Friday the 13th? Go to the Wild!

The experience was powerful and fundamental.

It seemed to me that it had always felt like this

to be a human in the wild,

and as long as the wild existed

it would always feel this way.

~ Cheryl Strayed, Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail

It was a strange day - cloudy and cool. The birds seemed to know that the weather would be changing. A flock of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks flew up from the creek and away.

I love these ducks - I need a video of 'em for "down" days...

Great Blue Herons flew low across the meadows, surprising us. We had never seen them so close.

Later we saw many of the usual suspects - phoebes, shrikes, egrets, ducks, and the eagle. I'll never tire of seeing a Bald Eagle perched high over the ponds (although I don't cry anymore). We also saw a strange cat stalking along a fence line.

One of the mockingbirds

The Bluejays have been so noisy! Good to find one earring a meal.

We have had 3 or 4 every morning.

Okay. Here is something different - American Goldfinch

Northern Shoveler

Pied-billed Grebe

Loggerhead Shrike

Bald Eagle

Stunningly marked cat. It was not clear if our friend was feral or house.

Normally cats will head away from the car. This one was curious and smelling the air. Time for a shower fro Zelda.

Well satisfied by the day's "bird crawl" we tried to avoid some traffic and routed ourselves "the back way." Suddenly a hawk swooped crossing the street in front of us. It stopped, perched on a line, just across the street from our old house house. It waited - almost posing for photo after photo. Here are the best views.