Yesterday Ron Payne and I stopped at a number of Lake Champlain 
viewpoints from Stevens Bay, Orwell north to Lapham Bay, Shoreham. Water 
birds are not yet assembling in pre-winter abundance, but there were 
several interesting transients here and there.

Stevens Bay, Orwell -- Ruddy Duck (3), Red-throated Loon (2)

Plunder Bay, Orwell -- Ruddy Duck (3), Horned Grebe (1), Black Scoter 
(15), White-winged Scoter (11), Red-breasted Merganser (1)

Chipman Point, Orwell -- Horned Grebe (1)

Larrabees Point Fishing Access, Shoreham -- Ruddy Duck (1)

Stony Cove, Shoreham -- Black Scoter (1) ... which also had its typical 
accumulation of Ring-billed Gulls (253)

While we were visiting the well known Mockingbird on Lake Street in 
Bridport, just south of Route 125, there was an early Rough-legged Hawk 
keeping tabs on us from the very tip-top of a distant, isolated, tall 
field tree.

Ian