It was a warm one. Starting up the trail early, dog and I “enjoyed” a sort of humid room temperature. Once we got out of the shade, the air got summertime-warm in a hurry. Still, what a nice hike.
Mainly because of the variety of bird life. A vireo posed. So did a Broad-winged Hawk and a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher. Most interestingly, a young Cape May Warbler perched high in a summit spruce and might as well have begged to have his picture took—one of very few of the species I’ve seen up there.
In afternoon, I rode around on my bicycle in 80-something-degree (F) temperatures. Seems we get us a variety of weather around here, too.
Beech Hill List Starting at 6:45 a.m. EST (7:45 DST), I hiked all trails.
1. Red-eyed Vireo 2. White-breasted Nuthatch (v) 3. Blue Jay 4. Gray Catbird 5. Eastern Wood-pewee (v) 6. Hairy Woodpecker 7. Broad-winged Hawk 8. American Crow* (v) 9. Black-capped Chickadee** 10. Eastern Towhee (v) 11. Song Sparrow 12. Common Yellowthroat (v) 13. Yellow-bellied Flycatcher 14. Cape May Warbler† 15. American Goldfinch 16. Downy Woodpecker (v) 17. Cedar Waxwing 18. Northern Flicker (v)
Another nippy morning—low-60s (F) to start—that warmed into a lovely late-summer day. On the hill, birds were stirring, including one species I hadn’t encountered since spring: Scarlet Tanager. I heard a high, loud, abrupt call that I didn’t recognize coming from up in the wooded canopy. Turned out to be a female tanager. (Learned another bird call today!)
Cool and bright again this morning—but not quite so cool. In fact, the day warmed up pretty good by the time dog and I reached the summit. A noteworthy day, though, with a few nice sightings. Most noteworthy, perhaps was a whitetail doe and fawn that appeared in a little clearing far below us.
Bird-wise, also at the summit, I spotted my first yellow-rump since spring. and I spotted my first Nashville Warbler in months, down in the woodlands.
Sitting here this evening, I find myself wondering what tomorrow’s hike will bring.
Beech Hill List Starting at 7:04 a.m. EST (8:04 DST), I hiked all trails.
