Birdwatching is much more than searching for birds even when you are on an official workshop. If you're lucky, the views are incredibly beautiful but often, more birds are found in less than desirable locations like dumps and water treatment plants.
You don't always want to be looking up. Otherwise, you may end up landing on your face or you might miss a neat creature on the ground like this Sierra Tree Frog....
or an interesting insect, flower, even a highly unusual fungus like this Sierra Puffball (Calvatia sculpta).
Sometimes the bird you are searching for turns out not to be a bird. My chirping "bird" turned out to be this Chicaree or Douglas' squirrel. Quite cute!
One of our field trips was interrupted by a roundup of cattle. The cowboys led the huge animals from one massive pasture to another blocking our intended path. We all forgot about birding and enjoyed the passing of this unique procession taking place in front of us.
As I have mentioned before, the journey somewhere is sometimes filled with unexpected surprises like the aliens we encountered in the desert. This trip, I found a ghost town named Bodie.
In 1859, WS Bodey and Black Taylor discovered gold in this remote place. It took awhile before it was a thriving town. By 1879, thousands of people were working on the gold and silver mines.
Although it was one of the most prosperous mining towns in California, it had a reputation for being "once known as the most lawless, wildest and toughest mining camp in the west." With that quote from the park brochure in mind, I figure the hearse on display had a lot of business.
By the 1940's, it had become a ghost town. The remaining buildings with possessions left behind provide images from the distant past.
This historic park is definitely worth the drive on the remote 13 mile road off the highway. A surprise bonus is the magnificent scenery when it is time to leave.
