Heading to the birding mecca

Call me a dork, but southeast Arizona is the ultimate birding destination in all of North America.  More rare birds from Mexico are found here than anywhere else along the border.  Many birds that are commonly found south of the US border extend their ranges up into this corner of the state via the Mexican mountain ranges that just barely reach across the border into Arizona.  Not to mention the creeks in the area that create riparian habitats that attract many birds, and the unique surrounding desert habitat, and suddenly you create little islands of habitat that house birds that aren't found anywhere else in North America.  Im literally getting jittery just thinking about the possibilities.  Throughout the whole trip thus far, I've known what to expect in the specific birding locations and habitats that I've visited.  But down here, anything goes.  Hell, I could very likely find a bird that's never before been seen in North America!  Eh, that's unlikely.  But if that were to happen anywhere, it would be SE Arizona.  Already today and last night, Ive seen over 10 bird species that I've never seen before, a tribute to the area's unique bird diversity.  In North America, you literally cannot find most of the birds that I will be (hopefully) finding unless you drive south of Tuscon and bird the mountains and valleys that lie adjacent to Mexico only a few miles away. 
  That being said...I also chose probably the worst year to come to SE Arizona for birds.  So far, forest fires have been sending the mountains up in flames.  Already this year, New Mexico has had more acreage succumb to fire than any other year, and Arizona is on the same track.  Many of the great birding destinations of the area are located within these forests which comprise Coronado National Forest.  Last I heard, the entire National Forest and all its recreational areas and campgrounds area closed to the public, as teams continue to fight the fires, or simply as preventative measures to keep accidental fires from popping up in unburned areas.  Online updates of the forest indicate that many areas will not be open until the monsoons come.  The area just got a shower yesterday, so hopefully some of the birdiest locales, like Miller and Madera Canyons, will open in the next few days while I'm down here.
  Regardless, I will still enjoy myself.  Like I said, the habitats down here are so diverse, there will be PLENTY of birds for me to sift through.  I'm probably going to get overwhelmed by it all, and not want to leave, lest I not have enough time to watch some of the cool birds that I plan on finding.  To put it into perspective, Im likely to see over 10 hummingbird species down here.  In the entire Northeastern US, there's only 1 regularly occurring hummer.  Yea, its going to be crazy.

Every plant in the desert can bite

I just finished bushwacking off trail to the top of a mountain which provided 360 degree views of the surrounding area around Saguaro National Park.  I started fairly early, around 8, and finished the hike by 11.  I honestly should have started earlier to avoid the heat....like before the sun came up!  I wore plenty of sunscreen, but I was tripping sweat by 830.  Oh well, Im in the desert.  Thats the price you pay.  Yes, that is the cost of a hike in the desert.  But that's not all you get.  Youre also rewarded with beautiful cacti:  some taller than a house, others just hugging the ground, some that are spindly like spider web, and others that stick to you with the slightest graze of your shirt.  And if they look painful, they feeling of having one of those spines jab you is even worse.  I was fortunate to only feel the shooting pain of the prickers on two occasions.  Once in the finger and once in the foot through my shoe (I guess thats what I get for wearing my Brooks adrenalines for all my hikes).  Pulling out a cactus pricker isn't as easy as it might seem, as most have a barb at the end that keeps them in once theyre in ya.
  I made it to Saguaro yesterday, Tuesday, after a 260 mile drive from Flagstaff.  I had left Flag around 11, after putting my car through its second oil change.  The light didn't come on this time, but it had been over 4k since my last change, so I didnt want to half to worry about it anymore.  Smooth drive all the way down, with one stop off the highway to do some desert birding, which was quite successful, with new birds like Barn Owl, Summer Tanager, Verdin, and Yellow-breasted Chat to add to the trip's list.  But yesterday was a scorcher.  Quite possibly the hottest air I've ever experienced.  Driving the highway through Phoenix, the car outside temperature read 109.  True that the blacktop of the road can have some effect on that, but even off the main highway, it was always above 100.  It's a strange feeling to put down the windows and feel a hot breeze hitting your face.  Not so appealing.
  Like I mentioned, I spent the night in Saguaro National Park, amongst the giant Saguaro cacti and other unique plants to the area.  By dusk though, the days simmering temperatures had dropped down into the 70's, thanks to the beginnings of the monsoon season, which hit Saguaro with an hour's worth of rain, plus strong winds and lightning.  I watched the whole storm pass under an overhang outside the visitor center.  It started off as a dust storm, with wind whipping up the topsoil into a wall of dirt that blotted out even the nearby hills.  I had to squint to keep the dust out.  Then the rains came...and they came hard.  Somewhat ironic to watch a desert get drenched in water.  I walked out to look for more birds after the rain stopped.  It was still thundering, but the temptation was too great.  I made it 10 minutes or so before huge thunderbolts lit up the sky above me and sent me cowering back to the visitor center.  Totally worth it, saw Cactus Wren and Rufous-winged Sparrows, both new birds for me.
  Due to lack of hunger from the previous day's amazing July 4th food, and the food coma that ensued, I wasnt too hungry for dinner, so went with a can of corn and called it a night.

