As I sit at my desk writing this, it’s early December and the weather outside is grey, windy, and very wet. And while there’s a part of me that absolutely loves rainy winter days, I also look back with longing on the warm spring mornings like the one in late May when I took a stroll around the Turtle Pond […]
I had a feeling it was going to be a good day for spotting birds as I headed over to the Turtle Pond at Sailor Bar along the American River. That was because before I even reached the pond I encountered not only a Great Blue heron looking down at me from the trees but also a Green heron. And […]
I was exploring at Sailor Bar one morning last May, following a trail around to the more overgrown portion of the Turtle Pond, when I heard loud splashing sounds from up ahead. Creeping forward, I managed to catch this California Towhee in the middle of a bath. These little brown birds may be terrifically plain in color, but they are […]
Late May blooming wildflowers seen at Phoenix Park and Sailor Bar County Park in Fair Oaks.
This morning I was lucky enough to see the arrival of a Great Blue heron at the Turtle Pond on Sailor Bar. Although I enjoyed his graceful entrance, it seemed to cause some irritation to one of the local Red-winged blackbirds — who fussed for a moment, just to make a point, before sulkily departing.
When I was pretty young, I had two gray plastic animal figures that my sister and I called “Beat-up Eye” and “Beat-up Nose” because those parts had clearly been chewed on by, ahem, someone in the past. I never did figure out what type of animal they were supposed to be; and I can only guess what type of experience […]
I did see a couple of turtles, but the stars of the show on this morning were the many species of birds — especially the Red-winged blackbirds. They were continually swooping and perching, calling and battling in mid air while a few brownish females watched from the sidelines. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I decided to explore this […]
Whenever I head over to Phoenix Park in Fair Oaks, I usually try to find time to walk a little farther, through the neighborhood behind the park and over to the bluffs. There I can always find a slightly different view of Lake Natoma than the one I normally see, with a wide vista of Mississippi Bar below me. On […]
The arrival of spring is a slow process with a number of stages along the way — especially in a place like the Phoenix Park vernal pools. I wanted to have a look around after the rain cleared just to check in for the first time this year. It will be awhile before the flowers start popping up, but it’s […]