Hall Creek Morning

A busy weekend was capped by a quick one-night camping trip to the Hall Valley, this is a nice spot and one I enjoy visiting. As we arrived after a fun day at the Rocky Mountain Showdown college football game the sky looked a bit ominous in the valley as we climbed. Sure enough, as soon as we met with the rest of the group at the site the drizzle turned to snow! Winter camping 2011, check! Actually the weather cleared after an hour or so and the evening was very nice for the late season.

Yesterday morning I woke early and headed off for a walk. Unfortunately the location of this valley has never been good for early morning photography, but it is a nice area for a walk regardless. I failed to relocate the Moose a couple of others had seen the previous evening, but did see Juncos, Mountain Chickadees, and Colorado Chipmunks.

When the sun finally did peak over the ridge the Chipmunks all came out to socialize and bask.

Posing on the edge of a creekside meadow this Chipmunk shows that the colors are beginning to change, and soon will be in full fall mode.

Even so, some remnants of summer are hanging on, like this Pleated Gentian(?). There is still a new species I have to update from last week, and perhaps a few more Wilson's Phalarope pictures from Friday, which I haven't had a chance to look through closely yet.

Fast, Fun Getaway

I enjoyed another fun and relaxing weekend camping in the Pike National forest Friday and Saturday nights. Warm enough to enjoy the days, but getting cooler at night - ensuring deep sleep and crisp frosty mornings. The birding was better than I have had on recent camping trips. I didn't add any life birds, but did add one to my Colorado list, and saw a bunch of new species for that area. Vesper Sparrows, like the one above are common around my home, but this one seen just after sunrise really showed off the rufous shoulder patches.

At one point, after a bit of four wheeling, I had my friends drop me off a few miles from camp. That let me cross a boggy creek and cross a ridge on my way back, getting some diverse habitat types into my trip. The willows along the creek, which produced a Moose for fellow campers on a trip in June, were productive for me as well. The Ruby-crowned Kinglet, above, was the first I had seen in Colorado, and the first that I had seen while "out birding" rather than looking through my sister's back window.

Shortly after seeing the Kinglet I was treated to a fairly close Wilson's Warbler. Of course the ten or so shots I had of it perched left its eye squarely behind the branch - oh well. Their color is such fun to see along a willow choked mountain stream.

The Western Wood Pewees were ever vigilant just beyond "our" campsite nestled in an aspen grove.

One of the secret advantages of birding is the motivation it gives for getting up early when camping. For most of my adult life camping has included campfires that are kept burning until deep into the morning, and far more s'mores and belly warming beverages than were absolutely necessary. I'm not against those activities for any reason, and sometimes sitting on a stump staring at the dying embers of a good fire can be just as vital as any daylight exploration. That being said, it is good to have a reason to turn in when the first yawns hit, and even better to have a reason - and plan - for abandoning that warm sleeping bag to brave the frost as the predawn glow begins. The Downy Woodpecker above was a reward for getting up early on Sunday. I watched and enjoyed as he woke and performed his morning preen, getting ready for the busy day ahead.

The early day light and shadow even gave this Chipping Sparrow a distinctive look. I was glad to have the trip, the calendar is getting full for fall, and the next trip may feature heavy coats and multiple mid-layers.

2009 Count: 175

Lifetime: 183

Camping in Pike National Forest

Summer in Colorado equals camping in the high country. Or at least it should, as often as possible. I was fortunate to get a second trip up this past weekend, and once again had a great time. Unfortunately, the birding wasn't spectacular. The Grey-headed, Dark-eyed Junco posed nicely in the early morning light, but that was the extent of good, photogenic birds.
I think the great sleeping in open air, the lack of alarm clocks or even watches, and the presence of good friends on hikes are all conspiring against me. I know that if at some point I can rise in the very early morning hours that I can get a blind set and see some good sights, but until then I am just going to keep going back for the whole experience and let the birds be what they may.

That was not to say that it was an uneventful campsite. Saturday morning we had a prickly visitor! Not wanting a confrontation between the Porcupine and Charlie (one camping couples' six month old Yellow Lab) we encouraged the spiny fellow along by slowly walking behind it and speaking loudly in the areas where it stopped in the trees.

