Penobscot Bay.
Today dawned clear and cold. Well, mostly clear and pretty cold: a few clouds here and there, and temperatures in the low-20s (F). Crows were hollering from up the hill out back when I took Jack out. Then I heard a sweet call—a titmouse, singing its spring love song from somewhere in the morning sun.
Field and sky.
Stayed inside for most of it. The office warmed quickly as sun streamed through the southern windows. At one point, I looked up to see several large black birds sailing over Route 1 toward the hill and thought at first they were crows, but they seemed large, and their tails were long. That’s when I realized they were turkeys.
Come mid-afternoon, we’d grown antsy. Time for a quick hike up the hill.
Again we were alone up there. The air had warmed to maybe the upper-20s. Only a faint trace of breeze. Clouds like in a painting floated above the summit of Beech Hill—puffy cumulus glowing pink from the setting sun, high ripply clouds to the north, wispy cirrus directly overhead. Snow from the last storm spread hard and icy on the trail, causing my feet and the dog’s paws to slip from time to time.
Didn’t see the owl again, though I looked hard. Didn’t see any birds up there—but I heard a flicker’s cry from somewhere down the southern slope. The snow had mostly vanished from the red fields. The bay seemed huge and wide and spacious under the colorful, watercolor-like sky.
Beech Nut.
From time to time I stopped to look and listened. All seemed particularly still and quiet. As we neared the parking lot, I heard a hairy woodpecker calling from some trees across the road. Then I stood in the parking lot for a few minutes until I heard the distant voices of chickadees and crows.
Tonight I caught a glimpse of the crisp new moon setting behind the trees. The stars seem slightly dim. Perhaps there are some clouds up there.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 3:30 p.m., I hiked the open trail.
1. Northern flicker (voice)
2. Hairy woodpecker (voice)
3. Black-capped chickadee (voice)
4. American crow (voice)
Elsewhere
5. Tufted titmouse
6. Herring gull
Shadows.
Tags: American crow, black-capped chickadee, hairy woodpecker, herring gull, northern flicker, tufted titmouse
