Dog and I hit the trailhead early this crisp, clear Valentine’s Day morning. Right away I saw a pair of corvids (magpie, scrub-jay) in a juniper tree. Soon after, I saw a pair of eagles soaring above the ridge. And then I spied a mule deer striking a sassy pose.
But the most Valentine’s image I’ll recall from this day was a pair of Common Ravens, chasing each other in the blue-blue sky—flying together, flying in tandem, staying close to each other.
I love this Valentine’s Day.
Grandeur Peak Area List
Beginning at 9 a.m., I hiked a few hundred feet up the mountain.
1. Black-billed Magpie*
2. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay**
3. House Finch*
4. Black-capped Chickadee
5. Northern Harrier
6. Golden Eagle
7. Dark-eyed Junco
8. Lesser Goldfinch (v)
9. American Robin (v)
10. Common Raven
11. Song Sparrow*
12. European Starling
Mammals
Mule Deer
(v) Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere
Tags: American robin, black-billed magpie, black-capped chickadee, common raven, dark-eyed junco, European starling, golden eagle, house finch, lesser goldfinch, mule deer, northern harrier, song sparrow, Woodhouse’s scrub-jay
