There he was, spotted and scrawny, standing on the neighbor's roof surveying the area, the first kolea of the season (at least for the neighborhood) and I swear he gave me the "howzit" nod with his head and asked, "Where's Bob?"

The golden plovers are making their annual end-of-summer trek back to Hawai'i, and Bob Krauss isn't here to write about them. It's just not the same. Even the birds look sad, like their arrival isn't as special or meaningful without Bob Krauss marveling at the way they gather in the grassy field at Kaimuki High School, argue over a nice patch of Ala Wai Park turf or train people to bring them bits of food.

Bob Krauss, beloved columnist, historian, adventurer and kolea chronicler, died Sept. 10, 2006. This is the first homecoming the birds will have without him. Krauss wrote up until he went into the hospital for heart surgery, wrote about the kolea coming back last summer, but his last piece was more self-referential than most.

He explained why, at age 82, he was electing to have heart surgery so he could keep being vital and energetic, so he could keep writing. It was as if he intended to come back and write some more, but at the same time, was hedging his bets in case something unforeseen happened. His last column was like a personal mission statement, framing his life and defining his work better than anyone else could.

Seeing that perky little bird asking about his buddy Bob Krauss brought a smile. A lot of us in the newsroom keep expecting him to come around the corner, white hair spiky and tufted like a Muppet, eyes dancing with the excitement of a good story to tell. Krauss wasn't satisfied to simply write a story. He liked to go around the newsroom and try it out on folks first, and with each telling of the new thing he saw or learned, he honed his words and polished his delivery.

He never lost the enthusiasm of a young reporter. He never got world-weary and bored. He was a rare bird, flying off to new lands, coming back with tales of adventure, crowing about all the amazing things he saw.

I considered offering to step in as the repository of kolea stories this year, but upon reflection, I don't think it's my place. Krauss loved a good story, but what he loved most was being the one to tell it.

Krauss collected and dispensed kolea stories, and in anyone else's hands or words, they would not have the same shine.

The plovers will come and go this year and the next and again after that, and many of us will see those little birds and think of Bob Krauss and how no one else could understand the travels and triumphs of those little adventurers like he did.

Lee Cataluna's column runs Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Reach her at 535-8172 or lcataluna@honoluluadvertiser.com.