Sky Views

The view from the El Paso airport sky. I love how barren and empty the land looks. The desert scrub was really beautiful. Coming from Florida I can relate to flat land.


Our plane turned to the East and I could see the mountains that are in New Mexico. From my trip from Albuquerque I experienced a little bit of all of the climates, snowy mountains, green valleys, miles and miles of desert, and even the White Sands. New Mexico is truly a land of enchantment.

I took the photo below with crop circles and New Mexico alien sightings in mind. For some reason we didn't go to Roswell so this photo below is the closest I came to any UFO encounter.

Flying back home I was hearing reports of a cold front. South Florida is having one of the coldest winters on record. Below is a snowy photo of Dallas as I landed for my connection.

Three Rivers Petroglyph Site

The Three Rivers Petroglyph Site is one of the few locations in the Southwest set aside solely because of its rock art. It is also one of the few sites giving visitors such direct access to petroglyphs. The number and concentration of petroglyphs here make it one of the largest and most interesting petroglyphs sites in the Southwest. More than 21,000 glyphs of birds, humans, animals, fish, insects and plants, as well as numerous geometric and abstract designs are scattered over 50 acres of New Mexico's northern Chihuahuan Desert. The petroglyphs at Three Rivers, dating back to between about 900 and 1400 AD, were created by Jornada Mogollon people who used stone tools to remove the dark patina on the exterior of the rock. A small pueblo ruin is nearby and Sierra Blanca towers above to the east.

This is the summary I found about Three Rivers Petroglyph Site from their website. I really liked this place. It was a short drive from White Sands, NM and due to the snow in the mountains it was our only option for a place to visit before settling in for the night in Alamogordo, NM. The most used petroglyph at this site is seen below. What makes it unusual is that it's a sign that is not really seen at any other petroglyph site in the vicinity. Literally this pattern was found on almost every rock.

Andy and I hiked around for quite awhile over and around the rock formations. I even found my lifer Rock Wren on the way back to the parking lot.

Below is a sampling of some of our favorite bird petroglyphs. This isn't nearly all of them but definitely a representation of what Three Rivers has to offer in the way of bird art.

In addition to bird petroglyphs we also enjoyed the little man below. Andy is doing a mimic of him above the rock.

We ended our night at a little motel. The place was cheap and a little on the shoddy side but it had this great little restuarant nearby. We had cheap beers and loads of food. And then we called it an early night with a few cans of beer as a night cap back in our room.

White Sands, NM

With our birding trip coming to an end we decided to spend the last day in New Mexico seeing some of the sights. We took a side trip to White Sands, NM, the largest gypsum sand dunes in the world. They encompass 275 square miles of land and if you're ever in the area I suggest a stop. By the way the only birds we saw here were a few House Finches. What they were doing in the dunes is anyone's guess.

Where the road meets the desert, the sand, and the mountains.

Yucca plants dotted the landscape.

The dunes are created by a playa or ephemeral lake that is high in mineral content.

We especially had fun off the trails where few footprints were found. Andy even demonstrates how tough the hiking can be if you don't plan your route.

The sand was so cool to the touch and the sun unreleting. It was a perfect time of year to visit. I can't even begin to imagine what the dunes are like in summer. One thing is sure, you won't find me there that time of year.

Following the Rio Grande

View of Bosque del Apache NWR from the top of the Canyon Trail.

We left the Canyon Trail in Bosque del Apache and made one last stop at the Prairie Dog town. I really liked this cute mammal. While there Andy spotted an interesting hawk so I put my camera down and relocated the hawk to only realize it was ANOTHER Red-tail Hawk. Yes, we saw many on this trip. So in the car we jumped and off to the interstate south to our next destination we went.


While entering the on ramp we noticed a peculiar sound on the car but gave it little notice. Ten or fifteen miles later I realized that my beloved Olympus Stylus Tough was left on the top of the car. That sound on the ramp must have been it sliding off. After a delicate search of the road we found the camera. AND it worked! Really, I feel like the Tough part of the name is totally accurate.


Our next stop was Caballo Lake State Park. Andy was exhuasted despite his nap and collapsed on a dock. I somehow managed to rouse him when a gull came by. We didn't identify it but most likely it was a Ring-billed Gull. Since there were few birds so we decided to head out but on the way I saw an interesting bird and pulled over. It was a Cactus Wren. With that news we decided to try a nearby trail within the park and lucky me that we did because it produced my lifer Black-throated Sparrow. That's one good looking bird. We decided that we should thoroughly give the park a go so we headed over towards the dam where a picnic area was located. We found some Gadwall on the river and my lifer Gambell's Quail. So for a pretty shoddy looking park we were making good stops.


