Fishing Convention

The fish were floppin, the grebes creeking, pelicans cruising, frogs chirping, doves cooing, gulls crying - it was a spring cacophony, and a  fishing convention.  Rocky Dog and I went camping out to Jackson Lake State Park out on the high plains two weeks ago in late April.  It's only about 60 miles north east of Denver to Jackson Lake, a fairly large irrigation impoundment near Fort Morgan.

We arrived early afternoon and set-up camp right next to the lake.  I counted, and on average you could hear a large carp flopping in the shallows every five seconds.  Amazing.  Took Rocky a bit to adjust to it.  He wanted to swim out and get whatever that was. Off across on the eastern half of the lake I could see a large congregation of white pelicans, western grebes and gulls.  Next morning we woke about dawn to a cacophony of bird noise.  There was a huge bunch of birds out fishing.  Pelicans were scooping up fish and flipping them up to swallow.  Grebes were catching crayfish every dive only to have many of them stolen by marauding gulls.  It was amazing. A real fishing convention. It was so immense and so hopelessly backlit there was no way to really catpure it with the camera.  I just sat there and marveled at it.  It didn't last that long.  Then, they were mostly gone.  Off to other area lakes, or on to the migration journey, who knows.

I had gone out to Jackson hoping to photograph some bbb migrants - big beautiful birds - but I really didn't see that many.  Maybe a week too early?  Been such a cold wet spring, maybe migration is just late this year.   Lots of blackbirds, lots of chatty western kingbirds, all twitterpated with spring love, but I only saw one bullock's oriole, one western tanager, and one brown thrasher and those were just glimpeses while driving.  Also saw the usual turkey, a high flying bald eagle, and lots of cormorants.  Walking early one morning, we came across this family of foxes.  Momma fox had five kits.  She ran off, but the babies were curious and kept coming up out of the culvert to see just what Rocky was. He was, of course, captivated by the little foxes.  Just stood there watching them with me. y

Drove up Bear Creek Canyon the other day to do some birding in the Liar of the Bear Park.  Again, I was disappointed not to find any really bright migrants.  Maybe cause there was a large group of school kids on a field trip.

Common grackle at Jackson Lake State Park.  Their irri   is just amazing. 

I think this is a brown thrasher.  It was pretty far away.  I have seen them at Jackson Lake before. 

There was a momma fox and five kits living in a culvert not far from our camp.  I heard them yipping during the night.

Did see a black-headed grosbeak.  Always lots of wrens around.  Several wrens and nuthatches were fighting over a nesting hole.  I think the nuthatches won out, but it was quite a commotion.  Found another pair of wrens cleaning out a hole for nesting.

Western kingbirds were everywhere, all twitterpatted with spring. 

Lots of great blue herons at Jackson Lake.

Hundreds of white pelicans at Jackson Lake. 

Pair of black-headed grosbeaks at Liar of the Bear.

I'm not very good at identifying butterflies, but got this one at Liar of the Bear.

Black capped chickadee at Liar of the Bear feeding in the blossoming wild plum.  

Killdeer down at our local pond in Arvada.

Sand lily at Liar of the Bear. 

Wilson's warbler at Liar of the Bear. 

Wren cleaning house at Liar of the Bear.

One of my fav wildflowers, a little yellow violet.  

Pueblo and Beyond

Yep, Bill and Rocky have been to Lake Pueblo State Park again.  In fact, I think we have been there every month since last Sept.  Don't usually go there in the summer - too hot and crowded.  Actually when we were there last week it was starting to get more crowded.  I watched as these huge rigs pulled in.  Great big diesel pick-ups pulling a huge trailer and behind that a motor boat.  Good grief, how do they afford the gas?  And what amazes me is they pull in, set-up their satellite dish and then they hardly ever come outside except to go  boating.  Why come to camp if all you're going to do is sit inside and watch a screen.  I don't get it.

 We have had a lot of snow in Denver this spring so it was a welcome relief to find warm sunny weather in Pueblo.  But, we haven't seen a lot of wildlife down there lately.  Did take a photo of beautiful, male, mountain bluebird.  A lot of bluebirds winter down around Pueblo.

Back in March Rocky and I decided to drive past Pueblo and go to Lathrop State Park 40 miles to the south, just outside Walsenburg.  When you leave Pueblo going south you almost immediately begin to climb out of the Arkansas River valley into juniper pinion country.  Really beautiful.  The Spanish Peaks loom just to the south of Walsenburg.  We had a great view of them from our camp.  Despite the beautiful setting, Lathrop is not one of my fav camping spots.  There are two nice lakes, but the campgrounds are not right on the lakes, so you are not on the water.  But it is interesting country with lots of wildlife and that amazing view.

