Hornsby Bend

My first full day there, Bev (@BirdingBev) and I decided to taxi our way 10 miles out of town to a local wastewater treatment plant known for a good congregation of birds around this time of year.  Entering into the facility, a bunch of Boat-tailed Grackles were manning the fields, with a few Eastern Meadowlarks mixed in. A lone Crested Caracara flew overhead as we were walking toward the ponds.

The ponds were actually quite full of waterfowl, particularly Northern Shovelers which were everywhere (probably 2,000 or so).  There were also a bevy other other ducks – Redheads, Lesser Scaup, Mallards, Ruddy Ducks, American Coots, Eared Grebes, Green-winged and Cinnamon Teal.  Along the edges of the ponds were a number shorebirds: mostly Lesser and Western Sandpipers, but with an occasional surprise: a single Dunlin, a Pectoral Sandpiper and a  bevy of Killdeer – probably close to 2 dozen flying around.  

But the most maddening shorebirds were the number of Wilson’s Snipe which were nearly impossible to see … until they flew up in front of me.  I knew where they were and I’d be staring right at them, only to have them flush when I took one step too many.

Mixed in with the shorebirds were some sparrows – Song and Savannah mostly, including a leucistic specimen that had Bev and I struggling to identify.  I later found that one of the sparrows was actually a Vesper sparrow*, a new species for me.  And running along the muck was a small thrush-like bird with a bobbing tail – an American Pipit*, another lifebird!

We found a few songbirds and other species flittering around, including a hunting Merlin, a pair of Great Blue Herons, some cardinals, chickadees and “butterbutts”. Not a lot of great photographic opportunities but a good day in any case.

Emma Long Metro State Park

The next day, Bev and I joined up with another birder visiting Austin to go looking for the Golden-cheeked Warbler*. An endangered species that breeds only in the US only in Texas, they had been seen at Emma Long Metro State Park so we tried there to see if we would be lucky enough to see one. It turns out that we saw several, although they were a real pain to locate even when they were singing clearly and often. I would say that we heard or saw nearly a dozen of the little colorful birds, their distinctive calls buzzing from high in the trees. I managed a few shots but it was tough to get a good one – still, these beautiful birds were simply worth seeing at all. The park was populated by a number of other cool Texas birds, including the gregarious Black-tufted Titmice, White-winged Doves and a Spotted Towhee but these warblers were by far the highlight of that trip.

Lady Bird Lake / Austin Trail

My last day in Austin, I went out early morning to see what I could find down along the river. The weather wasn’t great – a bit chilly and overcast – but the birds were still fun to see. Several Mute Swans floated down the river, along with several rafts of Lesser Scaup. Another set of waterfowl were along the opposite shore of the river, too far for me to ID immediately but I would later ID them as Greater White-fronted Geese, a fourth new species for me on this trip Turns out they were just domestic geese. Walking along the path, I saw several other species of waterfowl (mallards, Canada Geese, Gadwall, Pied-billed Grebe and a single Eared Grebe), lots of boat-tailed grackles, cardinals and song sparrows and a pair of nest-building Carolina Wrens. Near the end of my hike, I came across two surprises: an Orange-crowned Warblers and a Black Swan, which was beautiful but obviously an escaped bird.

While I saw quite a bit in a small wooded area across from Stanford Stadium, the light was tough. Still, I got to see a Spotted Towhee (first of year), a couple of Western Scrub-Jays, Chestnut-backed chickadees, oak titmouse and even a small flock of bushtits.

Eventually, it was time to move on – and the walk actually provided to be very birdy. Along the walk were more bushtits and titmice, and when I got to the conference I was able to have breakfast with a pair of Oregon Juncos who were jumping around the edge of the patio. While I was admiring them, I heard a unique call in a nearby tree. Of course I had to check it out, where I saw a pair of woodpeckers – a pair of Nuttall’s woodpeckers*, a new lifebird. Unfortunately, I only had my iPhone and couldn’t get a picture of either species.

After the conference, my walk back to the car was also full of birds, including two species of hummingbirds (Anna’s (a new bird) and Black-chinned), more oak titmice, another towhee singing at the top of its lungs and several more scrub-jays, most of them flying around the buildings at Stanford. A trio of ravens (which I guess is a traditional resident here, even though they are uncommon in the area in general) were calling from the top of one of the buildings as a I walked past. I don’t often get to see them and even more rarely get a good luck so that was a nice touch.

So, all too soon it was time to head to the airport. But in addition to a nice conference (which I’ll get around to writing about soon), I had a lot of great birding in a short amount of time. You can see my entire set of pictures on Flickr.

Bird List

The next day, the conference began in earnest, but since I decided to walk from the hotel, I was treated to a short nature hike. In a short span I saw both red-tailed and Cooper’s hawks, acorn woodpeckers^, chestnut-backed chickadees and a small troop of bushtits^. And I heard a bunch of others I couldn’t ID by voice alone.

After the conference, my walk back was even more fruitful, as I saw many more birds, including my lifelist Oak Titmouse*. But I had places to be, as Patty had told me I was likely to see one of my main goal birds – Cinnamon Teal – at Radio Road, and I was quickly losing light between the hour and the encroaching clouds. Finding the place was pretty simple, but my apprehension was growing as I watched the golden afternoon light flitting in and out grim the clouds, finally I arrived and found that karma was giving me some dues.

