Fall hills.
A sunny morning. Nippy. Quite a little breeze. Jack and I headed to Beech Hill shortly before noon.
Temps in the lower 40s (F). A solitary jay flew across the road just as we arrived. Then I heard a white-throat. Then I heard a hairy woodpecker. Then I saw a crow.
Fallen leaf.
But not much else other than a strong northwest wind and a cloud-ribbed sky and coppery hills spreading away in the inland distance. Far to the southeast, the bright stripe of ocean looked a line of burning phosphorus.
Nearing the summit, a lively collective peeping alerted me to a flock of horned larks that had risen on our approach, they flew in a little circle then settled in the grass somewhere toward the southwest. No midday birds at all at the top; nothing stirring in the spruces except the spruces themselves. In fact, the sound of the wind—a strong, gusty, cold, even invigorating wind—canceled out any audible bird voices from wherever they might’ve been coming.
I did, however, hear a chickadee. (And learned that I don’t absolutely have to take a bird photo every day, for crying out loud.)
The day grew mostly overcast toward the end of it. Just now, approaching bedtime, I have a sort of anxious, unsettled feeling.
Berries.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 11:45 a.m., I hiked the open trail.
1. Blue jay
2. White-throated sparrow (voice)
3. Hairy woodpecker (voice)
4. American crow
5. Horned lark
6. Black-capped chickadee (voice)
Elsewhere
7. Herring gull
8. American robin
Tags: American crow, American robin, black-capped chickadee, blue jay, hairy woodpecker, herring gull, horned lark, white-throated sparrow