Next we headed to the Percha Dam State Park. The area didn't really look that productive but it proved to live up to our stereotype that bathrooms and parking lots at parks prove to be damn fine birding habitat. Andy heard a familiar call and managed to locate my lifer Phainopepla. The photo above doesn't do justice to this fine silky-flycatcher. We found male and females throughout the park. We also managed to find the river and dam but it was pretty dry on both sides. Interesting enough we did see quite a few Spotted Sandpipers. Those little humping birds have a soft spot in my heart.



Before leaving the park we also found a beautiful Vermillion Flycatcher, Black Phoebe, Western Scrub Jay, and my lifer Red-naped Sapsucker. We ended the day with 65 species and celebrated by drinking at a really cool, old bar in Mesilla, NM.

Snow and Ross's Geese in New Mexico

Bosque del Apache

Chili Ristras are a dominant decorative theme in New Mexico. The above chili ristra at Megan and Uly's house was the first thing to greet me on my night arrival into the state. The first day's adventure will have to be posted later due to a little mix up with Andy and the photos. So we will start out the story on Day 2 in New Mexico. For those keeping score I saw 9 lifers on my first day including all three Rosy Finches...but like said before Day One will come later. For now we are starting with Day 2 in the Land of Enchantment.



Day 2 came just the same as the day before with White-winged Doves, Eurasian-collared Doves, and American Robins flying about the neighborhood. A Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon race) was on the fence before we said goodbye to Megan and started our journey south. Our goal for the day was to make it to Bosque del Apache NWR. Along the way we made a few stops like the one above. Just before entering that field by the Rio Grande Andy and I had my first and only look at a Ferruginous Hawk. At some Water Management Areas we were graced with fierce winds and lifer looks at Greater Roadrunner and Horned Lark. The day was shaping up nicely and despite the cold air and wind the skies were bright blue.

Rio Grande in New Mexico somewhere between Albuquerque and Socorro.
We left the water management areas and made our way to the infamous Bosque del Apache NWR. At the visitor center we learned that the Flight Deck was no longer functioning as the area that the Snow Geese and Sandhill Cranes were settling. So reluctantly we circled back to the entrance ponds but just as we approached via our car a Red-tailed Hawk swooped down and took out a goose. Chaos ensured and the ponds were cleared of hundreds of Snow and Ross's Geese. We followed the geese to some nearby fields but they were too far away to see from the road so we retreated back up the road to The Owl Bar.

After having a beer we decided to give it one more go on the geese. Our target was to find some Ross's Geese in the pack of Snow Geese. After parking in the local RV park we found that the flock had moved closer to the highway so we trekked over the train tracks and spotted our birds. Surprisingly we found lots of Ross's Geese in the pack. It was a great relief to see them so easily. And to top it all off we also found my lifer Yellow-headed Blackbirds mixed in with some Red-winged Blackbirds at the RV grounds.

Snow and Ross's Geese near Bosque del Apache.

We celebrated the day and our lifers at the Socorro Springs Brewery where Andy and I had some good local beers and some delicious sandwiches. After our rewarding dinner we headed to the local store to stock up on supplies before returning to our Couchsurfing pad. I was in love with the chili section. I was beginning to really enjoy this New Mexico chili celebration!

Day 3 in New Mexico was the earliest one of the trip. We woke up by 5:30 for the morning flight at Bosque del Apache. It wasn't as grand as years past (so they say, I've never seen it) but it was still pretty nice to watch. And it was totally worth it an hour later when Andy and I spotted our lifer Aplomado Falcon perched in a tree. It quickly took off but we both had nice looks.

The temperature was still cold but the winds from the day before had subsided so Andy and I took a nice stroll on the Canyon Trail. This loop was fun to hike but we didn't see many birds. At the very beginning we had my lifer Sage Sparrow but other than that we didn't see anything else except for one lone Say's Phoebe.

At this point in the trip I already had 20 lifers and a few more on the way in the days ahead. We said our goodbyes to the refuge and took the interstate south for a night in Las Cruces. But the day wasn't over and we had a few state parks to visit before nightfall. Check back tomorrow to find out what awaited me down the road.

The New Year

My weekend was full of birding with two different Christmas Bird Counts down in Miami-Dade. I will have to post more about these trips later. But right now I am very excited because I just booked my tickets to New Mexico for February. It may be a while off but it's still fun to be excited about an upcoming trip. Andy will be picking me up on his whirl-wind birding adventure in Albuquerque, NM and after 5 days of birding depositing me at the El Paso, TX airport. Though I may be attempting to bird as much as possible in Palm Beach County next year, everyone that knows me will understand that I can't stay settled in one place that long. I must travel. And this is officially the first major trip of the New Year. Can't wait!