Slept late this morning. We didn’t make it to the trailhead until the sun had long cleared the ridge. Warm, not too breezy. Didn’t know what to expect.
Not many birds on my list, but what showed up were vocal. The usual buntings and towhees and grosbeaks, along with chippies, finches, gnatcatchers. No magpies, which was odd. And the cherry on top was a cooperative Black-throated Gray Warbler (singing an interesting alternate song that—astonishingly—didn’t fool me).
After two long hikes, today’s was a quick one. Rain forecast for the weekend. Wind and rain. Scattered thunderstorms. Should be interesting. Looking forward to it.
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 9 a.m., I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
For his 12th birthday today, Captain Jack, my dog, and I veered off the familiar foothills trail and up a grassy slope. And up and up to a rocky climb. And up some more. Kept going to an altitude of 6,736 feet—our highest climb so far.
Saw a high-elevation flicker on a rock. Heard my second Canyon Wren. met some fellow hikers coming down from a longer hike than ours.
Both of us are kind of achy and sore this night. (Jack’s just now napping on his birthday toy in the middle of the floor.)
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 9 a.m., I hiked about seventeen hundred feet up a mountain.
1. Black-capped Chickadee 2. Black-billed Magpie* 3. American Robin* 4. House Finch 5. Northern Flicker** 6. Eastern Towhee 7. Lesser Goldfinch 8. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay** 9. Dark-eyed Junco 10. Golden Eagle 11. American Kestrel 12. Canyon Wren (v)
Elsewhere
13. Song Sparrow 14. California Quail 15. Eurasian Collared Dove
Mammals
Mule Deer
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere
My hike with dog began as usual (albeit a bit early, to avoid the housebound “throngs”). Jack and I climbed the switchback, squinted into the sun, listened to singing Spotted Towhees. Then I heard Chukars and decided we might as well head up a deer trail to investigate.
As usual, we didn’t get anywhere near the Chukars—but we scouted new, interesting trails, passed the ribcage of a long-dead deer, enjoyed the high views. Then, on descending back to the familiar trail, I heard it, and it brought me to a stop: the song of a Canyon Wren.
I’d been waiting for it for a while but didn’t expect to hear it so soon. It came from way up the hillside we’d just descended—likely from the rocky summit ridge. Once. Twice. Three times. That was all. That was enough.
Looking forward to my second listen to that lovely song.
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 9:15 a.m., I hiked a couple hundred feet up the mountain.
1. American Robin** 2. Black-billed Magpie* 3. House Finch* (v) 4. Black-capped Chickadee** 5. Northern Flicker (v) 6. Rock Pigeon 7. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay 8. Spotted Towhee 9. Pine Siskin (v) 10. Chukar (v) 11. Canyon Wren (v) 12. California Quail (v)
Elsewhere
13. Song Sparrow 14. Eurasian Collared Dove
Mammals
Mule Deer
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere
