Flowers once more

On February 18, 2021February 18, 2021 By Mike and Christy4 Comments

Blooms long gone.

Yet born once more.

In a winter way.

Mountain Man

On February 17, 2021February 17, 2021 By Mike and Christy3 Comments

Or mountain Women.

Make no bones about it, Mountain Chickadees are tough little birds. Surviving the northern winters while many other songbirds have migrated to warmer climates in the south.

Hypnotized

On February 16, 2021February 15, 2021 By Mike and Christy5 Comments

Instead of the usual scolding I almost got hypnotized by this Red Squirrel.

Look into my eyes he said, from now on you will feed the squirrels and not the birds.

It was so close all I could think about was putting a bog of peanuts on the grocery list but he couldn’t help himself and started with his squawking.

Minus Minus

On February 15, 2021February 15, 2021 By Mike and Christy1 Comment

Up until about a week or so ago our winter had been mild and somewhat dry. Well, all that changed in the drop of a hat as last week was a minus minus week. Minus at night and minus during the day as well. And while it was frigid the good thing about cold compared t heat is that you can bundle up and get out and enjoy the snow and silence that accompanies a frosty day.

While morning temperature were hovering near -20^o F, afternoons seemed downright balmy at -8⁰F, and, hey, the sun was peeking through at times. We ventured up a local trail enjoying a gentle uphill which actually had us unzipping our jackets. It was just warm enough to pull out the phone and snap a few pictures and soak in the quiet of a cold cold day.

A distant view as the clouds make way for sunshine that while bright and crisp did not warm our face.

A familiar friend lies across the creek accumulating snow. All in all a wonderful week and this week is forecast to be a minus plus…with snow to boot.

Flow in the snow

On February 14, 2021January 31, 2021 By Mike and Christy3 Comments

Hot water flowing through the snow on a frosty morning in Yellowstone NP a few years back.

Redhead

On February 13, 2021January 31, 2021 By Mike and Christy3 Comments

Redhead

A male Redheaded Duck enjoying the late afternoon sun on a chilly winter afternoon.

Lost and found

On February 12, 2021February 8, 2021 By Mike and Christy3 Comments

Finding our way along the trail to lost lake and beyond on a winter day with the sun shining strong.

Light filers through the forest and although winter is passing the shadows are still long.

Bison forage and animals silently roam.

Hope you have some time to enjoy outdoors this weekend.

American Dipper

On February 11, 2021February 8, 2021 By Mike and Christy4 Comments

An American Dipper getting the big view before taking the plunge into the icy winter water below. American Dippers forage along the rocky river bottoms of rapidly moving streams of western North America. Diving in and out and running along the bottoms of the river at times to feed on a variety of aquatic invertebrates. In addition to their fascinating foraging behavior American Dippers have quite a song and really can belt out a wonderful tune making a hike along a rushing stream a full on audio-visual delight.

Reference:

Kingery, H. E. and M. F. Willson (2020). American Dipper (Cinclus mexicanus), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (P. G. Rodewald, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.amedip.01

Distant

On February 10, 2021February 10, 2021 By Mike and Christy2 Comments

Something close yet far away.

Time long gone or yet to come.

Primal beauty, evolved beauty.

It never ceases

On February 9, 2021February 8, 2021 By Mike and Christy3 Comments

To amaze me just how beautiful a Northern Flicker is.

So much to look at, think about and just marvel over. Well, we better get back to look as we have more than the usual number of these amazing birds visiting our little patch this year.

Hope your week is going well.