Right in front of me – and bathed in a wash of golden light peaking through the clouds – was a gorgeous male Cinnamon Teal in breeding colors. He would turn out to be a single specimen, making it even more beautiful to have seen him at that moment. But he wasn’t alone in the grand scheme of birds in this little retention pond area.

Feeding close by were a few Black-necked stilts and American Avocets, far closer even than they were at the Baylands. Further out, numerous waterfowl including Gadwall, Northern Pintail and Northern Shovelers swam about eagerly eating the bounty in the shallow ponds. But a site in a second pond caught my eye, dragging me away from that gorgeous rust-colored duck – a Ruddy Duck, as a matter of fact. A single male with that unique baby blue bill was courting a number of females. Seeing his beautiful colors close up was great, but the real fun was watching the mating display. He would swim up toward one of the females, put his bill against his breast and then begin this stuttering call as his head jerked up like it was on a gear sprocket. He did this repeatedly though the hen acted as though they’d heard it all before.

After a short while, and numerous pictures, I decided to peer around to see if anything else was interesting. While there was nothing close by, there were a few cool birds, namely single canvasback and Lesser Canada Goose specimens. But it was the teal, avocet, stilt and ruddy duck that were the highlights of the visit.

Bird List

Our first stop was “Dennis the Menace” park which was probably the only miss of the day: only mallards, Canada geese and gulls (never got close enough to ID). From there we went to the Monterey marina and the fishery pier there. It was crowded with divers and made me think fondly on my days of diving (it’s been a while). Then as we walked up the pier, Al pointed out my first new bird of the trip – a Pigeon Guillemot*, which was also my first alcid. I followed them around for a while, struggling to get nice shots of the uncooperative birds in tough light. Actually, the light was gorgeous but not when you’re shooting down from a pier. We spent a bit of time there then moved on to see what else was lurking. Turns out that a LOT of sea lions like this area: there were dozens in this little cove alone, along with a smaller number of harbor seals.

I’ve seen both species before but never together and never in quantities like this (Al commented later that he had never seen this many pinnipeds in Monterey before). So I took quite a few shots of these neat animals, who were laying on buoys, rocks and even the occasional boat. A harbor seal came up below me, looking eagerly for a handout, according to Al. After a short time, it seemed to figure out that I was fishless and dove into the cerulean waters.

On our way back to the car, I had a chance to watch a half-dozen more pigeon guillemots in the waters just below the pier, including one who was showing off what I’d guess was mating behavior (noisy little buggers!) and a California Gull* An extra treat was yet to come – in the marina just opposite of the car, a single cormorant swam happily among the boats – a gleaming blue eye stood out from the black feathers: a Brandt’s cormorant*!  Life list entry #3.

Monterey Bay Coast Guard Pier

Our next stop was the Coast Guard pier, a wonderful place to see a number of cool things: hundreds of sea lions everywhere, timid enough for approaching close enough to touch, of all ages – it was a wonder to see and experience. They were of all ages, and the young ones were undeniably cute. Further along we were greeted by a few seals, another few Brandt’s cormorants and a small flotilla of divers all along the jetty (I have to admit, diving among the sea lions/seals would be pretty cool). But the big payoff was at the end of the jetty: dozens of sea lions, including a huge bull and a nesting colony of Brandt’s cormorants. I had the privilege of seeing mated pairs building their nests on the rocks out of colorful seaweed and other debris pulled from the sea. The male would return with the seaweed, do a short presentation dance, bright blue throat patch extended and glowing in the light.  Then he’ d place the materials gingerly at the feet of the female, where they nuzzled and worked together to put it in just the right place. Hard to describe how beautiful it was watching them work to make their nest in what seemed like a tenuous spot on the bare rocks amongst the huge sees lions.

Monterey Bay / Fisherman’s Wharf

Al was determined to help me find the other new cormorant for me, the pelagic cormorant, so after checking in with Patty, we walked along the bay toward Fisherman’s Wharf. Little did we know that this short side trip would actually be more productive than just the pelagic cormorant (which we never saw despite several false positives). Waking past the picnic area, I noticed a number of small birds flying back and forth among some trees and something made me stop. I’m glad I did, as those little birds were my first chestnut-backed chickadee*; a half- dozen of the little auburn-accented songbirds flitted in and out (and just out of sight) amongst the branches. But a few pssts later, I was rewarded by a couple of them coming out into the light on the end of some branches. A second bonus was when a couple of white crowned sparrows joined the fun. I’ve seen these tons of times but rarely in full breeding plumage, and I figured I’d try to get some shots. Turns out that these were a coastal sub species – Nuttall’s white-crowned sparrow*.

After this short sidestep, we continued on along the bay. The place was gorgeous, a meeting of jagged islets and bright blue green water, coupled with a gentle breeze that complemented the near perfect temperatures coming off the bay. We spent some time investigating several cormorants on a small rocky islet in a cove, desperately trying to make one a pelagic cormorant, to no avail. But my eye caught another shallow in the water nearby, which turned out to be a Pacific loon*, another new species (#5 so far, incl. the WCSP sub species).

