A bit nippier than yesterday, nearly calm, mostly cloudless. No exciting sightings (like yesterday’s owl), but a few fun ones—including a surprise Juniper Titmouse, nice close looks at chickadees. Despite frost whitening the trailside rocks and fallen leaves, plenty of towhees, chickadees, and jays.
Also some nice Saturday conversation with a few trail friends—about the only human interaction I get these days (or, frankly, require).
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 8:21 a.m. (MST), I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
The temperature dipped last night, so dog and I enjoyed a brisk, bracing hike. The usually species, mostly—including a young Mountain Cottontail—but my first batch of juncos sparked my interest. They seemed a little more upset with our approach than usual (usually they flit away). I tried to keep track, hoping for a photo.
Saw movement in a juniper ahead of us, pointed my camera in that direction, and saw a cool-looking unfamiliar bird. Some kind of very small hawk or owl. My first Utah owl. I had no idea what it was. I thought perhaps a saw-whet (which species I’ve heard but not seen in person), but the tail seemed too long. Got a bunch of pics and figured I’d look it up when we got back home.
Which I did. My first-ever Northern Pygmy Owl. A tiny terror.
Been a while since I’ve had a lifer. I’ve saved the memory of its sighting for recall in the future.
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 8:17 a.m. (MST), I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
This warmish, overcast Sunday was awash with sweet, sweet mud. Been a good while since I had to scrape mud off my boots. How nice it is.
Also nice to sped the morning with the local birds, the usual suspects, my new old friends. Magpie, scrub-jay, towhee, junco. Flicker, chickadee, finch, robin. Even the sharpie and American Goldfinch were familiar players in this daily show of mine.
Later, at home, a pair of song sparrows showed up in the ivy, like dessert after a delicious meal.
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 8:21 a.m. (MST), I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
1. Black-billed Magpie 2. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay* 3. Spotted Towhee 4. House Finch** 5. American Robin 6. Dark-eyed Junco 7. Ruby-crowned Kinglet (v) 8. Northern Flicker** 9. Black-capped Chickadee 10. Downy Woodpecker 11. Sharp-shinned Hawk 12. American Goldfinch (v)
Elsewhere
13. Song Sparrow
Mammals
Red Squirrel (v)
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere
