducing the chance of New England getting any "hurricane birds"...
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| As of Friday Sept 14 at 5am |
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| As of Wednesday Sept 12 at 2am |
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| You can click on this image to enlarge it. Then press ESC key to return. This image is as of 2018 Sept 12 at 5pm. Note the extended arm of the storm, far north of the center. |
THE TRIP(S) -- THIS WEEKEND -- SEPT.15 & 16 -- TWO BRIEF CRUISES:
With hurricane Irene in mind (Hurricane Irene 2011 (and its birds): Summary of Hurricane Irene's Birds), we will be taking a possible post-hurricane seabird survey trip this weekend in eastern LIS Long Island Sound, hoping for some displaced hurricane-birds, assuming the marine weather is not too bad (this large 143-foot long catamaran is extremely stable, and the trip is not likely to be cancelled). We are hoping for S, SE, E winds which will blow some seabirds into this area this weekend (as similar winds did in July 2018, two months ago). We will take this public 2.5hour non-stop round-trip for $30@ this weekend, Saturday and probably also Sunday, departing at 2pm, weather permitting. All birders are welcome -- this ship has a very large capacity. As of 10am Sept.14th there were 200 open seats on this ship for Saturday Sept.15.
The following map shows the planned regular route, 55 miles roundtrip (mostly in NY waters) from New London CT (highest point on the map, on the blue route) on this clockwise circuit.... NewLondon, Dumpling Islands, The Race, Gardiners Bay, Orient Pt, Plum Gut & Middle Ground, Plum Island, The Sluiceway, Great Gull Island, Little Gull Island, and back across LIS through CT waters to NewLondon....
If you want to join us, meet us at the New London ferry dock ticket building (at 2 Ferry Street, New London CT 06320) by 1:30pm Saturday Sept.15th for a 2pm departure (and this same trip will probably be repeated Sunday Sept.16th). We suggest arriving in the area around 1:15pm to allow time for parking, in case of crowding. This is a public cruise, but being offseason, we expect relatively few people to be on it, other than us birders.
This trip is called the "Classic Lighthouse Cruise" (NOT the more limited "Lights & Sights Cruise"), and you can verify that it will run by calling the ferry company on Saturday morning at 1-860-443-5281. Also see: CSF | Cross Sound Ferry This route uses one of two catamarans, usually the Cecelia Ann, with its open top deck, open side decks, and large glass front viewing area in case of heavy rain (the viewing areas are not perfect, but they are workable, imho)...
Fleet Information
We have not been on the Sea Jet catamaran and do not know if that ship is practical for birding (it does appear to have an open top deck). We were on the Cecelia Ann on August 5th and you can see my thoughts and photos about that large stable ship here, if you click here and scroll way down: 2018 August 5th cruise around eastern LIS
CLOTHING ADVISORY: There are several viewing areas on the Cecelia Ann, but if you choose the top deck be aware that it is very exposed -- DRESS FOR COLD VERY WINDY WEATHER. This ship changes speed, slow in some areas and approaching 40mph (plus or minus for wind and water current speed) on the back-stretch, from The Race all the way through Gardiners Bay.
Notice that this trip spans the water current gateways between LIS and more oceanic waters : PlumGut, The Sluiceway, the narrows between the two Gull Islands, and The Race. What an interesting area to visit the day after a large hurricane hits the US East Coast (click on this map if you want to expand it, and then press ESC key to return)...
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS:
Q. Might I get seasick?
A. Extremely unlikely, unless we have really nasty wind/waves. This is a large catamaran which is inherently stable, more than single-hull vessels. Its powerful engines slice the ship through most waves.
Q. What is the cost of this trip?
A. Just the $30 ticket, plus your gasoline and parking. No other charges.
Q. When should I arrive in New London CT near the dock?
A. By 1:15pm, to allow for parking, buying ticket, boarding and 2:00 departure, sharp.
Q. Where should I meet you?
A. We will meet onboard the ship, probably on the open top deck.
Q. Where can I park my car? This is just for people new to this area....
A. There are usually some spaces right at the dock area (at 2 Ferry Street, New London CT 06320). If full, you can park at the nearby large Water Street Garage municipal parking building, with entrance around 85 Eugene O'Neill Drive, at Atlantic Street, in New London (after parking you then have to walk 5-minutes across the railroad tracks to the ferry docks -- see the RED line on this image -- click to enlarge it). Arrive in New London by 1:15pm to allow time for parking, and then buying your ticket in the main building. Click to enlarge this map, and then press ESC key to return...
