And a few trees and shrubs from our camping trip a couple weeks ago..
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Before we went to Malheur NWR, the girls and I spent a week in the California desert, next to the mighty Sierra Mountains, at the foot of Mount Whitney. The weather was often unsettled, presenting beautiful clouds and distant rain.
We all got away to the Washington coast last week to dig razor clams and walk on the beach and generally relax. It was lovely. The weather was pretty good too. Not very rainy or windy, for a change. There was a Bald Eagle nest across the river from where we stayed. I saw the birds near it but they weren’t using it, yet. I saw one shorebird – a Greater Yellowlegs, I think. Sunsets were lovely. There’s not many things better than a beach sunset. Both dogs found a tennis ball. And we ate fried razor clams and fresh ceviche too. We got our limits on three of four days. Here I am with a limit of fifteen clams.
It seems like just days ago, our hillside was still covered with rotten snow and now it’s covered with tiny growing plants, some already in bloom. The tiny flowers are fleeting so I’m outside searching for them everyday while the Western Meadowlarks and Say’s Phoebes sing from every perch. Northern Flickers call raucously and sometimes I hear the soft call or see the vibrant glimpse of blue from Western Bluebirds who are checking out all our nest boxes. The honeybees are finding pollen to take back to the hives. Spring is wonderful.
We went on an outing to see if we could find some wintering birds the other day. They are few and far between here at home except at the feeders. Imagine our surprise when we found four bighorn sheep right alongside the road. There was a ram, two ewes and a youngster. At first we thought they had pawed into the snow to find food but as we watched, we realized that they were licking dirt. I wonder if it’s a natural salt lick or if it has some other sort of mineral they need? Regardless, they were intent on what they were doing and did not leave as we watched and photographed. At one point, the big ram moved away from his dirt hole and the youngster started in on it. Shortly, the male came along and butted the little one on the butt, telling them to get out of his hole.
My Everyday Photos 