“Wow” hardly seems sufficient to describe my morning! I stayed in Austwell Sunday night and I was only 12 miles from Aransas NWR and I was able to achieve an early launch time. I arrived at the reserve as it was still dark. I parked by the Heron Flats Trail and walked out to the … Read more
As I write this episode, I’ve been so involved taking pictures this past week that I buried myself under a ton of work to prepare them for my stories. I also had to honor a request to deliver images for a published report from the amazing February 2017, nineteen day science expedition I took aboard … Read more
I scouted several of the trails at the Riparian Preserve in Gilbert after I arrived late Saturday afternoon, but I did not carry my camera. The light was fading and I wanted to get a feel for this place I’d been hearing about all these years. Given the developments of housing and light commercial buildings … Read more
I let myself get behind in my posting. Since leaving the “BTA” I’ve completed two more photo safaris, but it took me longer than expected to organize the photos and stories for this visit. As I post this, I’m headed back to Poway to finalize my plans for an extended journey. I left Thatcher Arizona … Read more
I visited four places in the Tijuana River Valley on a Thursday mid-June morning. I started at the Bird and Butterfly Garden to be teased by Black-Throated Magpie-Jays. I followed with a bike ride to the Tijuana River Mouth where terns (Least & Forster’s) and plovers (Snowy) played in the sand and surf for me. … Read more
The Dairy Mart Ponds and the Bird and Butterfly Gardens are two well-known places along the Tijuana River for attracting unusual birds, especially during migrations. In the 1950s the dairy industry in San Diego County was booming. Growing up in during this era as I did, I can recall the dairy sponsored kids show hosted by … Read more
In March 2013 I went twice to Lower Otay Lake in search of a Prairie Warbler. As did many of my adventures in south San Diego County, my first trip was combined with a visit to Bayfront Park in Chula Vista, where I enjoyed the company of waterfowl, shorebirds and a cooperative Clapper Rail (now … Read more
Sacramento NWR, Colusa NWR, Gray Lodge Wildlife Area The Sacramento NWR mostly had puddle ducks, with a few Raptors and herons. They have not flooded the fields, yet it looks like the preparations (grading and the weeding) have been done. Birds seen there were Great Blue Heron, Common Yellowthroat, Western Meadowlark, Northern Pintail, Cinnamon Teal, … Read more
My friend and business partner’s second son was born on the Fourth of July last year and there was a birthday bash at Santee Lakes planned for this day noon-ish. I decided to go early and look for photo ops before the crowd arrived. Soon after I arrived to the space where the party was … Read more
The Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, west of Brigham City Utah is 80,000 acres of marsh, open water, uplands, and alkali mudflats. There is a one-way dirt track loop though the middle of it that offers some good view into the habitats where the Bear River drains into the Great Salt Lake. After my morning … Read more
