In the early 1900's, the Bluebird population in the Bickleton area began a steady decline as land was cleared of dead trees needed for nest sites. Then, in the 1960's, Jess and Elva Brinkerhoff brought their family to Bickleton from Richland, Washington. They noticed a pair of bluebirds looking for a nesting site. They fashioned a birdhouse out of a tin can and nailed it to a tree. To their amazemennt, the birds moved right in. The next spring the Brinkerhoff family brought nine blue and white wooden birdhouses to hang for the birds. Later, Bickleton's citizens also became involved and began placing thousands of bluebird houses around the Bickleton area on fence posts and trees. Thanks to this effort, every spring there is a migration of bluebirds back to the Bickleton area.
Male bluebirds return to Bickleton in mid-February and claim nesting sites. About a month later, the females return, choose a mate, and start building the nest in the claimed birdhouse. After laying her clutch of eggs and incubating them for 13 to 14 days, the little babies hatch and fledge in 18 to 21 days. While the young birds stay close to the nest, the parents prepare for another clutch of eggs. Bluebirds will raise as many as three clutches per season. When the weather turns cool, the bluebirds will gather together in groups of the same sex and migrate south to as far away as Mexico. After the bluebirds are gone, the Bickleton residents will settle in for another long cold winter and look forward to Valentine's Day and the return of the bluebirds.
Please park at the posted parking coordinates and be respectful of anyone you might see during your visit.
Warning: spoiler logs or social media posts will cause your log to be deleted.
Enjoy driving around the Bickleton area and seeing the bluebirds. A complimentary map of the local Bluebird Trails can be obtained at the Bickleton Carousel Museum, nearby, who gave permission to place this cache on their property.
(another quality geocache by mtribe and verano)