Abert's Squirrel.  Seen while playing frisbee golf in Flagstaff

Simmering

The dust storm coming through saguaro

Sunrise in Saguaro NP

Lots of this around.

the view south from my mountaintop climb

the spiderweb looking cactus

the typical cactus

Not a cactus, but it has spikes too

the fuzzy looking cactus.  This is the one that got me twice.

Not everyone can "hoof" it out here in the desert.

First day of nothing in a while

Today was perhaps the calm before the storm that is Independence Day.  They day we celebrate our freedom from those Redcoats.  I would bet that there was a lot of drinking and partying when American won its freedom at the end of the Revolutionary War.  I can't say what will happen tomorrow, but Tim and Kate have invited a few friends and family over to their house for a little get-together, and I plan on enjoying the nice Flagstaff weather, and plan on stuffing myself with hot dogs and burgers (as you all should be doing on such an American day).  To prepare for the festivities tomorrow, I had to take care of a few errands today.  Today was the first of my trip in which I did not hike or do any bird watching.  Well, I did hike for a half hour around the streets of Flagstaff, but I didnt do much bird watching, for fear of appearing as a peeping Tom, with binoculars around my neck.  This highlights one of the down sides to birding in a residential area.  People think youre looking at more than just birds.  Anyway, most of the morning was spent making pancakes for everyone in the house, showering, and working on some cover letters for prospective jobs after the fun of this trip is over with (ugh, the real world).  A few phone calls to friends and family were also made, to let all know that I am alive and well. 
There are now 8 people living staying in Tim and Kate's 2 bedroom house.  I feel lucky to have snagged the couch.  The parents of Tim and Kate's roommate slept in the bed of their truck last night, and Tim and Kate slept on a blowup mattress on the lawn, leaving their room for Tim's mom and brother.  Not a better place to sleep outside though.  Flagstaff is a designated "dark city", so light pollution is minimized so that even in the downtown sections, one can still appreciate the starlight.  Not to mention the lake of rain mean you don't have to worry about getting wet in the middle of the night.  We did actually have rain today for the first time in months, and all the locals seemed very excited to see raindrops hit the ground for once. 

McDonalds is still treating me well.  I don't feel bad spending a few hours in their establishment.  I'm always sure to purchase something off the dollar menu to validate my long stays.  Tonight its a 56 cent vanilla cone and a dollar soft drink.  Not much of a dinner, but I'll feast tomorrow! 

Happy early July 4th to all!  Although I guess back east the day has already arrived.