Unfortunately, a porcupine who is being encouraged to keep moving along only pauses in the thick brush at the base of trees, and doesn't dawdle through the spaces in-between.

The highlight of the trip was a hike to Gibson Lake. It was a 6 mile round trip hike, and a nice one at that. Our campsite was conveniently located in the vicinity of the trailhead, and after breakfast and porcupine watch we were on our way.
I did notice a difference in myself while hiking with my friends up to the lake at just below 12,000 feet. What I found was that my group was still in a mindset of reaching the destination, while over the past year I have changed my focus to the journey and appreciating the transitions between habitats. Reaching the lake was rewarding though, a cool breeze across the tundra, trout jumping, streams and waterfalls emerging from snow fields, and groups of Alpine Forget-me-nots coloring our grassy seats on the lakeshore. Poofy white clouds periodically sprang from the ridgeline, but never developed into dark masses that could spell trouble for anyone caught above treeline.

I saw a few White-crowned Sparrows, and Robins - of course, but no Ptarmigan, Rosy Finches, or other high alpine specialities. I also missed a Marmot that had been around before we arrived and failed to photograph a Pika that had disappeared on a boulder slope before I could get it in frame. Just more reasons to get back up there soon!

Camping near Jefferson Lake Colorado

Sadly, a busy work schedule has kept me from posting since my three day camping trip last weekend. Tragically, a virus ran amok today, causing my computer to be reimaged and my handful of pictures from the trip were lost.
They weren't that great, and I was surprised at just how little avian wildlife I saw. The common sights were plentiful - Mountain Bluebirds, Virginia Warblers, American Robins, and Common Ravens were all around, but beyond that there wasn't a whole lot of diversity.

Granted, I was with a bunch of friends, and never did wake up as early as I had hoped to make myself a blind down by the creekside willows. But I got to do some good hiking, offroading, eating, and relaxing - all with good company. So really, if the birding had to be bad I am glad it was this past weekend.

The best news is that the Front Range forecast seems to be improving. Hopefully I will make up for the recent lack of pictures and posts with some good shots in the next few days.

Headin' on down to South Park

I had the good fortune to have a day off coming on Friday, which set me up for a four day weekend. I started it off in style, with a 2:30 wake-up and drive up over Kenosha Pass and into South Park. I wanted an attempt at my first "Fourteener" of the season, and because the forecast was typically uncertain for Colorado I wanted to be on the trail before daybreak so that if anything nasty rolled in I would be well off before the normal afternoon thunderstorm buildup. BTW, for those who are not familiar, a Fourteener is one of Colorado's mountain peaks that reaches an elevation of over 14,000 feet.
This was the earliest attempt I had made, and true to the worst of the forecast there had already been close to an inch of wet snow when I parked at 11,000 feet. This is an activity that requires forethought and preparation at the best of times, and going solo with snowpack created a need for more gear than I have used in the past. In addition to layers of cold weather clothing I also needed to carry snowshoes, poles, a snow axe, a helmet, a headlamp, and of course water to keep from dehydrating along the way. With all that gear an SLR camera and extended lens was the first thing to go. Much to my chagrin my old reliable Sony P&S seems to have reached its end, so before the trip I picked up a Nikon Coolpix as my new pocket camera.
I have really grown accustom to manually focusing on birds when shooting, and the lack of manual focus really caught me off guard, also the general lack of familiarity with the camera kept this from being a photographic masterpiece.

Unfortunately the weather closed in on me at around 12,300 ft, so I made the decision to head back down. It was a good first start of the season and I did not want to be a story on the news.

I did, however, get three new species on the day. I saw a single White-Tailed Ptarmigan near the top of my climb. I completely missed it when trying to get a photograph. I would have kept at it, but it popped over a ridge just as the weather was closing in on me.

I also saw the Hermit Thrush immediately above, and a cool looking Wilson's Warbler from a greater distance, top.

I even managed to get this Mountain Bluebird decently captured in wing beat. After a great morning playing in the snow I drove back down home and settled in for a wet and dreary holiday weekend. I got to enjoy time with friends, good food, and some up and down Nuggets Basketball games - so even if the birding fizzled I still had a good time.

2009 Count: 146

Lifetime: 159