Thanksgiving

Picabo, my 17 year old puppy

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday because it doesn't involve any presents and it revolves around being thankful.  I have a very blessed life and so much to be thankful for.  This post touches on the most important things to me.  

My sweet family and my favorite sports team.

My friends are the family that I choose to have.

And those friends bring me so much joy.

The ability to travel and bird all over the world.

Watching birds like this owl in Mexico makes me happy.

I'm thankful that I live in a beautiful Earth full of adventure.

I am thankful that I work at a beautiful park.

I am incredibly lucky that I have such a fun partner that brings me such sunshine.

Sequoias, Big Sur, and San Francisco

Geraldine and Eva at the Parker Grove in Sequoias National Park

I'm back from my trip to California and I have lots of interesting birds and stories to share. I hope you enjoy the tales of camping, trees, and road trips as much as I did living them. Check back soon!

Big Sheep, Big Dam

I've heard of the Hoover Dam my whole life. It's the scene in one of Barbara Kingsolver's novel Pigs in Heaven where little Turtle watches a man jump over or fall. However you remember it, it's the Hoover Dam. It's a place that doesn't really mean much to me otherwise but it's landmark so we did take a brief stop so I could snap a picture of the big dam. The more exciting memory I will always link to it is right before turning the corner to see the dam there was a sign with sheep on it and immediately to my right, high on the ledge were a group of Bighorn Sheep. There's nothing like seeing a new animal but even moreso when it's a big animal and one you weren't expecting. So the big dam will always be remembered as the spot I saw my first Bighorn Sheep.

Grand Canyon National Park

We stopped at some roadside stands on the way to the Grand Canyon and were able to catch the first few glimpses of the gorge.

Seeing the Grand Canyon in person should be required for everyone that lives or visits this country. It's breathtaking, overwhelming, and perfect. At times you can't really even wrap your mind around the grand scale.

Once the sun came out we could really see some of the colors in the layers of rock. But even in the shadows, the canyon was beautiful. It was also much colder here than on the previous days but we lucked out with the rain staying away. We took so many pictures at the overlooks but once I was home I only wish I had taken more.

We found a nice place for a late lunch at one of the hotel lodges. Our view out the window was much like the one below. We were even fortunate enough to see ANOTHER California Condor. This one did a fly-by of the window while we were dining. I couldn't believe our luck!

After lunch we strolled down a path that hugged the Southern Rim of the canyon. It was crowded but there were plenty of outcroppings where we had our own view.

Our original plan was to spend another full day at the Canyon before heading back to Vegas but instead I told Geraldine I had my fix and that we should head to Flagstaff/Sedona for our last day of vacation.

On the way out of the park we spotted some Elk grazing on the side of the road. It was the perfect conclusion to a very busy day of driving, walking through a slot canyon, and then gazing at the Grand Canyon. I didn't know it then but the next day would be my favorite of the trip!

On the road in Utah

Roadside flowers in Utah (anyone know the ID?)

Driving into Zion National Park

My first look at the canyon


There still was some snow capped mountains despite the warm weather.


The rocks were a beautiful red color that even tinted the road.



Our little rental car did just fine navigating the ups and downs in Zion.


The famous arch, a natural rock formation.

This was a little "window" in the tunnel at Zion.

The tunnel was dark and longer than I expected. They only allow one way traffic due to the small size of the road.

Zion is famous for it's variety in rock formations. They have so many different layers and types of stratification.

After driving from Las Vegas we took a nice spin through the park and then made a loop back to our hotel. We needed plenty of rest for our first full day of hiking in Zion.

These are called the Coral Pink Sand Dunes. They are located near Mt. Carmal Junction. We drove by them on our loop by to our hotel.

A Dog's View at Camping

Picabo sleeps while we drive to Central Florida. It's a hard life for my 15 year old Rat Terrier. She's not the only pup on this trip. My friend Kim brought her dog Dolce along as well. Dolce is a 4 year old Golden Retriever.

After setting up camp we take the dogs on a 4 mile hike. It's hot and unshaded but don't worry, we brought plenty of water for the pups.

As our hike continues Dolce takes every opportunity to walk through the mud puddles. She's a good girl though and doesn't take a swim...something we were mildly worried about.

After 3 miles of hiking Picabo is dragging behind a little and she seems lethargic. So I pick her up and put her in my backpack. Believe me, there was no complaining from her with this situation.

Dolce has youth on her side and didn't seem to mind the hike at all. But she did pass out once we were back at the campsite. I think for the next two days the dogs were still recovering from our adventure.

Back at camp the dogs made themselves at home, mostly lounging in the dirt. Picabo however is a spoiled dog and insisted on jumping on the picnic table ever time I turned my back.

Our camping trip was a success and bringing the dogs along proved to be almost effortless. They were by far the best behaved dogs in the whole state park.

On the way home we stopped to look for Whooping Cranes. I lowered the windows and the dogs enjoyed some sightseeing. Dolce was especially interested in the cows. Everything went well other than one small incident with Boo deciding to jump out the window while we were looking at some Sandhill Cranes. She walked right by the cranes without notice but it did scare me for a second.

Boo is only living with me temporarily for the next couple of months until my mom gets better. I'm going to miss my little travel companion when she's gone.

Buzzards on the Bridge

I thought these signs on my way to Kissimmee Prairie State Park were interesting. Buzzards is a term I haven't heard in ages. My parents use to call vultures by the name buzzards in South Carolina. I don't know who is in charge of making these road signs but I don't understand why on one side of the bridge it says vultures and the other side of the bridge it says buzzards. In case you're curious, I didn't see any birds near the bridge at all.

March Madness

March came and went and I would be remise if I didn't mention my March festivities. I took a very fun trip down to Key West for St. Patrick's Day and to celebrate my friend Rupp in town. As you can imagine it was full of drinks and merriment but we did hit up Fort Zachary State Park where the best bird of the day was a lone Northern Gannet floating near shore.

On the way back home we stopped at Bahia Honda State Park for some beach time. The water was clear and cool. It was great just lounging around. A few gulls and terns passed by but nothing spectacular. We did have one Magnificent Frigatebird on the drive.

While my friend Rupp was in town we decided to hit one more state park on her Florida spring break. On her last day we checked out Bill Baggs State Park. The birding was excellent. We had nice looks at Prairie Warblers and Northern Parula. We also had a great view of a Chuck-wills-widow near the light house. Once again I dipped on the La Sagra's Flycatcher. This was my third attempt at locating the bird and sadly, it may be my last. It's just too expensive to pay all the tolls and park admission to keep missing this bird. It's already on my life list so I'm not too upset. It would be nice for my Florida list though.

March was such a short month with all the fun going on. I know that April will go by just as fast. This weekend I am on a whirlwind trip of the Southwest. I will be visiting Zion National Park and the Grand Canyon. Look for trip reports to come!

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!