Surviving the Storms

When I woke up this morning, another 6-8 inches of snow had arrived on the previous snow pack and the yard was full of critters trying to find morsels buried in the snow.

It is nearly impossible for me to enjoy a morning cup of coffee when I look out the window and see a frozen hummingbird feeder covered in snow along with near empty birdfeeders. Coffee comes second on mornings like this. First, thaw out the hummer nectar for the lone Anna's hummingbird that probably wishes he had followed the others down to Palm Desert for the Winter and then fill up the feeders. I can eat last since I didn't have to survive in below freezing temperatures.

It has been quite an interesting 2 weeks! We've been told to evacuate twice due to wildfires in the last 6 years but we've never been told to shelter in place due to unprecedented flooding. If you watched the news on Valentine's Day, you probably saw impressive video of a rushing river and a washed out road. If you missed it, you can do a Google search and find it. You won't get it from this blog since I was trapped in our home up on the mountain until they opened up one of the 3 roads leading to this mountain town.

Am I complaining? Absolutely not! I admit shoveling a long steep driveway is not my favorite thing to do but if it helps us get out of a drought, bring on the snow. I am fascinated by this ice sculpture that is hanging on one of our trees. You can see the initial formation of the icicle by the two tiny twigs but the rest of the formation is free form. How did this happen?

Besides shoveling, I've been trying to help out our outdoor neighbors with some food. This furry rascal grabbed one of the suet cakes that the birds were sharing and ran into our neighbor's yard onto a high branch where he could gorge on the cake without competition from the jays and woodpeckers.

It's not always so easy for the squirrels. Between the floods and the snow blasts, this red-shouldered hawk came to visit. 

His intentions were clear. 

He wasn't interested in the little birds flying boldly near him. He had his eyes on a furry chipmunk. I noticed that the squirrel spied this formidable creature for he sat motionlessly on a tree branch above the hawk's head. The chipmunk, however, was oblivious to its presence. We watched the hawk swoop to capture the little chipmunk but it wasn't successful this time.

 Another animal of the forest was successful in getting its next meal. My husband and son found a fresh deer carcass on a nearby trail along with some mountain lion tracks. Obviously, they didn't stick around long so they didn't see the victor of that battle. I wasn't along on that hike so no photo of that but you can imagine it.

So my day began and ended with one of these cute furry squirrels watching me.

Click on photos to enlarge.
Photos and content by Robin Roberts.

Mountains Covered in White

Snow has finally arrived! Since last posting last week, we have had a week of snowflakes falling in our mountains.

Some places like our beloved fire lookout tower on Tahquitz Peak,8,896 feet, got more snow than others.

Northern Flicker

Mountain Chickadee

Mountain Quail

Western Grey Squirrel

Our backyard is definitely one of the "hotspots" in town with the natives.

For me, hiking on a trail or road with little or no tracks is the best! On this day, I was able to follow in the tracks of a snowshoer and a snowboarder until I reached the top when I created my own path in the snow.

Once I reached the top of this road, I quickly realized how cold it must have been up here while I was staying warm by our wood-burning stove.

Ice covered branches replaced snow on the manzanitas, oaks and pine trees. On some of the trees, the ice is sculpted sideways. Imagine the wind and freezing precipitation. Brrr...

The only birds I saw in this frozen landscape were the tough Mountain Chickadees and the Western Bluebirds.

Although it is much more difficult getting around and keeping warm on these snowy days, we aren't complaining one bit! Our forest and creeks are filling up with much needed replenishing water.

Edit: I do have one teeny, weeny complaint after waking up this morning...frozen pipes and no water...reminds me of one of my very first posts when a burst pipe created a waterfall and I tried boiling snow for water. Definitely wasn't one of my better ideas.

Click on photos to enlarge.
Photos and content by Robin Roberts.

A Moment of Stillness

We are a people constantly on the move. If we aren't physically moving, working or studying, many of us are using our devices to keep connected to the world rather than being in the world. While we are in a state of constant movement and distraction, we miss those special fleeting moments. Take a moment to be still.

Reminders of the Cranston Fire in July, 2018 are still all around us. On this day, clouds engulfed our burnt forest and for the first time, the misty fog created a beautiful site.

Our current melting snow and rainfall in Southern California are filling creeks and creating rarely seen waterfalls.

 This waterfall itself was enough to bring a smile but the rainbow and ladybugs were the"icing" on my cake.

My final reflection on stillness comes from the pristine white beach in the gulf. These little puffballs called Sanderlings not only brought a smile but a giggle as well.

Take a moment of stillness in Nature. You will be glad you did!

You may even find that you are so inspired that you pull out some colored pencils or paints to capture what you see.

Photos and content by Robin Roberts.

Click on photos to enlarge.