Flagstaff

Whew!! I am now in Flagstaff, AZ hanging out til the 4^th with friends Tim and Kate, both IC grads.  They’ve rented a house in the area, and since I had worked for a summer with Tim and two summers with Kate, they’d graciously invited me to stay at their place, and just kick back and relax for a while.  The house is very nice.  Granite kitchen countertops, spacious rooms, and a VERY comfy couch, which I will probably be napping on as soon as I finish these blog posts.  I arrived yesterday, still thinking I was in mountain time, at 3 (I thought it was 4, which is when Tim and Kate would be coming home from work).  So I spent an hour chilling outside their house, eventually just letting myself in through the back door which was open, and plopping myself down on their couch, as I awaited their arrival.  We went out on the town that night, hitting center Flagstaff bars and restaurants.  Met up with some of Kate and Tim’s friends at a local bar called the Speakeasy, a somewhat ritzy establishment, but still a great place to hang out and chat with friends.  It was a great time, and such a relief to finally get to chat to some familiar faces.  I don’t think I could handle another 4 weeks of isolation like I endured at the beginning of this trip.  Thank goodness Im almost to California where I will be meeting up with Justine and her dad and brother. 

Today was another hot one, and Tim and I drove to a Wilderness area about 45 minutes away down dirt roads that could only be cleared by a 4-wheel drive truck or SUV.  The bumpy ride was actually really fun.  I felt like one of those guys who drive the jeeps up impossible rock faces just to showoff the capabilities of their truck.  Plus, the difficult drive meant we would be hiking in complete remoteness.  In the end, despite it being a holiday weekend, we only ran into 1 other person on the trail.  Tim brought his dog, Carl, and we all enjoyed a relatively easy 1500 foot decent into Sycamore Canyon, which was highlighted by views of Red-faced Warbler and Black Phoebe along the way, new birds for me.  Our only water source was a spring at the bottom of the canyon, as the creekbed was completely dry.  Tim had informed me that it hadn’t rained, let alone been cloudy, for months.  I’m beginning to understand why people from out west who attend Ithaca College get depressed during the winter and spring.  The monsoon season is on it's way though, and soon every day will be interrupted by a brief afternoon thundershower.  The hike back out was grueling, a 1500 foot climb in about 1.5 miles of trail.  We stopped only a few times to let Carl get a drink from the springs along the path.  A great hike, though, and now I’m spent and resting up.  Tonight and the next few days should be relatively easy.   I don’t plan on doing much driving.  I’m here to enjoy the company of friends before I enter the last leg of my journey west into SE Arizona and then into California.  Flagstaff is another one of those Ithaca’s of the west, and it seems like there is a lot to do and explore in the area.  What’s in store for the next few days?  Maybe some more hiking, some local culture immersion downtown, maybe even some more running.  Who knows.  I’ll fill you in later though.

California Condor....CHECK

Awoke Sunday morning at 8.  Well, actually it was 7.  I’ve already mentioned the importance of noting which time zone you are in when driving across country.  I guess I don’t listen to my own advice, as Arizona is actually part of the Pacific time zone, an hour behind the Mountain time zone which I thought I was still in.  I actually went by most of the day living my life an hour ahead of the actual time.  It didn’t catch up to me til later.  I hiked a beautiful slot canyon down to the Colorado River in the northern part of Grand Canyon NP.  The water at this part of the river is always a frigid 45, as the water  at this point has just recently come out of the bottom of a lake held behind the Glen Canyon Dam.  So I didn’t go swimming. 

Original Cliff Dweller homes.  These people built their houses under rocks.  They lived under rocks.

more sculpted sandstone while walking down Cathedral Wash

The towering slot canyon I walked down to get to the Colorado

All that hiking, and THIS IS THE COLORADO RIVER!!....

Just kidding, this is the Colorado River.  The view looking south.

Somebody munched off this guys tail.  Didnt seem to slow him down. 

