After the remaining three arrive (David from North Caolina, Mark C. and Tim of California) Walt provides hoagie lunch and we hike to the Kelly River ½ mile distant to look for the gray-headed chickadee. The shore of the Noatak provides looks at common raven, mew and glaucous gull, osprey, red-throated and pacific loon and red-breasted merganser. Todd catches sight of a gyrfalcon. In the willows next to camp are blackpoll, Wilson’s and yellow warblers, yellow wagtails and common redpolls. Spotted sandpipers forage along backwater sloughs on the way to the Kelly.

Once at the Kelly River we spread out in the spruce dominated border and call regularly for the bird, finding instead: dark-eyed junco (slate-colored subspecies), pine grosbeak, yellow-rumped warblers and have a fly-by of app. 12 bohemian waxwings. Although this area is largely flat we find a wooded knoll in our path along the Alvin River (nearby tributary of the Kelly).