BBC Snippets

Link: http://www.freelists.org/archives/bristol-birds/02-2008/msg00103.html

Ed Talbott of Grundy, VA sent his memories from the 2002-2003 Mt. Rogers CBC when he made a modern-day, survival-type, count to the crest of Virginia's highest peak. He was afield with his wife, Michelle, and Bob Riggs of Russell County. His account of that experience and the photos from a previous website detail the kind of experiences passed along in the previous BBC Snippet.

Ed's memories are being shared here because it is one more accounting of the history of such high elevation CBCs in our region. At the end of this snippet you will see the official published account of the temperatures for that day. Other birders have been on these high elevation counts and experienced the same sights as depicted so well in Ed's and Michelle's scenes lifted from his video camera.

However, there is no record of temperatures as low as the -8°F that he mentions in his post. So it needs to be included in the history that any of you might keep. The difference between the official reported and previously published temperature of the count is not an issue. What is important is that no birder ever experiences a day in the field like one of these and forgets the details. We should all accept Ed's recollection as accurate. It does not reflect on his party or the count that there is a discrepancy. What it does do is further document what that one party actually experienced and what others have enjoyed afield in this beautiful high country. The challenges far exceed the birding :-)

It is also noteworthy that this is probably the only such extreme temperatures endured by any woman in a Mt. Rogers CBC party in the high elevations of that count. Standing on the peak of your state's highest mountain counting birds in those conditions are historic. It is a pretty good question to ask as to whether there has ever been a woman afield, walking all day at such elevation, under such condition, on the Mt. Rogers CBC. The round trip hike to Mt. Rogers' peak from Elk Garden is not less than seven miles

Here is the memory in the worlds of Ed Talbott:

"I enjoyed your history of the Mt. Rogers CBC. The Jan. 4, 2003 Count remains my fondest memory of any CBC and ranks as one of my top birding experiences of all time. I don't know what got into us but Michelle and I along with Bob Riggs left Elk Garden in a howling wind and temps around zero and decided to summit Virginia's highest peak that day. We almost turned around but once we reached the tree line the winds and snow died down we had a good hike to the top. I wish I had a digital camera in those days but I was able to capture some images with my camcorder. We birded all day and ended up with three species - Raven, Crow, and Black-capped Chickadee - probably a low count CBC record for three birders spending the entire day in the field. About noon the sun broke out above the clouds lying in the valleys around us. The low temps and blowing snow had coated every surface with rime ice and the sun made everything parkle. We felt like we were walking through a crystalline world. When we finally made it back to Elk Garden the thermometer at the trail head read -8 but it was exposed to the wind.

"Thanks for the trip down memory lane," Ed wrote.

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MOUNT ROGERS-WHITE TOP MOUNTAIN.

Circle Center: Jct. 600 and 603.- 36° 39' N 81° 35' W.

Field data: Count date: 4 Jan 2003. Times in field: 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Temperatures: 8° to 30° F. Wind NW, 5-20 mph. AM skies cloudy, light to no snow. PM skies clear. Snow depth: 0-3 inches. Still water partly open, moving water partly frozen.

Field observers: 16 in 6 parties. Total party-hours: 44.5 (22.25 on foot, 22.25 by car). Total party-miles: 277.5 (23.5 on foot, 254 by car). Observers: Not reported.

Compiler: Allen Boynton. Total species: 46; Total individuals: 1,797.