I spent an hour hiking around the rocks at the river, then hiked back out and make my way to the Navajo Bridge, one of only 2 bridges that spans the Colorado for hundreds of miles in either direction, making it a popular byway for those traveling between Utah and Arizona.  It’s also a local hangout for some of the California Condors which have not left the area for better feeding grounds further north.  Some of these birds have been imprinted by humans who will throw them scraps of food from the bridge, which is why the birds will hang  out there.  Fortunately, there was only 1 bird there when I arrived, a juvenile.  All the birds have radio transmitters on them, as well as a tag for personal identification.  The bird I saw was J2.  It is 1 of only 100 or so wild California Condors in the world.  I was ecstatic to find one.  I’ve seen condors before, in the San Diego Zoo, 10 years ago, a time when only 20 or so birds were flying around in the wild.  The fact that I got to see a wild condor is really special and a tribute to not only the resilience of this prehistoric bird to survive, but also to the field crews that have worked endlessly to bring this bird back from the brink of extinction.If I never see a condor again (which I pray wont be the case), Ill always know the exact individual bird I saw.   I  finished out my time at Vermillion Cliffs with a big bbq burger at the local restaurant in “town”.

Navajo Bridge spanning the Colorado

The best pick of the California Condor I could get.  Taken through my fieldscope.  note the wing tag J2.

Tour de SW Utah (LONG POST)

Arches NP

As I predicted earlier, my trip through the SW of Utah was a whirlwind experience.  I bounced from park to park, taking in all of the scenery as I went, and sometimes wishing I could have spent more time at some places.  When I last left you, I was leaving Colorado for Arches National Park in Utah.  I made it to Arches by evening, immediately picked out a campsite situated in a canyon along the Colorado River, and spent that first evening exploring the lower end of the park.  The semi-desert park is actually quite desolate in terms of wildlife.  But what it lacks in critters, it makes up for with immaculate rock outcrops and sculptures you won’t find anywhere else in the world.  True to its name the, the park contains over 2,000 natural arches, defined as a whole in rock that is at least 4 feet wide.  Although most of these natural arches are small and insignificant, there are quite a few which really take your breath away.  The Window Arches, Landscape Arch, and Delicate Arch are three of the most popular destinations within the park, along with the Balancing Rock.  The best time to drive through the park is definitely in the evening as the sun is setting.  It’s at this time that the red sandstone rock really stands out against the blue sky, creating a photographer’s dream landscape.  I toured through the park in the evening, hanging out around  the window arches as the sun set in front of me.  Truly a perfect place for thought and reflection.  I also spent the next morning in the park, hiking a short trail up to Landscape Arch, which spans a gap the length of a football field.  It was on this hike that I was also blessed by a Korean man who was part of a Korean tour group.  I was passing this group of foreign tourists (I walk quicker than most when I hike) when as I was passing this particular man, he grabbed me by the hand, and we walked together, hand in hand for a good 30 yards.  It was weird, and somewhat uncomfortable, but I couldn’t pull away.  He eventually stopped, said something in Korean I didn’t understand, grabbed my other hand, and then began speaking some sort of blessing for me.  Again, I felt a bit uncomfortable, but I just figured this is what road tripping is all about.  Unexpected stuff happens!  Anyway, after his prayer we walked hand in hand a little more before he finally let me go.  I told him thank you and have a nice day, thinking about the experience that had just happened as I approached the arch.

Courthouse Monument, Arches NP

the Balanced Rock.  Its about as big as a UPS truck to give you a reference

The Window arches at sunset.  Quite a site

The scenic drive through Arches NP

Landscape Arch.  It spans a football field.  Wouldnt want to walk across that one.

Koreans praying at Landscape Arch.  It was a pretty powerful place.

Capitol Reef NP

After my morning in Arches, my goal was to do a drive through of Capitol Reef NP, arriving at Bryce Canyon NP by night.  I was able to drive the 200 or so miles to Bryce, but distractions were plentiful, as the views along this drive are worth a vacation in and of itself.  I didn’t do much bird watching, as strong winds made it difficult to find anything.  I entered Capitol Reef in the early afternoon.  This park protects a huge 100 mile long fault that travels south almost to the border with Arizona.  But if you ever visit the area, you’ll wonder why it needs protection.  I mean, it’s freaking desert.  There’s nothing but rocks, sand, and drought tolerant plants for 100 mile in any direction.  And there isn’t much water around either.  Every creekbed I drove over en route to Capitol Reef was dry and dusty.  Few people would ever think about living in such a harsh environment.  Needless to say, I didn’t spend too much time in Capitol Reef.  They did have a nice auto loop that supposedly afforded amazing views of the fault the park was famous for.  But to drive the loop you had to pay money.  I’m not paying money for views of rocks when I’ve been seeing nothing but rocks for free all day.  I continued onto  Bryce Canyon, a smart choice in my mind.  Although only 110 miles from Capitol Reef, the drive takes nearly 3 hours along route 12 as you twist and turn through pine forests and across the plateaus that offer unprecedented views of valleys below you, all of which are a part of the Grand Staircase National Monument.  It was really quite spectacular, a drive second so far only to the drive through Banff.  

