House Finch

Memories of Balboa Park
Memories of Balboa Park

There are many reasons to love Balboa Park. Anyone unfamiliar with the attractions there is truly missing out. The museums alone are worth visiting. There are 18 of them to…

Memories of Pinyon Wells – Joshua Tree NP
Memories of Pinyon Wells – Joshua Tree NP

2016 – Early October Camping I spent the second week of October with the bird and mammal department of the San Diego Natural History Museum in Joshua Tree National Park.…

Memories of Cottonwood Spring – Joshua Tree NP
Memories of Cottonwood Spring – Joshua Tree NP

Cottonwood Spring is located inside Joshua Tree National Park. Twice, in 2016, I visited there, with the science team from the San Diego Natural History Museum; once at the end…

Memories of Graham County, AZ
Memories of Graham County, AZ

I visit Graham County as often as I can to visit long-time friends there. Below are notes from two such visits. 2020-05-22 Ascent To Mount Graham Mount Graham, called Dził…

Memories of Apache Creek, NM
Memories of Apache Creek, NM

I’ve been to the Apache Creek region in New Mexico two times. The following notes are from those occasions. My first visit to Apache Creek was in late May-2020, while…

2024-05-07 Davis Mountains
2024-05-07 Davis Mountains

Following the past few enjoyable days at Kickapoo Caverns, I continued moving west toward my San Diego home. However, I had not quite finished with Texas, and Texas had not…

Memories of Marathon Texas
Memories of Marathon Texas

My first Texas Birding expedition began in 2020, with an ill-planned visit to Big Bend. I learned that because of Spring Break, all camping spaces in the park were occupied,…

2023-07-13 Paton’s In Patagonia
2023-07-13 Paton’s In Patagonia

My day at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds Thursday was lovely. I came early and stayed late. I spent some quality time with the site manager. He provided me with…

2023-07-04~08 In The Davis Mountains
2023-07-04~08 In The Davis Mountains

I stayed four nights at Davis Mountains State Park. For $20 a night with electricity, it was a bargain. I hoped it would give me a chance to make progress…

2023-07-04 Gage Gardens, Marathon TX
2023-07-04 Gage Gardens, Marathon TX

Tuesday morning I broke camp early at the rest area 20 miles east of Marathon Texas. I drove to town and had breakfast at the Oasis Cafe. Marathon has a…

2023-05-05 Dayton Ohio
2023-05-05 Dayton Ohio

While visiting with my friends in South Dayton, I found time to meet some of the local birds. Bruce and Loretta provide an array of bird feeders, so I sampled…

2023-04-13 Apache Creek NM
2023-04-13 Apache Creek NM

Last Tuesday (April-11) I left my friends in Thatcher, looking forward to spending some time with friends Debbie Merrill and her husband James. I met Debbie when I was working…

2023-04-09 Early April On Cottonwood Wash
2023-04-09 Early April On Cottonwood Wash

Saturday, my friend Linda and I drove to visit her good friend Kai, who lives on the Cottonwood Wash south of Pima. I had the pleasure of spending time with…

2023 Continental Expedition Begins
2023 Continental Expedition Begins

Finally, I’m on the road. I launched at about 3pm last Monday, driving through Ramona and Santa Ysabel, then dropping into the Borrego Valley down Montezuma Pass. It is one…

2022-10-04 Davis Mountains
2022-10-04 Davis Mountains

Davis Mountains State Park has its origins in the 1930s as a Civilian Conservation Corps project to help lift the broken economy out of the depression. The Civilian Conservation Corps…

2022-05-21 Saturday in Lewistown Montana
2022-05-21 Saturday in Lewistown Montana

Friday’s foul weather convinced me to find somewhere in Lewistown to settle in for the day. I found a large, unused parking area north of town, between the fairgrounds and…

2020-12-27 Sunday Camping in Guadalupe National Park
2020-12-27 Sunday Camping in Guadalupe National Park

After spending most of December in New Mexico, I left The Land of Enchantment after a productive Christmas photo session with Scaled Quail at Bitter Lake NWR outside of Roswell.…

2020-12-25 Christmas at Bitter Lake Near Roswell
2020-12-25 Christmas at Bitter Lake Near Roswell

In April 2020, as I was ending my first Texas birding adventure, I called my friend Jerry in Albuquerque and told him I was headed his way via Roswell. He…

2020-03-07: Bird Adventures In Big Bend
2020-03-07: Bird Adventures In Big Bend

Prologue The Texas adventure I dreamed about for years began in California, but passed through Arizona and New Mexico before reaching the promised land. Preparations for my journey began in…

2020-03-04 Wednesday At Dripping Springs
2020-03-04 Wednesday At Dripping Springs

My stay in Las Cruces was extended several days because of issues I had to sort out with my RV generator. All is well now as I send this post…

2019-10-23 At The Boyce Thompson Arboretum
2019-10-23 At The Boyce Thompson Arboretum

I let myself get behind in my posting. Since leaving the “BTA” I’ve completed two more photo safaris, but it took me longer than expected to organize the photos and…

Catching Up With Old Friends
Catching Up With Old Friends

I met my friend Linda in 1978 while I was living in Missoula Montana. Without going into too many details, it was one of the most interesting periods in my…

2017-10-27 a Week at Clover Flat
2017-10-27 a Week at Clover Flat

As a part of project to study the inland wetlands of San Diego County, the San Diego Natural History Museum’s science team spent the week at a property in the…

2017-06-17~20 Cottonwood Springs (Part 2)
2017-06-17~20 Cottonwood Springs (Part 2)

On my previous post I shared images of the players in the Rat Theater, but I also had some nice avian encounters during this expedition. Mockingbirds, Mourning Doves and House…

2016-10-13 Pinyon Wells Critters
2016-10-13 Pinyon Wells Critters

I recently posted about the trip I took last week to Pinyon Wells in Joshua Tree National Park with the Bird and Mammal Department of the San Diego Natural History…

2016-10-07 Joshua Tree Park: Birds Too!
2016-10-07 Joshua Tree Park: Birds Too!

Though the main course on the menu for my outing to Joshua Tree National Park wore fur, when feathers showed up I had to take a bite or two. I…