Been taking a few shots around Arvada here - down at the pond at the end of our street, and at Lake Arbor.   Connie, Rocky, and I went for a hike up on North Table Mtn. back in March.  We had just had a big snowstorm a few days before, but it warmed up nicely after that.  By the way, as I write this, it is snowing again and starting to accumulate.  I am so tired of snow.  I want to get my pond plants in and get my garden going.  If this weather keeps up we won't have tomatoes till first frost.  Maybe I'm imagining things, but it sure seems like in the last twenty years spring and fall seem to have more extreme weather events.

Mountain bluebird around our camp at Lake Pueblo.

The snow covered Spanish Peaks 40 miles to the south as a sailboat enjoys nice weather on Lake Pueblo.

A pair of magpies were beginning to nest in a cottonwood next to our camp at Lathrop State Park.  Very noisy.

I think this is a sage thrasher which was around our camp at Lathrop. 

A male hooded merganser caught a crayfish in Lake Arbor during a nice winter day.

Pair of doves have been hanging out around our backyard pond.  They usually nest somewhere in our yard.

Connie and Rocky hiking on North Table Mtn. on a nice sunny day not long after our big March blizzard. 

Black-crowned night heron at Lake Arbor this morning in the blowing snow first week of May.

Black-crowned night heron in the snow at Lake Arbor first week of May 2016.  He was agitated by a car blowing it's horn.

A pair of blue-winged teal stopped by the pond at the end our our street the other day.  They have since moved on.

Our camp at Lathrop State Park with the beautiful Spanish Peaks in the distance.

Memphis, Mississippi and Miscellaneous

Been kind of  a hard fall and winter.  My mom died in Oct. and I went back to Memphis in November for her memorial service.  No sooner trying to get over that and I get news that my sister's husband Jimmy is found dead in his house, so it was back to Memphis again.  Both hard trips.  Stayed with my sister's daughter, Emily, and her family down in Hernando, Miss.  Nice little town.  Flying in for my mom's service it was clear and bright and we flew right over the pyramid and downtown.  The second time in Jan., I was hoping for a clear shot of the Mississippi in flood stage at Memphis, but it was overcast and only got a little glimpse of the river as we broke thru a low ceiling while landing.  Very clear that the river was flooding, however.  And driving around Memphis you could see backwater in the Nonconnaha and Wolf River lowlands - those gray brown soaked woods of the mid-South

Landing in Memphis in early Jan. on a murky wet day as the Mississippi River is at a most unusual winter flood stage.  

Old home along the old Illinois Central right of way in Senatobia, Miss.

Iowa Pacific passenger cars stored in Batesville, Miss. in a pouring rain.

Old county courthouse in Senatobia, Miss.

.  One day Brad, Emily's husband and I, went on a little sight seeing tour.  We drove down to Batesville to look for the Iowa Pacific passenger train that had been running excursions on the latest acquisition of Iowa Pacific.  We found it parked in an industrial park just east of town in a Mississippi downpour.  Nice looking train.  We followed the old Illinois Central passenger mainline back up to Hernando.  Couple of interesting old towns along the route including Coldwater and Senatobia.

This winter has seen an extended period of cold and snow cover for the Front Range.  Had a good foot or more just after Christmas that has stuck around till just recently.  Actually a glacier in a shaded area of our street has stubbornly persisted.  Was just about gone when last week we got a good 14-16 inches.  It was right back.  But, the sun is a bit higher in the sky now and the days a bit longer so it's just about melted again.  But, it's been an extended period of winter.  Finally two weeks ago we got a January thaw.  Rocky and I packed up and headed to Pueblo for two days.  It was cloudless, wall to wall sun, crystal blue skies and temps in the 50's and 60's.  Just got back again from two more nights.  Even warmer with one afternoon getting up into the mid 70's.  Just gorgeous.  I love going to Lake Pueblo State Park in the winter.  Usually a bit warmer down there.  And such an expansive view.  you can see the Spanish Peaks down by Walsenburg, a good 40 miles to the south.  I love the wide open vistas of the west.

Ringed-bill gulls making a living on french fries at the Good Times in Arvada, CO. 

Rocky enjoying an ice crunch - his fav winter treat - with Connie at a frozen Lake Arbor in Arvada, CO. 

