September
One state: Colorado. 85 birds. 1 lifer: Little Gull. Other birds of note: Wild Turkeys, Bald Eagles, Ferruginous Hawks, Prairie Falcons, Great-horned Owls, Blue-headed Vireo, Gray Jays, Steller’s Jays, Clark’s Nutcrackers, Mountain Chickadees, Western Tanagers, Spotted Towhees, Chipping, Brewer’s, Vesper, Lark, and White-crowned Sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos, Indigo Buntings, Yellow-headed Blackbirds, and Orchard Orioles. The complete list:
| Canada Goose |
| Gadwall |
| Mallard |
| Wild Turkey |
| Pied-billed Grebe |
| American White Pelican |
| Double-crested Cormorant |
| Great Blue Heron |
| Great Egret |
| Snowy Egret |
| Cattle Egret |
| Black-crowned Night-Heron |
| White-faced Ibis |
| Turkey Vulture |
| Osprey |
| Bald Eagle |
| Northern Harrier |
| Cooper’s Hawk |
| Swainson’s Hawk |
| Red-tailed Hawk |
| Ferruginous Hawk |
| American Kestrel |
| Merlin |
| Peregrine Falcon |
| Prairie Falcon |
| American Coot |
| Killdeer |
| Spotted Sandpiper |
| Greater Yellowlegs |
| Little Gull |
| Ring-billed Gull |
| Rock Pigeon |
| Eurasian Collared-Dove |
| Mourning Dove |
| Great Horned Owl |
| Lesser Nighthawk |
| Common Nighthawk |
| Black-chinned Hummingbird |
| Broad-tailed Hummingbird |
| Belted Kingfisher |
| Downy Woodpecker |
| Northern Flicker |
| Western Wood-Pewee |
| Least Flycatcher |
| Say’s Phoebe |
| Western Kingbird |
| Blue-headed Vireo |
| Gray Jay |
| Steller’s Jay |
| Blue Jay |
| Clark’s Nutcracker |
| Black-billed Magpie |
| American Crow |
| Common Raven |
| Northern Rough-winged Swallow |
| Barn Swallow |
| Black-capped Chickadee |
| Mountain Chickadee |
| White-breasted Nuthatch |
| Western Bluebird |
| American Robin |
| Gray Catbird |
| European Starling |
| Yellow-rumped Warbler |
| Common Yellowthroat |
| Wilson’s Warbler |
| Western Tanager |
| Spotted Towhee |
| Chipping Sparrow |
| Brewer’s Sparrow |
| Vesper Sparrow |
| Lark Sparrow |
| White-crowned Sparrow |
| Dark-eyed Junco |
| Indigo Bunting |
| Red-winged Blackbird |
| Western Meadowlark |
| Yellow-headed Blackbird |
| Brewer’s Blackbird |
| Common Grackle |
| Orchard Oriole |
| House Finch |
| Lesser Goldfinch |
| American Goldfinch |
| House Sparrow |
Life on the Beach
We did what we never do. We drove long days.
Now we’re done. We’re back at Gulf Waters.
Here’s a shot we never see; our site without our motorhome on it.
Sunday
An easy leaving. Unhook the electric cord and the outside is ready to go. There were five rigs total in the park overnight. We were first out. The owls were still hooting: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSWno6ITujA
Pulled over at a rest stop outside of Lubbock to put up the satellite dish and watch the Broncos. Drove on.
A cool day all day. Ran into a little rain to wash the dust off the rig. Saw White-winged Doves for the first time in months. Saw a Northern Mockingbird.
We’re deeper into the heart of Texas. Stopped at the Texas RV Park in Big Spring.
Got a Cactus Wren.Today’s crock-pot torture: pot roast. Yumm.
On the road again
We’re leaving the high dry air and heading south. Time to rehydrate our skin. We’re going to the beach.
Leaving Colorado, we drove through the old west. Deer Trail, Wild Horse, Kit Carson. Cheyenne County, Kit Carson. We got the eagle daily double: two Bald Eagles flying together at St Vrain. Two Golden Eagles out on the plains in Southeastern Colorado.
Crossed back into the Central Time Zone at the Oklahoma border. Stopped for fuel at Boise City. Slid farther south into Texas. Drove through Stratford, which represents itself as the pheasant capital of Texas. Yes, we saw pheasants.
Stopped for the night in Dumas, Texas. Judy found a county park; the perfect overnight stop. Easy. Quiet.
Serenaded by Great Horned Owls.A one-day drive from Colorado to Texas. We’re almost there. Three more days of driving and we’ll be back to the beach.