A calm, nearly cloudless morning with chillier temps (20s (F)) than yesterday—and a bunch of nice surprises to discover. The first being a Canyon Wren in the rocky cavity up near the bluff. I heard it first, remembered the call from early spring, and managed even to spy the little energetic bird.
Soon after that sighting, I decided we should climb up to the ridge where the cairn stands—where I’d seen (from a distance) that it’d partly fallen in on account of (I assume) a few very windy days. It’d been a couple-three months, at least. Past time.
And it was a grand climb, a lovely view. I repaired the cairn (more or less), and dog and I ascended a couple hundred feet above it, sat a spell, then came back down (during which descent I heard—then spotted—a couple Chukars) and finally hiked a stretch of our usual trail, for good measure.
Good measure turned out to be a Sharp-shinned Hawk, perched low in the scrub not far away, casting about for voles or juncos until a trail runner jogged by.
All in all a very fine day.
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 8:20 a.m. (MST), I hiked some 1,200 feet up a mountain.
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.
