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I also posted this on my other blog, Baby Aspirin Years. I felt that it should live on both blogs. (Apologies if you subscribe to both.)
It’s the last day of 2012. There have been a lot of wrap up posts floating around and I kept thinking how I would wrap up this year. A year of pictures, showing one per month? A list of things I learned? A list of all the fantastic things I did? Others have written eloquent posts going down memory lane. Me? I kept drafting one and then I felt like I was creating something akin to the ol’ Christmas Letter.
Today Steve and I visited Antelope Island. It’s the last day of the year and the last full day we have together before he heads back to Calgary tomorrow. For me, it’s the perfect wrap up of my year.
- Antelope Island in Winter
It was perfectly white. Perfectly peaceful and perfectly sums up how I feel about this year: A balance of harshness and beauty. Challenges and triumphs. But mostly, it’s where Steve and I go to escape the world and spend quality time together.
View the gallery by clicking on any one of the photos below. They look yummier that way.
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- Surprised this American Kestrel we saw on the causeway allowed us to get this close.
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- One of the many buffalo lays atop a blanket of snow.
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- View of Promontory Point in the distance
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- Mixed flock of Red-winged black birds, Yellow-headed blackbirds, Brewer’s Blackbirds and Brown-headed Cowbirds.
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- A covey of Chuckars (there were about 12 in the group)
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- There’s something sweet about this photo.
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- Antelope on Antelope Island
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- We spot a coyote in the distance. He spots us too.
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- At Garr Ranch on the island, Steve spots this sub species of the Red-tailed Hawk. It’s either Harlan’s Hawk or a Krider’s Hawk, we think. Uncommon for this area.
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- Also found at Garr Ranch is this Virginia Rail, which is quite unusual this time of year. Garr Ranch has warm springs that don’t freeze over, which is probably part of the attraction.
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- A covey of California Quail at Garr Ranch on Antelope Island.
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- We spot two porcupines in a tree on our way back to the causeway. Neither seem bothered by the fact that Steve is practically in their faces taking their photos.
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- Yes, the porcupine looks cuddly, but don’t kid yourself.
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- After a morning of snowfall the sun makes an appearance.
It’s been a slow couple of weeks. My husband has been out of the country on business and I’ve been home nursing a cold, so there’s not been much birding for us.
Did you all remember a couple of weeks ago that there was the Snow Goose Festival in Delta, Utah? My husband and I went there a couple of years ago. Sadly, the snow geese just weren’t around. They were there but they were keeping their distance. I’m not sure exactly who the festival is for–us birders or hunters who begin their hunt shortly after the festival. Here’s a couple of the shots I got back then:
Snow Geese
Horned Lark
Okay, enough of Memory Lane. I will say that I’m rather proud of myself that last weekend as I was standing on my front porch I noticed a new guy on a tree branch. I grabbed the camera and even though I had the 300 mm lens, this was the best shot I could get:
American Kestrel
The proud moment was that I thought to myself, “I think this is an American Kestrel.” I then found our field guide and voila! I was right! I quickly emailed the photo to my husband who confirmed it for me. I did it! I identified a bird on my own! You see, that’s a big deal to me. I think I’m getting better at this.
