Sky over Beech Nut.
What a difference a spin of the earth makes. Today dawned sunny again but with a notable difference: warmth. By mid-morning, water was dripping from the eaves, old brown grass was poking up through the snow, and the air felt positively spring-like. The temperature topped out at about 50 degrees (F), I’d guess, if not warmer. It was frankly discombobulating.
Signs of a thaw.
Crows in the periphery. A jay’s plaintive cry. The spring song of a titmouse. House sparrows chirping across the road. Chickadees.
I thought seriously of taking a bike ride, but decided I had too much to accomplish
When Jack and I finally headed up to Beech Hill in late afternoon, I didn’t even bother to take a jacket or gloves. In fact, my hooded sweatshirt seemed like overkill. Not that surprisingly, there were four vehicles in the parking lot when we pulled up. The trail—hard and slick yesterday—was soft and giving, and maybe half a dozen times my shoes broke through. (The pack runs at least a foot or two above the ground, I’d guess.) Very still, very quiet. A lovely sky. Met six humans and four dogs (all dogs on leashes, I’m happy to report). The air above the islands seemed steamy. Several patches of hillside showed wide swaths of ground.
As we arrived back at the pickup, I heard a finchy call from somewhere to the south. Not a song, but a vireo-type series of phrases. A purple finch, I decided. I might be wrong.
The bay.
It keeps occurring to me that it’s going to take a long time for all this snow to melt, but on a day like this I realize it really won’t take that long. Especially once it begins to rain. Which it’s supposed to do in the next few days. And then get cold again. And then, no doubt, we’ll get more snow.
On the way back from the hill, I spotted a couple dozen mallards at the outfall of Chickawaukie Lake. And in the parking lot of the grocery store soon after, a good-sized flock of robins flew off toward the sunset.
I hear of a gigantic solar flare headed our way, meantime, which could mean an aurora borealis display in the next couple days. However, with a full moon up there tonight, and clouds moving in, seeing something like that seems pretty iffy.
But that won’t stop me from looking at the night sky.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 4:15 p.m., I hiked the open trail.
1. Purple finch (voice)
Elsewhere
2. American crow
3. Blue jay
4. Tufted titmouse
5. House sparrow
6. Black-capped chickadee
7. Herring gull
8. Rock pigeon
9. Ring-billed gull
10. Mallard
11. American robin
Beech Nut.
Tags: American crow, American robin, black-capped chickadee, blue jay, herring gull, house sparrow, purple finch, ring-billed gull, rock pigeonr, tufted titmouse
