A Brief Break in the Clouds

As often noted, it’s been unusually stormy here in the Pacific Northwest. So when the sun broke out at ten this morning I went online and read that the sunshine should be around until early afternoon. With little hesitation, I grabbed my camera and headed out to Nisqually to try to get some pictures.

As it turned out, the sunshine lasted about as long as it took me to get out of the driveway, and not a moment longer. It’s hard to get great pictures when it’s gray everywhere you look, but at least it didn’t rain on us and I managed to get a few interesting shots.

I somehow imagined that these cormorants, sitting in the middle of the flooded Nisqually river, were talking about how big the salmon that got away was:

The muted grays were pretty typical of the day. What wasn’t gray was mainly muted brown, but when you’ve been trapped inside for weeks even browns take on their own beauty:

I’m sure a male American Widgeon would find this young lady every bit as beautiful as I did.

A Special Day

I spent my birthday today at Northwest Trek with my son, daughter and their families. The snow made the day seem even more special than usual, particularly for the young folks who couldn’t resist a romp in the snow.

We also saw more animals than usual, perhaps because the keepers spread food closer to the road during the winter so the animals were much easier to see than the previous times I’ve been there.

I still haven’t had time to go through all the pictures, but at first glance this shot of a young Bighorn Ram is my favorite.

I was also pleasantly surprised to return home and find the book Holy Tango of Literature awaiting me, a gift from Robyn, an occasional visitor to my site.

Back to Nisqually

Despite our improved weather, I haven’t been out birding for nearly a month because I’m beginning to worry that I can’t get everything done around the house that I want to get done before Christmas.

After shooting this Sharp Shinned Hawk in our backyard through the sliding glass door,

I decided it was time to get outside and take some pictures, damn the consequences.

The sun was intermittent at best today, and there weren’t nearly as many birds as I’d expected, and most I saw were wearing drab, brown winter coats, which was probably a good thing since there weren’t any leaves to hide behind.

Even the elegant Pintails seemed rather subdued.

Surprisingly, despite some sore muscles, the long walk seemed to invigorate me, so hopefully I can get more done in the next few days than I have recently.

A Day of Sunshine

After several days of rain, it’s been absolutely beautiful here, so I joined a couple of friends

and headed outdoors hoping to discover if the ducks have finally gotten here from up north.

They still don’t seem to be here in huge numbers, but I was able to find several Widgeons

and a few Hooded Merganser out enjoying the bright sunshine

I think they’ll be lots of rain in the next few days so I can finish Carter’s book and move on to a few more books that focus on a sense of place.