The first day featured long travel itineraries for everybody, but at last we're all here, and starting to realize what a fabulous place this is.

Birding todays started of with a visit to some locations in the town of Leduc while waiting for our last three tour participants to arrive. Fred Johns Park offered very near views of water birds with chicks: Common Golden-eye, Red-necked Grebe, Bufflehead and American Coots. Even inside the town we noticed the enormous blue skies of Alberta and the everp-changing cloudscape.

After picking up the rest of our party we made a quick stop at Miquelon Lakes Provincial Park (PP for short) for a quick look at the edge of the woods for warblers. Few turned up, though a Least Flycatcher got us started practicing locating birds by ear. Two young Great Horned Owls were lurking near the corner of the woods. A stop at the water's edge produced a Ruddy Duck making a spectacular bubble display as well as two Black Terns and a Spotted Sandpiper. Bird of the day: Black Tern.

Others observed Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Northern Flicker, Black-and-white Warbler, American Redstart, Nashville Warbler