Evening sky.
Man, what a busy day. Server issues, letters to write (dozens), paperwork to handle (unexpected)—and I’m generally not a fan of paperwork. But outside, well, our planet is a miraculous place. Sun streaming down at an October angle, clean air with just a touch of an autumn tang, cool and lovely. I ended up having to drive around a bit, but I also managed to squeeze in a nice bike ride.
Birch.
And birds were fairly active. Crows and jays around my place, town birds on the move (gulls, sparrows, pigeons, starlings). And toward the end of the day—when I finally called it quits—Beech Hill brought its own particular miracles to the picture.
At the parking lot, I heard chickadees and nuthatches and crows. As Jack and I came up the trail, a solitary raven flew toward us doing spectacular aerial displays. No yellow-rumps today, nor any kind of sparrow that I could find. But a hairy woodpecker bounded overhead, chattering, and a jay screamed bloody murder down the eastern slope.
We got there later than usual, so we got a good look at the early evening sky. A streaky patch of clouds hung low over the southwest horizon, just where the sun was headed down—or, more accurately, the earth was spinning up to meet it. The color of the sky above the clouds blended evenly from pale to a midnight blue. Pure magic.
Somehow, I managed to shake away some of the stress of my busy Monday. Which is one reason I like to walk up there, I suppose.
Tonight, some small critter is skittering around in the leaves out back. The air is cool, not cold—just about a perfect temperature.
Sunset.
I’m totally crushing on fall.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 5:15 p.m., I hiked the open trail.
1. Black-capped chickadee (voice)
2. White-breasted nuthatch (voice)
3. American crow
4. Hairy woodpecker
5. Common raven
6. Blue jay (voice)
7. American robin (voice)
Elsewhere
8. House sparrow
9. Herring gull
10. Ring-billed gull
11. Rock pigeon
12. European starling
Tags: American crow, American robin, black-capped chickadee, blue jay, common raven, European starling, hairy woodpecker, herring gull, house sparrow, ring-billed gull, rock pigeon, white-breasted nuthatch