Monterey Bay Aquarium

At this point, Al is getting a little bent at not having produced a pelagic cormorant for me (which wouldn’t be a lifebird, but would be my first GOOD look). In my mind, I was more than satisfied with what we HAD seen, so anything else would be gravy but he was determined, so we tried one last ‘can’t fail’ spot – the platform at the entrance of the famed Monterey Bay Aquarium. Along the way, I got to see Steinbeck’s famous “Cannery Row” and the rest of the nice town of Monterey. A first stop just short of the aquarium produced only Brandt’s cormorants and more pigeon guillemots, and we hurried to the aquarium. Sadly there wasn’t time to go into this landmark, but I was having a good enough time regardless.

We walked to the end of the canterlevered platform and quickly spied more Brandt’s cormorants and pigeon guillemots, but none of or target bird. Suddenly Al yelled,” There! With the green back!” I got a brief glimpse of an ebony bird with green accents, too fast to be sure as it sailed under the platform beneath us, but definitely leading. Sure enough, it or another bird came sailing out and this time I definitively saw the green tint and white patches on the wings that were defining field marks for a pelagic cormorant*. Now to get a picture, which was tougher as these seabirds moved quickly. After several near successes, I decided to see if I could spy one underneath the platform – and was surprised to find a male preening no more than 5′ from me!

It was a beauty in its own way, the green-black plumage iridescent in the sun, giving way to the bright red face of a breeding adult. The KALEIDESCOPE of colors was both beautiful and garish at the same time, brighter and more eye- catching than either the double- created or Brandt’s cormorants. Three only problem was that with my 300mm lens, I was actually too close to fit the whole bird in the frame! So I moved to the another side opposite of where I had been, trading proximity and optional light for a full-body shot.

A bonus moment was our chance to catch the attention of some other aquarium visitors (probably in part due to my hanging precariously over the railing to get the best angle). Al and I were able to interest two couples in the bird, explaining a little about it and maybe planting a little seed of interest in birding.

Pacific Grove

Now that I had my trophy shot of a pelagic cormorant, Al and Patty prompted me for anything else I might want to see. It took only a short moment for me to rattle off a short list: Heerman’s gull, black oystercatcher, black turnstone. It took them only a few seconds more to come up with just the place and off we went up the road to Pacific Grove. The drive alone would have been worth it for the breath taking views of the Pacific ocean, deep blue ocean crashing in frothy chaos against the rocks of the shoreline. I was captivated by the scenery, trying to capture it on my phone’s camera since my Nikon lens could never capture the breath of what I was seeing through the narrow aperture.

We then made our way to a particular pull off and Al and I trekked onto the rocks to search for the trio of birds I had mentioned. Sure enough, a pair of mated black oystercatchers* appeared on the small island just beyond the spit of land we were on, the black feathers seeming to absorb as much light as their bright orange bills reflected. And nearby wandered not the requested black turnstones but something just as nice: a trio of surfbirds* which had lingered past their normal migration date. Other birds we encountered included numerous western gulls of all ages, a single 3rd-year California gull, a whimbrel and a Caspian tern. No Hearmann’s gull but a responding success nonetheless.

Monterey Bay preserve

Our last stop before lunch was part of the Monterey Bay preserve near Moss’s Landing. Housing a marina and access to the ocean, it also turned out to be one of the best spots to see the nearly famous California sea otters – nearly 30 strong, these large (~3 – 4′ long) mammals were a sight to see laying out and playing in the bay near the sea lions and seals nearby. Lucky for us, there was even one otter on the beach sunning himself (I’m going to pretend that’s all he was doing and he wasn’t sick).

Seeing the otters was an unexpected pleasure, but hardly the only one as a Clark’s Grebe* popped up amidst the otters and gave me a good show as well. Then, after several minutes taking pictures of these magnificent and amusing critters, we were off to the locally famous Phil’s Fish Market for lunch, with a quick stop to take a couple pictures of a pair of otters (mother/child) who were lounging in the marina on the way. Sadly, it was then time to head back as I had a workshop that night, and we stopped only for Al to show me a Eurasian Collared Dove that he and Patty told me would be in a particular 50-square-foot parking lot; true to their word, there it was (with a second one) almost as though they had dialed in their order.

Overall, I had a GREAT time in the Monterey area – the combination of awesome weather, great wildlife, good food and good friends (who were GREAT guides) really made the day a pleasant experience throughout.

After getting into town and checking in, I immediately went out to the Palo Alto Baylands up the road to see some of the specialties there. I wasn’t disappointed.  As soon add I got there I saw two of my primary goals: American Avocets and Black-necked stilts, right up against the shoreline, closer than I’ve ever had the chance to be. Creeping up to the protective barrier along the road (I needn’t of bothered), I crept closer to a single stilt and a pair of advocates who were feeding peacefully in the beautiful afternoon light. Dozens more of both species lingered in the background, going on their noisy ways through the thin marsh. I was amazed at how closer they let me get and I snapped away happily. Another photographer caught my attention and motioned me over, then pointed out a nest with a pair of stilt chicks in it. Those fuzzballs were extremely cute, and evidently were ready to investigate their surroundings.

