Yet another morning like the past few—cool in the shade, warm in the sun, pleasant, lovely, dry. Nothing out of the ordinary, bird-wise, but a very good hike with a very good dog.
During which I got to thinking about my routine. A long-time routine, a daily routine. Hike a couple miles with my best bud, look/listen for birds, take their photographs (if/when possible), keep track of ’em in my head. It’s a comforting routine, especially the part about being out in what I consider the Real World (i.e., Nature’s realm). The photos sure take a while, though.
Maybe two hours a day—or, rather, evening—I spend going through the hundreds of digital images I’ve captured, marking the decent ones, narrowing down a dozen or two to choose those I’ll share on social media. Keeps me up late sometimes (e.g., now). Don’t I have better things to do with my time?
Maybe. Maybe I do. But I’m not gonna worry about it just yet. Keeps me engaged in not-too-distant past.
Grandeur Peak Area List
Beginning at 7:05 a.m. (8:05 MDT), I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
1. Lazuli Bunting
2. Black-capped Chickadee (v)
3. Lesser Goldfinch** (v)
4. Song Sparrow* (v)
5. Black-chinned Hummingbird
6. Rock Pigeon*
7. Spotted Towhee
8. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay
9. Black-headed Grosbeak (v)
10. Red-tailed Hawk*
11. Mourning Dove
12. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
13. House Finch
14. American Robin**
15. Warbling Vireo (v)
16. Black-billed Magpie* (v)
Elsewhere
17. Eurasian Collared-dove
18. California Quail
19. Northern Flicker
Mammals
Rock Squirrel
(v) Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere
Tags: American robin, black-billed magpie, black-capped chickadee, black-chinned hummingbird, black-headed grosbeak, blue-gray gnatcatcher, California quail, Eurasian collared dove, house finch, lazuli bunting, lesser goldfinch, mourning dove, northern flicker, red-tailed hawk, rock pigeon, rock squirrel, song sparrow, spotted towhee, warbling vireo, Woodhouse’s scrub jay