Neighborhood hawk taking to the air down by Lake Arbor in Arvada. 

Same hawk before it took flight. 

Hooded merganser and mallard drake enjoying the sun at Prospect Lake in Wheat Ridge, CO. 

Male hooded merganser enjoying a crawdad at Lake Arbor in Arvada, CO. in Jan. 2016.

Mr. and Mrs. hooded merganser at Prospect Lake in Wheat Ridge, CO. in Jan of 2016.

Rocky and our camp at Lake Pueblo State Park in mid Feb of 2016.  Temps in the mid 70s and wall to wall sun.  

Red head duck on Platte River in Denver in Jan. 2016.

Mountain bluebird at Lake Pueblo State Park in Feb. of 2016.

Distant Spanish Peaks from our campsite at Lake Pueblo State Park.  Peaks are 40 miles to the south.

White crowned or is it a white throated
sparrow at Lake Pueblo State Park in Feb. 2016.

Catching Up

Been a long while since I last posted anything to my blog, but here I am catching up.  Have quite a potpourri from a number of excursions here in Colorado and one shot of a red-headed woodpecker from a recent trip back to Memphis and Hernando.  I accompanied my niece's husband for a Sat. morning trip to the farmer's market in the little town square for milk and then a stop by the Ladybug Bakery for some yummy pastries.  Across the street far up in, I think, a sweet gum tree was a red-headed woodpecker.  It's a distant shot at maximum zoom so not really sharp, but my first picture of that bird.

red-headed woodpecker

barn swallow

violet green swallow

juvy swallow?

western grebe

muskrat hauling strawberry

kestrel

red-tailed hawk?

broad-tailed hummingbird

canyon towhee

lark sparrow

prairie falcon

red-napped sapsucker

rock squirrel

hairy bee?

mountain bluebird

From my daily walk down to Lake Arbor with our dog, Rocky, a number of shots from last summer and this fall.  In the winter we always get lots of western grebes.  Easy to recognize with their long white necks and black caps.  The swallows, especially the barn swallows were successful in raising broods this summer.  They often nest in the eves of the gazebo next to the lake and come in with feathers to refresh the older nests.  The violet green, rough-winged, bank, and tree swallows also nest around the lake and there's a couple of shots of those included.  There are a number of muskrats that call the lake and feeder creek home.  Earlier last summer there was one swimming along next to the shore carrying a strawberry in it's mouth, apparently cast off from a near-by picnic.  The field above the lake is a favorite hunting ground for kestrels and red-tailed hawks.  There's a shot of each of those.

I go camping to Lake Pueblo quite often, especially in the fall, winter, and spring.  Too crowded and hot in the summer.  Last spring I got this nice shot of a lark sparrow hoping around on the ground near my camp.  In the spring and fall I often set out my humming bird feeder on the camper.  I rigged a hanger so it's right next to my window.  I can hear them buzzing around it once they've discovered the feeder.  Got a couple of shots of them working the feeder.  One of the year round residents at Lake Pueblo is the canyon towhee.  They are very curious birds and often go looking for goodies in the camper and up underneath the truck.  Here's one sitting on the tire keeping an eye on Rocky.  There used to be tons of prairie dogs in the park, but they have removed most of them.  They have also encouraged raptors by putting up some poles for them to hunt from.  Couple trips back there was a prairie falcon making use of one of the poles.  Never saw him make a score, though.  Another of the regular residents in the park are rock squirrels.  They are rather large, gray squirrels with white freckles.  Handsome critters.  They live in burrows in the ground, but you often see them sitting up in the cedar trees using them for lookout posts.  Flocks of mountain bluebirds winter in the park.  You can almost always be sure to spot some.  Here's one sitting in the dead top of a cedar.  The bluebirds are one of the reasons I like to go to Pueblo in winter.  Their bright blue color and cheerful chirps raise my spirits.

From a trip to Hot Sulphur Springs along the Colorado River last summer, here's a red-napped sapsucker you often see working a route among the willows along the river.

And one last shot that I forget the location of - an unusual kind of bee.  Not sure what these are, but I have seen them a number of times.  A large, hairy, yellowish bee.  Thought it might be a tachnid fly, but now I'm no so sure.

It's Thanksgiving and looks like some serious winter is setting in.  Might not get for awhile.  I like going to Pueblo in the winter, but my minimum high temp for a visit is 55, so it could be awhile.  Plus, dark comes mighty earlier in the short days of winter.