After spending an hour with the nesting birds, I wanted to move on. Crossing the road and heading toward the nature center, I was treated to the sight of an adult stilt leading around three juveniles, puffballs of a slightly larger variety who were seemingly oblivious to my presence. It was a thrill to get to see this species so closely and in such nice light. A nearby ruddy duck wasn’t nearly as congenial, only briefly peeking his head out, never long enough for me to get my first shot of one in breeding plumage.

Other birds were also in the area, but none that I couldn’t see at home so I moved along to the duck pond to see if anything interesting was hanging out. For the most part, the standard duck pond species were there: mallards, domestic ducks and hybrids, a couple of geese and pigeons. But a little bit of wandering revealed some hidden treasures in thus alcove of mundanity.

A pair of California gulls* (1 adult, 1 immature) flew in later, a black phoebe was checking out the mud flats across the parking lot, while several nesting snowy egrets and black-crowned night herons croaked at each other from the branches of a nearby tree. A one- legged ‘grackle’ sat on a part nearby, hopping occasionally in the breeze (it turns out that grackles are rare in this area – it was actually a Brewer’s blackbird). Across the street, I was surprised by a large flock of what I thought were dowitchers, but turned out to be willets and marbled godwits* (my second new species of the day).

All too soon, it was time to get some food – it had been almost twelve hours since I ate, so I decided to hit a California tradition: In N’ Out Burger.  It was good but I don’t know that I’d call it legendary – about the same as a Five Guys burger, I’d say.

Anyway, here are some photo highlights of day 1 of my trip:

Birding List:

• a lack of kitchenware that made it hard to cook meals
• the coffee maker that spit coffe
• the bed that had a Shenandoah-like valley in the middle
• the general uncleanliness of the place
• the hose with no nozzle
• the fenced in yard where the fence was only a foot tall in one place and where the gate fell of in the middle of the night.

But the big problems were to come.

It actually started to be a good day. We got some breakfast and went to the supermarket to buy some supplies and a replacement coffee maker. Then we went to Cape May Migratory Bird Refuge for some birding and a jaunt into town for some lunch and some window shopping on the mall. We took the dogs for a hike on the beach and had a nice dinner.

Then we started to see about finding someplace else to sleep – the hole in the middle of the master bed was so uncomfortable we were willing to try other options. The bunk beds in the second bedroom were out, because the mattresses were placed directly on wooden slats, and we sunk in between them. So we decided to see if the couch was a pullout. It was … but opening it was the WRONG thing to do.

To call it disgusting would be generous. It was obviously used and closed up without cleaning it. And the slipcover the put on the couch was put on upside down to hide all of the unidentifiable stains on it. There was even a big, crushed spider to add some accent. We were so grossed out that we actually pulled the slipcover off, grabbed the sheets and comforter from the main bed and started looking for laundromat. At 10 o’clock. On a Sunday night.

So we spent an hour driving around to local coin-op laundry places trying to find one that was open, without any luck. So we had to go back, skeeved out by what we had found. Needless to say, the cavernous bed was preferable to our alternatives, but we bee-lined our way to the laundromat the next morning.

We can laugh about it now (mostly), but it really dampened our view of the place.

When Friday came, we were nowhere ready to leave, but a forecast of downpours courtesy of Tropical Storm Danny gave us the chance to say we’ll get there when we get there. That, in turn, made the prep much more enjoyable. We left later than we wanted to, but still made record time (1.5 hours Haddonfield to Cape May). It was time for vacation to start.

The house was very small (5 rooms, including two bedrooms), but quaint. However, it did gave a few ‘quirks’: limited dishware, a half-assed cleaning and almost no furniture. A breakfast nook table, a sofa and a small table for the cable router was it. Other than the beds, there was NOTHING in the bedrooms.

Okay, so it was small – we could live with small, especially on the beach. And especially when we got the sunset we were treated to.

So, we started the morning the same way we had started them every morning, with a quick breakfast while watching the multitude of birds coming to the feeder outside our back door: orioles, grosbeaks and hummingbirds at the nectar and jelly feeders, quail, towhees and cardinals at the platform feeders and on the ground, and doves, pigeons and jays calling out in the trees.

We then set out for the trails past the Southwestern Research Station, including the Herb Martyr campground area. The book¹ told us about the views we’d see in addition to the birds, such as Winn Falls. Alas, with the drought, the falls were barely existent but the campground area did provide some excellent habitat and a little bit of real hiking (which we’d done sadly little of this far).

The beginning of the walk led us through some woods where we were quickly met by a group of small songbirds, including several ‘western’ flycatchers, kinglets, a Western Wood-Pewee* and a Cassin’s Vireo*. Then we headed down toward the creek and the dam that the book described. The dam wasn’t particularly impressive, but there was some beautiful terrain behind it. Shari decided to hang out by some pools down from the dam, while I went to explore a little bit past it. The terrain reminded me a lot of the times I spent around the White Clay Creek where I grew up even though the plants were completely different and I had to keep my eyes out for rattlesnakes here. I wandered about a half-mile up the creek, coming upon numerous lizards and a few butterflies that I never got a look at. I did, however, get to see an ‘Arizona’ Juvenal’s Skipper*, although precarious footing made my pictures less than satisfying.

