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.

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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.

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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.

Winter Birding

Snow is falling in the San Jacinto Mountains. When the storm ends and the clouds depart, we will be able to see the snowy mountains. Waiting for the unveiling of the mountains is like opening up a surprise present.

Lesser Scaup

So while we are waiting to see how much snow has fallen, I want to share some more winter bird sightings. Ducks in breeding plumage are a welcome sight in the winter. Many times, they are distant silhouettes bobbing along in the water but the following photos are birds that were close to shore.

Cinnamon Teal by Adam Roberts

It isn't very often that we are able to find beautiful Cinnamon Teals especially close up. Ducks vary in their foraging techniques. Some are dabblers with their bill slightly underwater like this teal, others tip up their bodies with their heads underwater like Mallards while others dive underwater for their meals.

The Ring-necked Ducks and Green Winged Teals were striking.

The Northern Pintails were my favorite ducks of the day. These long-necked males bobbed their necks up and down quietly calling as they paddled up and down the lagoon.

As we were leaving, about 20 of these fruit-eating Cedar Waxwings flew directly overhead.

San Elijo Lagoon is one place where people are actively working on restoring habitat along the busy coast. Not only do these efforts benefit birds, native plants and other wildlife but it gives all of us a quiet place in nature to explore and enjoy.

As we returned home through the ranch land in Garner Valley, we found a perched White-tailed Kite. This kite and the Ferruginous Hawk are usually only here in the winter. What a great sighting! It was catching the last rays of the sun while peering on the ground for a final meal of the day.

Winter is a great time to look for breeding ducks and visiting raptors.

Happy Winter Birding!

Photos and content by Robin Roberts

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Exploring the Desert

Winter in Anza-Borrego Desert and nearby Salton Sea are quite popular places. Just ask any "snowbird" from the Pacific Northwest, Canada or Europe. You can also verify by observing the vast number of Jeeps and dune buggies cruising the vast landscape.

The wintering birds love it, too! They have their own followers like me.

Our post-Christmas trip to the desert began with sighting one of my very favorite winter residents. Fortunately, the road leading from Idyllwild to Borrego Springs wasn't too busy so we could abruptly do a U-turn once I spotted this magnificent Ferruginous Hawk on a telephone pole. I rarely get to see them so this was a great find.

If you are a birder, you already know that telephone wires and poles are great places to spot birds especially hawks and kestrels. As you can see, we spotted a smaller Red-tailed Hawk on another pole. It became suspicious when we tried the same U-turn maneuver to "capture" it. Immediately after this photo, it flew down the road to avoid us.

When you see this Yeti, you know that the desert is just a short drive away. 

Since we arrived close to sunset, there wasn't much time for any birding but we were able to find a mammoth size scorpion and a dragon. Not bad for the first day! Thanks to the artist, Ricardo Breceda, the desert is full of his amazing sculptures.

The challenge before us this holiday week was to find a place to hike in solitude without Jeeps or dune buggies.

We found a superb hike through a slot canyon. Despite the hundreds of Jeeps and buggies, we had this place to ourselves! What a beautiful spot!

Searching for some of my favorite desert or Salton Sea birds was also on the list. Note the signage under the Great Blue Heron! I'm sure he ignores all signs.

 The Burrowing Owl at Sonny Bono Wildlife Refuge posed for me as it usually does when I visit.

Belted Kingfishers usually fly off rattling before I get their photos. On this day, however, they both seemed more intent on staying perched overlooking their fishing holes. Great for me!

The desert has always been filled with adventurous people now and years ago. We were determined to find the historic monument to Pegleg Smith, 1801-1866. According to Pegleg, he found black covered gold nuggets in the area but was never able to rediscover more of them. The legend grew as did the people who tried to find his lost gold. The sign reads "Let those who seek Pegleg's gold add ten rocks to the pile." There is a huge rock pile behind this sign.

Finally, the last bird I photographed on this trip early in the morning just as the sun was peeking through the rain clouds was a Cactus Wren. He and 2 other local wrens were singing their hearts out to each other. Appropriately named, he was perched on a cholla cactus without any trouble.

There are lots of reasons to visit the desert or the Salton Sea. Enjoy!

If you visit Sonny Bono National Wildlife Refuge, be sure to pack out your trash due to the government shutdown.

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