Eastern chipmunk.
Today was intermittently sunny and overcast—albeit a light overcast—and colder than yesterday, seemed like. I don’t think the temperature rose above 60 (F). Not much wind, pleasant-enough-looking. I say “looking” because I chose to stay at my kitchen table all day working on some writing I’m doing. A fruitful day of work.
Song sparrow.
I did look out from time to time to see what was what. Mostly what I noticed was a chipmunk scurrying along the top of the stone wall alongside my parking lot, underneath the big overhanging oaks. The oaks have been dropping acorns lately, and the rodent was gathering those, I figured, to stow away in a burrow somewhere. I heard jays, I heard crows. I took occasional breaks to follow college athletic conference realignment rumors. I drank a bunch of coffee.
By day’s end, it was time for my daily hike with Jack. The sun had emerged by then and I decided a T-shirt would be sufficient outerwear.
Just as I started up the truck, a the chipmunk darted out if its hole and sat on the wall near us, holding an acorn (or something). For a long time it sat there frozen, motionless. I took its portrait. Then, en route to the hill, along wooded stretches, we came upon several chipmunks dashing across the road. Two scampered across, in fact, within about fifty yards of each other.
Osprey.
Quite a few cars in the parking lot when we arrived. People and dogs walking up and down the trail. I heard the whine of a lawn tractor across the road but no birds as we started up—not until we reached the first little stand of trailside trees, when I heard the chip note of a song sparrow. We stopped, and right away a female yellowthroat flitted across in front of us to hide in a cluster of bushes. I heard titmice in that direction also, then actually spotted a couple of them in some low branches of a tree and so stepped off the trail a little a little ways to try for a photo. The birds were not obliging, but a group of women hiking up together behind us offered friendly greetings.
We continued swiftly up the sun-drenched hill until I heard another song-sparrow chip! and stopped for photos. Then up a little farther, another sparrow chip note, more photos. A couple of the women caught up with us then, and I found out they were from away and so began to talk about the hill, the hut, the islands. As we walked I noticed a gull sailing out some trees down toward the bay.
At the summit, our little party ran into Amy, volunteer coordinator of Coastal Mountains Land Trust, who knows more about the hill’s history than I and gave her own little impromptu presentation. I saw a group of crows flapping across down the eastern slope.
Beech Nut arch.
Returning, I caught sight of a solitary osprey in flight, west-bound. Soon after I heard the voice of a jay. And down at the first little stand of trees again, I heard the chip-note of a white-throat and saw a chickadee flitting away.
More chipmunks on our way back home. There’re chipmunks everywhere.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 5 p.m., I hiked the open trail.
1. Song sparrow
2. Common yellowthroat
3. Tufted titmouse
4. American crow
5. Herring gull
6. Osprey
7. Blue jay (voice)
8. White-throated sparrow (voice)
9. Black-capped chickadee
Elsewhere
10. House sparrow
Tags: American crow, black-capped chickadee, blue jay, common yellowthroat, herring gull, house sparrow, osprey, song sparrow, tufted titmouse, white-throated sparrow