Further up along the running stream (surprising in and of itself) were a small mixed flock of songbirds: Audubon’s warblers, ruby-crowned kinglets, Western Kingbirds and a bunch of other flycatchers. It was so peaceful sitting there in the fork of the stream that it was tough to get up to meet up with Shari. When I did, I was treated to a host of lizards: Gila Spotted Whiptail*, Striped Plateau Lizard* and Yarrow’s Spiny Lizard* all put on good shows for us.

The Windy Mounts

We decided to then head back up the mountain roads to the Rustler and Barfoot parks to see if we could get second looks at some of the species we missed the previous trip. But what we found was mostly WIND. There was a front coming through and that meant huge winds in all the mountain parks. At Rustler, a planned picnic ended up being in the car because there was too much grit in the air. At Barfoot, the trees were moving so much that even if there had been birds, they would have been nearly impossible to ID. The one highlight was when I was walking in a small wooded area and startled a large raptor which flew away with a rabbit sized meal in its claws. Could it have been a Golden Eagle? Maybe, but I only saw a flash of the huge brown bird and the talons holding its lunch.

The Onion Saddle/Pinery Road

From there, we started our trek to the Chiricahua National Monument using the back roads so we could look for some specialties which were known to be there, including the elusive (for me) Zone-tailed Hawk. Shari saw a couple of them, but I was always looking the other way and they would cross the ridges before I could get an ID. Overall, with the wind, the skies and rocks were fairly quiet, but were did have the thrill of seeing a Grey Fox cross the road in front of us.

Eventually, a series of less than stellar roads led us to the National Monument, and it was at the entrance that I FINALLY saw my lifer Zone-tailed Hawk*. So similar to a turkey vulture, once you have seen that trademark tail and how they fly, they aren’t to hard to tell apart. It wasn’t a great look but for 1 minute I just admired it soaring around us.

Chiricahua National Monument

I knew that I wanted to check the Chiricahua National Monument (pronounced “Cheer-ee-cow-hwa”) out early in the trip planning. There were some cool birds to be had there (potentially), but more so I was looking forward to taking some landscape pictures – something that I really don’t get to do here on the east coast. The park is part of the Coronado National Forest, but encapsulates a huge number of rock formations that have been formed by wind and water erosion over the centuries. From the beginning, it reminded me a lot of Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, CO, but at a much larger scale. Where Garden of the Gods was a large group of red rocks with a few formations throughout the park, Chiricahua National Monument was a vast landscape of other-worldly rock formations: pillars, spires, chimneys, balanced rocks and more. The sheer magnitude of the the formations was amazing, and we were only able to do about 1/3 of the park because of the conditions. Located at about 8,000′, the winds were gale-force at times, pushing us around and knocking Shari off of her feet at one point. But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t interesting.

We started up the road toward our first destination of Massai Point, which is at the very end of the long and winding drive. Our first stop along the road was to see the Organ Pipe Formation, a large collection of pillars rising up like the namesake. As an introduction to the park, they were a good one. From there we kept driving and stopping as a number of roadside formations caught our attention (Sea Captain, China Boy). Eventually, we made it to the far parking lot, where we hiked the Massai Nature Trail and the Ed Riggs Trail, seeing a cornucopia of examples of how Mother Nature does sand(stone) sculptures. The stone structures both near and far were just incredible. We were walking among stone formations that appeared to have been sculpted by alien hands to serve uses common and uncommon. At one of the main vistas, we were greeted not only by the sun, giant rock monoliths and a spectacular view of hundreds of other stoneworks, but of a pair of zone-tailed hawks, soaring level with our line of site – not a view I expect many people get of these cool raptors.

After hiking around there, we made a stop at Echo Point but the winds were getting even stronger and the blowing sand and dirt was making it less pleasant to be out of the car. We took in a few more vistas and then decided to head back down to ‘home’ for the evening. The monument was somewhat anti-climatic because of conditions, but I’m glad that we went. Some good sites for information on this monument:

• National Park Service – Chiricahua National Monument
• American Southwest.net – Chiricahua National Monument
• WikiTravel – Chiricahua National Monument

Our Last Night at Cave Creek Ranch

After the monument, we went home to unwind and start packing for our move to our next destination. Originally, we wanted to drive down Portal Road to get the sunset in the mountains, but because of the weather the light was pretty flat, so we decided to just go into Portal to have a last dinner instead. As usual, the food was good in the quaint little lodge and we talked about our day and what we could expect for the next leg of the trip. But we had a bonus when we got to talk to the owner of the Portal Lodge, Billy (we never got his last name). We’d seen him walking around the area every time we’d been there, mostly out in his shop in the back. Billy is the town fix-it man (although, arguably, everyone has some skills at repair in a place like this) and his repair shop seems to do everything from cars to power tools to carpentry to general maintenance. Billy himself looked like he was 50′s power car aficionado with an affection for Elvis – the type of guy that when you see him you try to figure out if it’s a facade or a style. I can tell you, it’s a style and the style befits the man – an Arizona homesteader with grit in his teeth and a heart of gold for his neighbors. Johnny Cash could write a song about this guy and make you relate to every word – and it would all be true.