Q. How much time will we spend in CT waters?
A. About 25%. Most time is spent in NY waters, around those islands which form LIS's gateway to the ocean. This is an exciting marine area with strong currents and fish, and hopefully seabirds. This area is not easily accessible for most birders, and rarely birded, so each trip out here contributes some new understanding to these waters.
Q. Is this trip meant to compete with bird watching from the NewLondon-Orient ferry?
A. No, this trip takes a different route. It covers more miles, but with less of them in CT waters. To maximize your time in CT waters, you could take the regular ferry in the morning, and at 2pm you could join our trip (which also covers some CT waters not covered by the regular ferry route). More generally, this trip is trying to learn more about LIS Long Island Sound overall, covering both CT and NY waters.
Q. Where on this ship can I view birds from?
A. Top deck has a large open area, including benches. Direct front view effectively obstructed by 6-foot high shaded glass wind screen. But just stand near the middle or back of this large area and you have a good (although windy) view, covering about 320-degrees.
Middle deck has open rear deck and side viewing through glass.
Bottom deck has open rear deck (but this may be off limits, tbd), open side areas, and a large front view through plate glass.
Q. If we get heavy rain and extreme wind, how/where will we watch birds?
A. Several places, especially the front-facing large plate glass windows.
Q. Will this ship slow down to look at anything?
A. Yes, it slows almost to a stop at each of the nine lighthouses it focuses on (doing a slow 360 degree full rotation in front of each of them!), including narration about each of them. During those stops we get more time to study birds. In between those stops it travels rapidly, but we can work around that and see birds in-passing. We cover a lot of water, which increases our chance of seeing birds, which are often spaced out over miles.
Q. Will this ship change course to pursue any birds?
A. No. This is a public trip, focused on lighthouses, and we are "piggy-backing" on it.
Q. Will we look only for birds?
A. No, we will also look for marine mammals and fish, especially schools of predatory fish blitzing schools of forage fish.
Q. Will anyone be talking on the public address system?
A. Yes, they talk about each lighthouse and the history of these waters. Some of it is quite interesting.
Q. If we separate to different viewing areas on the ship, how will we communicate a rare bird to each other?
A. I have several walkie-talkies, and hopefully they will work well.
Q. What might be the worst and best outcomes of this trip?
A. Worst: All that we see are a few Herring Gulls! (we have to keep our expectations low!)
Best: Seeing a few uncommon pelagic/seabirds. How about a Magnificent Frigatebird? Or maybe a Sooty Tern? If the hurricane had come further north Sooty Terns would be possible. In any case, we will look for them, plus other tropical and larger terns, and pelagic species.
Remember what Hurricane Irene brought north/inshore in 2011:
Hurricane Irene 2011 (and its birds): Summary of Hurricane Irene's Birds
Q. How could this trip be briefly characterized?
A. As a luxurious relaxing (but exciting?) mini-pelagic trip for $30, on a super-stable fast ship. Regarding the birds -- well, time will tell. This is not a well-trodden path. We are exploring. Enjoy the unique aspects of this trip.
Q. Which ship will we be on?
A. Almost certainly the Cecelia Ann, shown below. Note the large open upper deck (click on the photo to enlarge it, and then press ESC key to return)...
Q. How is the weather?
A. Using Montauk NY as the nearest ocean-exposed weather station:
Montauk, NY History | Weather Underground
You can click on the images below to enlarge them, and then press ESC key to return.
Note the shifting winds, from ENE to E, which is some good news for us...
2018-09-13:
Q. What is the marine forecast for the weekend Sept.15-16?
A. It will be updated here, later today. Click on the images to enlarge them, then press ESC key to return.
National Weather Service Marine Forecasts
LINKS to NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MARINE FORECAST OFFICES
New York, NY
Zone Area Forecast for Block Island Sound
Zone Area Forecast for Peconic and Gardiners Bays
Zone Area Forecast for Long Island Sound East of New Haven CT/Port Jefferson NY
National Weather Service Marine Forecast (for Mass and RI coastal waters)
Q. How are the winds blowing currently?
A. Go to this link: Ventusky - Wind, Rain and Temperature Maps for an amazing live wind map:
Wind gusts...
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| https://www.ventusky.com/?p=37.4;-73.4;5&l=temperature-2m |
Waves... note some waves pushing towards us from the south. Florence was a Category 4 hurricane for days, pushing lots of water ahead of it, and now some of it is reaching Long Island waters...
If you have any other questions about this unusual route/trip please email me at robben99@gmail.com
Tom
