The last three performers fly. Hopefully I can learn how to inclued more than 4 pictures in a blog! Until nest time, make life more wonderful by enjoying the birds of our area and also thye other wonders of nature!
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Backyard Birds in Fliight 4, the last three performers
The last three performers fly. Hopefully I can learn how to inclued more than 4 pictures in a blog! Until nest time, make life more wonderful by enjoying the birds of our area and also thye other wonders of nature!
Backyard Birds in Flight 3
I am new to bloging and am using software and can only post 4 pictures at a time. Here are four more pictures of 'Birds in Flight'.
Backyard Birds in Flight 2
Goldfinches have flocked in our backyard drawn by water in two bubbling birdbaths and plenty of food from native plants and four feeders overflowing with sunflower seeds. Sometimes when a bird in one of our birdbaths activated the Birdcam, another bird was flying in the background. A flying bird move to fast to activate the Birdcam. These candid shots are always interesting and often striking. Enjoy the birds while you can, many will soon be leaving dryer if not better living in the South.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Miscellaneous photos and bike rides
Here are just a few photos from our local bike rides and the back yard this spring. Yesterday we saw another red tailed hawk on our fence. Beth just looked up and there is was, briefly, before it flew eastward.
The two bike photos are from the Banks-Vernonia Linear Trail. I'm on the 3-wheeled recumbant talking to two passing bicyclists. Ray is posed in front of an interpretive sign. The two bird photos are a red-breasted sapsucker and the great-horned owl from our forays to Dawson Creek Park this spring!
The two bike photos are from the Banks-Vernonia Linear Trail. I'm on the 3-wheeled recumbant talking to two passing bicyclists. Ray is posed in front of an interpretive sign. The two bird photos are a red-breasted sapsucker and the great-horned owl from our forays to Dawson Creek Park this spring!
Silver Falls State Park
Last weekend we spent 2 nights in a lovely little cabin at Silver Falls State Park. The cabin was in the woods, surrounded by tall trees, trillium, ferns and salmonberry. We took two hikes, one on Friday afternoon when we arrived and one on Saturday, along the river and over and under the waterfalls. Here are some photos of our hikes and of the things we saw.
These were the first hikes we took with our new walking poles from REI. They came in very handy, especially on our hike around the waterfalls. We'll take them on all our hikes from now on, we think.
We did not see many birds, although we did see a winter wren. We heard a lot of bird calls and song, but the trees and shrubs were so thick, we couldn't see them. We did see a family of deer, one of which is pictured here.
The salmonberry was everywhere, but we also saw camas, white and pink fawn lilies, yellow stream violets, oxalis and Scouler's Corydalis - a first for us. I had to thumb through the plant book, only to find it on the same page as Pacific Bleeding Heart, whose leaves it somewhat resembles. There was a lot of bleeding heart, too, but the flowers are totally different. We were glad to have figured it out!
These were the first hikes we took our new walking poles from REI on. They came in extremely handy and we'll use them again, especially next time we go to Lake Billy Chinook!
These were the first hikes we took with our new walking poles from REI. They came in very handy, especially on our hike around the waterfalls. We'll take them on all our hikes from now on, we think.
We did not see many birds, although we did see a winter wren. We heard a lot of bird calls and song, but the trees and shrubs were so thick, we couldn't see them. We did see a family of deer, one of which is pictured here.
The salmonberry was everywhere, but we also saw camas, white and pink fawn lilies, yellow stream violets, oxalis and Scouler's Corydalis - a first for us. I had to thumb through the plant book, only to find it on the same page as Pacific Bleeding Heart, whose leaves it somewhat resembles. There was a lot of bleeding heart, too, but the flowers are totally different. We were glad to have figured it out!
These were the first hikes we took our new walking poles from REI on. They came in extremely handy and we'll use them again, especially next time we go to Lake Billy Chinook!
Dalles Mountain Ranch in the Columbia Gorge
Sorry I haven't posted for a while - it's not because we haven't been active! These are just some of the photos I took on our @6 mile hike on the Washington side of the Columbia Gorge on May 10, 2009. We read an article in the Sunday Oregonian about places to see wildflowers. It was a good weather day so we packed lunch and drove to the Dalles Mountain Ranch - part of a Washington State Park. It was so worth the 2-hour drive each way. We spent about 4 hours hiking this fantastic wildlife area. The dominant wildflowers are balsam and lupine, but we also saw Indian paintbrush, larkspur, phlox and quite a few plants we have yet to ID! Looks like we'll have to sit down with the plant books!
These photos include a snake that we saw on the way down from the top of the ridege; a big bumblebee nectaring; a beautiful little green butterfly (moth?); close-ups of balsam, desert parsley and Indian paintbrush; and a photo of a Western Meadowlark!
This area was filled with the song of the Western Meadowlark! It was the first time we've heard or seen them. It was ironic, this was the one and only place we've experienced Oregon's state bird - in Washington State! Beth heard the song first and located the bird in her binoculars. It looked like a meadowlark, but to make sure she pulled out her iPod and listened to the song on her bird ID program. It was just thrilling - and it's a lovely song. The birds were singing to each other for most of our hike up and down the ridge.
We spoke to several people on site and they told us this was the best wildflower year in decades, so we were extremely lucky to have experienced it. I would compare it to Dog Mountain, only an easier hike up and down. But the views, including of Mt. Hood and Mt. Jefferson, were spectacular, the geology was interesting, and the fields of flowers were like walking through a Monet painting!
These photos include a snake that we saw on the way down from the top of the ridege; a big bumblebee nectaring; a beautiful little green butterfly (moth?); close-ups of balsam, desert parsley and Indian paintbrush; and a photo of a Western Meadowlark!
This area was filled with the song of the Western Meadowlark! It was the first time we've heard or seen them. It was ironic, this was the one and only place we've experienced Oregon's state bird - in Washington State! Beth heard the song first and located the bird in her binoculars. It looked like a meadowlark, but to make sure she pulled out her iPod and listened to the song on her bird ID program. It was just thrilling - and it's a lovely song. The birds were singing to each other for most of our hike up and down the ridge.
We spoke to several people on site and they told us this was the best wildflower year in decades, so we were extremely lucky to have experienced it. I would compare it to Dog Mountain, only an easier hike up and down. But the views, including of Mt. Hood and Mt. Jefferson, were spectacular, the geology was interesting, and the fields of flowers were like walking through a Monet painting!
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