The Lodge was getting close to closing when we met up with him at the counter, and decided to hit him up with some questions we had about the area: how many people lived around here, real estate, cost of drilling wells, etc.² He was happy to answer any and all questions, and that led to an hour-long conversation about a wide expanse of topics from immigration to being on the volunteer fire company that covers 500 square miles of territory – much of it on less-than-developed roads, where your only marker is the guy at the turn with a flashlight waving you in – to street racing down the empty roads to the school districts. He was an incredibly interesting guy, and I think that talking to him was one of the highlights of the first half of our trip. I could easily see sitting down with him on a log and drinking a beer and shooting the shit. Not that everyone we met wasn’t extremely nice, but Billy was an interesting soul, too.

But eventually, they wanted to close up so we packed it in and headed back to the Cave Creek Ranch. After showering, we prepped our stuff so that we could get out of the area quickly and make our way to the Santa Ritas, where we would spend the second half of the trip. We then went to bed to get some much needed sleep. Except that I couldn’t sleep right away – I kept hearing some noise out the window that sounded like a bunch of chewing. I thought it might be the deer, but I couldn’t see well enough through the screen to be sure. Eventually, my curiosity got the better of me, and I grabbed Shari’s video light to go out and find out what all of the racket was about. Coming around the corner, I ended up getting quite a surprise as I found myself in front of a small pack (herd?) of javelina enjoying the leavings of corn and seed on the ground. They looked up at me and kept the young ones in the middle, but I didn’t make any fast moves and they figured I was harmless and went back to eating. Not wanting to disturb them further, I turned around and walked back to bed.

⊃¹ A Birder’s Guide to Southeastern Arizona — Rick Taylor
⊃² To be honest, after spending time at the Cave Creek Ranch, Shari and I half-joked about how it would be very cool to open our own birding lodge in a place like the Portal area. I think it would be AWESOME, although I don’t have any illusions about how tough it must be to maintain a business like that in an area as remote as it is.

Sighting List

Birds

Trip Stats (Species/New): Day: 20 / 2 | Trip: 98 / 55

The Big Thicket

After a nice breakfast of pancakes, we headed out to check out Dave Jasper’s “Big Thicket” outside of Portal. The space is basically a clearing amidst a bunch of brush, lined with different feeders and some local plants, with a few benches and chairs set up for visitors to rest on while looking at the many birds which partake. Our first sightings actually occurred outside of the thicket proper, where I saw my first new butterfly (a marine blue*), and we got to see a rare Gambel’s x Scaled Quail hybrid* hiding in some brush. I heard an odd call that got my attention, but Shari actually found the bird. I got one very obscured photo (see below) but it shows some of the field marks clearly enough for ID.

The thicket itself was full of birds – lots of common ones plus a few new ones. I got undeniable views of Pyrrhuloxia and Black- Throated Sparrows, and saw my first Lazuli Bunting* & Ash-throated Flycatcher*. There was quite an audience but the birds were a good distance away, so it made it hard to really get any pictures, so it soon was time to move on…

South Fork Cave Creek

Our next stop was the famed South Fork of Cave Creek Canyon, best known for its reliable Elegant Trogons. We didn’t get to see those (it was probably a little late for them at that point), but there were a ton of other delights for us. There were a few different species of Empidonax flycatchers, but more exciting (to me) was to see my first black-throated gray warbler* and painted redstart* along the road, where we were surrounded by beautiful red rock cliffs of the canyon, with the deep crevices and caves adding to the mystique of the place.

The best birding occurred right at the bridge about halfway up the road to the trailhead. While we were there, there was an assortment of beautiful birds singing everywhere, filling this little area with birdsong. More Empidonax flycatchers were flying around the creek (one of there few places we would be that had strong running water), along with some hummingbirds, orioles and more than a couple Acorn Woodpeckers. Then came a song that was bigger than anything I’d heard to that point. I was trying to locate it when Shari pointed it out that it was about 10′ closer than I was looking – in fact, about only 6′ away from me: a Canyon Wren* singing his little heart out. That song is definitely one you’ll remember once you’ve heard it.

I also got my first odonata for the trip – a Red Rock Skimmer* which was patrolling the creek bed and sat perched for quite a few pictures.   All in all, we spent at least an hour there trying to absorb all that was going on while sharing sightings, anecdotes and conversation with several other birders who came through. In fact, almost all of the birders we talked to during our trip were extremely friendly and helpful. Great people, those birders.

Southwestern Research Station

After our time here, we went back for lunch then headed back up the Cave Creek road to the Southwestern Research Station, where rarer species are sometimes seen. We were there at about the worst light, and the only birds who were active were a number of different hummingbirds: dozens of black-chinned, broad-tailed and blue-throated hummers whizzing back and forth between a half dozen feeders. There were also a couple of new damselflies sitting by a water outlet near the bench for the hummingbird feeders: Springwater Dancer and Desert Firetail.

But what caught my attention most was a number of small butterflies gathering in a small area of clover near one of the feeders. I couldn’t ID any of them at the time, but it turned out that there were SIX species of small butterflies and skippers in that 10 sq. ft. area: Common Checked Skipper, Myletta Crescent*, Acmon Blue*, Reakirt’s Blue*, Desert Checkered Skipper* and Mormon Metalmark*. Coming back to sit with Shari, I was offered another treat, as a California Sister landed right in front of us – talk about a beautiful butterfly!

Chiricahua Mountains

After a visit to the SWRS, we decided to head up into the high mountains. The drive up to Onion Saddle (which led to our two destinations: Rustler Park and Barfoot Park) was beautiful, if a bit harrowing. A mostly one-lane gravel road full of hairpin turns, it also had amazing views and breath-taking scenes the whole way up. After many twists and turns, we finally reached Rustler Park. The main part of the park was somewhat slow birding-wise, although it was nice to enjoy the high altitude (and Shari got a nice nap on the picnic table).

But a second stop at the spring on the way out proved more fruitful: we quickly saw Yellow-eyed Junco*, Lincoln’s Sparrow, Red-naped Sapsucker* and Hairy Woodpecker. A little later we were greeted by a huge flock of Audubon’s Warblers, who all came in to bathe in the spring. I hunkered down to get some pictures, when suddenly a flash odd red appeared in my view: Red-faced Warbler*! I didn’t get any good shots, but I got to watch it for a while as it bathed. 

Then it was time to head to Barfoot Park. It was another very rough mile-long road to the parking area, but it did give us Orange-crowned* and Olive Warblers* in the trees on the way. There was little else there and we were both getting tired so we decided to pack it in. We were heading back down the mountain (another dirt road of switchbacks), when I saw some movement in some bushes by the side of the road. Quickly scanning the brush turned up Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Orange-crowned Warblers* … and Mexican Chickadees*!

Back to the Ranch

We got back to the ranch with a good bit of light, so we checked out the feeders at Cave Creek. There was nothing new but we had a good time seeing those amazing hummers, Juniper Titmice and numerous woodpeckers.

After our long day, we decided someone else should make dinner, and we knew we needed to get gas, so we asked about getting food in the town of Rodeo, where the only gas in the area was found. We were told, “Well it’s Thursday, so that means it’s pizza night at the Rodeo Tavern.” No, not a pizza special, but pizza was the ONLY thing on the menu. Well, upon getting to Rodeo, we found that the gas station was closed (some weird time-zone thing), and the bar didn’t seem like our style. So we opted for the Portal Store instead, which was a good choice: good food, lots of birders and a line on seeing an Elf Owl.

All in all, a great day of birding and scenery, tackling three or four biomes, over 3,000 feet of elevation change (well, 6,000 if you include up AND down), 7 different locations and about 30 miles of driving on switchbacked, gravel roads. And for that, we got to see 53 species of birds (17 new), 6 butterflies and 3 odonates.  Not too shabby!

Sighting List

* = new species

Birds

Cave Creek Ranch

Trip Stats (Species/New): Location: 10 / 0 | Trip: 55 / 24

Western Kingbird

White-winged Dove

Black-headed Grosbeak

Northern Cardinal

Black-chinned Hummingbird

Broad-tailed Hummingbird

Blue-throated Hummingbird

Magnificent Hummingbird

Scott’s Oriole

Gambel’s Quail

Curve-billed Thrasher

 

The Big Thicket (Portal)

Trip Stats (Species/New): Location: 23 / 3 | Day: 27 / 3 | Trip: 69 / 34

Black-headed Grosbeak

Acorn Woodpecker

Ladder-backed Woodpecker

Ash-throated Flycatcher*

Western Scrub-Jay

Mexican Jay

Gambel’s x Scaled Quail*

Gambel’s Quail

Canyon Towhee

Green-tailed Towhee

Lazuli Bunting*

Curve-billed Thrasher

Cactus Wren

Northern Cardinal

Pyrrhuloxia

Black-throated Sparrow

White-crowned Sparrow

Chipping Sparrow

White-winged Dove

Brown-headed Cowbird

House Finch

Lesser Goldfinch

Pine Sisken

Mammals: Rock Squirrel, Cliff Chipmunk, Coue’s White-tailed Deer

Butterflies:Marine Blue*

 

South Fork Cave Creek

Trip Stats (Species/New): Location – 19 / 7 | Day: 40 / 10 | Trip: 69 / 34

Acorn Woodpecker

Red-naped Sapsucker*

Painted Redstart*

Black-throated Gray Warbler*

Audubon’s Warbler

Northern Waterthrush

Blue-throated Hummingbird

Mexican Jay

Hooded Oriole (female)

Dusky-capped Flycatcher*

Ash-throated Flycatcher

Empidonax Flycatcher ssp.

Cassin’s Kingbird*

Canyon Wren*

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Turkey Vulture

Northern Cardinal

Mammals: Rock Squirrel

Odonata:Red Rock Skimmer*

 

Southwestern Research Station

Trip Stats (Species/New): Location – 4 / 0 | Day: 41 / 10 | Trip: 69 / 34

Black-chinned Hummingbird

Broad-tailed Hummingbird

Blue-throated Hummingbird

Western Kingbird

Mammals:White-tailed Deer

Odonata:Springwater Dancer*, Desert Firetail*

Butterflies:California Sister*, Common Checked Skipper, Myletta Crescent*, Acmon Blue*, Reakirt’s Blue*, Desert Checkered Skipper*, Mormon Metalmark

 

Paradise-Portal Road (including Rustler Park (RP) and Barfoot Park (BP))

Trip Stats (Species/New): Location – 20 / 7 | Day: 53 / 17 | Trip: 81 / 41

Townsend’s Warbler*

Olive Warbler*

Audubon’s Warbler

Red-faced Warbler*

Orange-crowned Warbler*

Hairy Woodpecker

Olive-sided Flycatcher*

Steller’s Jay

Mexican Jay

Ladder-backed Woodpecker

Ash-throated Flycatcher

Yellow-eyed Junco*

Common Raven

Turkey Vulture

American Robin

Lincoln’s Sparrow

Mexican Chickadee*

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Gambel’s Quail

Mammals:Cliff Chipmunk

The drive on the interstate was typical of the type of road, but at least the roadside scenery was different from what we were used to. At one point about halfway there was a short length of amazing rock features along both sides of the road, a kind of sandbox odd the gods. As we got closer, and off the interstate, the scenery got more interesting. We crossed into New Mexico for a brief while (the road seemed to ignore state lines), before heading into the desert ecosystem, mostly unfettered by man save for the sparse barbwire fencing that was ubiquitous throughout Arizona.

As we were getting closer to our destination, we started seeing some interesting things. Shari saw a Northern Harrier and what we now think was a Zone-tailed Hawk. We both got to see Swainson’s Hawk, Western Kingbird, Prairie Falcon and my first Black-throated Sparrow. But we really wanted to get to our destination, so we moved on.

We bypassed the town of Portal, somewhat desperate to make it to or first destination: Cave Creek Ranch. The approaching road was enough to take your breath away and was just a glimpse odd the beauty we’d behold for the next days. We pulled in to see nearly a dozen people sitting around the feeder stations, which were FULL of birds: pine siskins, lesser goldfinches, woodpeckers and lots of hummingbirds. Our room wasn’t going to be ready for a couple odd hours so we sat down to enjoy the birds. Within an hour, we had 10 new species, including four new hummers (broad- billed, broad- tailed, blue- throated and magnificent), bridled titmouse and Bullock’s oriole.

The feeders that they had set up were attracting all sorts of different birds and lots of each. Other guests (and visitors) were all enjoying themselves with binoculars and a couple of cameras, but it was easy to ignore them … at the same time as it was hard to focus on any single bird because there was so much going on. After about an hour of birding overload, we decided we needed to get some food.

Portal

We also made our first trip down to Portal, the big ‘town’ in the area. Portal consists of the Portal Store and Lodge, a repair shop, a defunct post office and about a dozen homes. And it’s one of only a few small towns in the whole area – from what we learned the Portal Volunteer Fire Department covers almost 500 square miles! But as small as it is, Portal has a lot of character – and so does the Portal Store. Like any other store in a small town, you walk in and are greeted by a counter, some souvenirs and limited numbers of basic supplies along a few shelves. It had everything you’d NEED (including beer), but very few extras. In the back of the store is a small diner that serves breakfast, lunch and dinners on most nights. We sat down for some lunch before heading back to check in – and it was surprisingly good. The restaurant is quaint and no-frills, with some local artwork on the walls and diner-style serving – which suited me just fine.

Once we got back, we were able to get into our room – and our ‘room’ was fantastic – we actually had the Ranch House, which is an entire house that sleeps six (4BR), has a gorgeous living room with a fireplace, and a full kitchen. We got it because it was the only thing they had left, and it might have been too much for just the two of us (but would be perfect for a set of friends). Big or not, we loved the open patio in the back where feeders were strung up in the trees, and the birds would walk right up to us. We also got a chance to talk with owner Reed Peters, who was a great host – not only was he doing a lot to make sure that the feeders were filled and bringing in great birds, but he also gave us lots of advice about the area, where to go, when to go, etc.

It was hard to tear ourselves away to make dinner, and right after dinner we found ourselves actually unable to keep our eyes open. Expecting a long day on Day 3, we headed to bed early.

Sighting List

Birds

(Drive)

Swainson’s Hawk

Turkey Vulture

Prairie Falcon

Western Kingbird

Black-throated Sparrow*

White-winged Dove

Zone-tailed Hawk (Shari)

 

(Cave Creek/Portal)

Black-headed Grosbeak*

Acorn Woodpecker

Ladder-backed Woodpecker

Arizona Woodpecker*

Western Scrub-Jay*

Mexican Jay*

Black-chinned Hummingbird

Broad-tailed Hummingbird*

Broad-billed Hummingbird*

Blue-throated Hummingbird*

Magnificent Hummingbird*

Scott’s Oriole*

Bullock’s Oriole*

Gambel’s Quail

Curve-billed Thrasher

Yellow-rumped Warbler (‘Audubon’s Warbler’)*

Canyon Towhee*

Bridled Titmouse*

American Crow

Great-tailed Grackle

Lesser Goldfinch

American Goldfinch

Pine Siskin

Chipping Sparrow

House Sparrow

White-winged Dove

Mourning Dove

Rock Pigeon

Trip Stats (Species/New)

Location (Cave Creek): 28 / 12

Day: 33 / 13

Trip: 54 / 23

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