Unless you're in one of the National Parks of SW Utah, most of the area is desert, like this.  And of course, there's nobody around.

Shout out from Utah.  Obviously this truck has been here for a few years.

Driving through Capitol Reef National Park.  Just so much rock.

pock-marked rock in Capitol Reef.  Looked kind of disgusting up close. 

Road tripper's ride and his dog.  Oh the life of a dog.

Bryce Canyon

Bryce was definitely worth the 200 mile drive from Arches.  It’s a small national park, but with over a million visitors a year.  For good reason.  Bryce Canyon (not actually a canyon, but more of an amphitheater) is filled with unique sandstone rock formations called hoodoos, towering spires of rock that form in rows.  These pillars of rock are the result of sculpting from millions of years of wind and rain which break apart weaker rocks, leaving only the sturdy portions of rock that you see today.  And even these sandstone outcrops are slowly crumbling. 

I grabbed one of the last two available camp sites and paid for two nights.  The first night, my late arrival allotted me enough time only to get in a late night run along the rim of the canyon, which offers spectacular views of the sandstone hoodoos, which brighten as they pick up the last rays of the setting sun.  Probably one of the most stunning runs I’ve ever done.  Unfortunately, it was all uphill on the way out, and on the way back, a day’s worth of gas station foods left my stomach in a knot, making for a very slow and painful run back.  To all the runners out there, you know what I’m talking about. 

Day 2 was much more eventful.  I woke up very early and hit the Fairyland trail, and 8 mile loop which drops down off the rim of the canyon brining you up close to all of the famous rock hoodoos.  Unfortunately, the climb out of the canyon was a bit more taxing.  But I felt accomplished having really experienced Bryce up close, not just taking my few pics from the rim observation decks like most of the tourists.  I also spent a lot of the day worrying about an insect bite I got the night before while sitting on a log.  It hurt all day during the hike, and images of a bite from a Brown Recluse krept into my mind, making me think I might have to have my leg amputated or something.  Stupid I know, but when youre out here on youre own, it’s easy to worry.  Ended up it was just an ant bite.  Haha.  The rest of the day was spent resting and refueling at my campsite, out of the 95 degree heat.  A much needed shower at the general store felt like heaven on earth.  A final evening stroll along the canyon preceded an early night to bed.

I see you, Bryce Canyon

Bryce Canyon and the hoodoo spires

Some up close hoodoos

Great real estate

The view of Bryce Canyon Amphitheater from Inspiration point

Inspiration point is a great place for reflection

Zion NP

I had planned on spending a whole day in Zion.  It didn’t happen, and I regret it.  I slept an hour past my alarm in Bryce, didn’t leave the park until around 930, and the 1.5 hour drive to Zion was lengthened by a stop at a local diner for some grub (chicken tenders and fries, my favorite!)  Zion blew me away, though.  It doesn’t have the little intricate rock formations that Bryce has.  Instead, it comes at you with huge in your face monuments of white sandstone rock.  The mountains themselves are not extremely steep, and are carved like stairsteps, so you could literally walk up to the summit of any mountain around you.  Hiking abounds in this park, and with only 3 hours to spare, Zion is now on my list of places I wish to explore more.  I did a short hike just past the east entrance, seeing a few interesting birds, and then completed the popular mile hike up to the canyon overlook, which looks out on Zion Valley.  Although the view is definitely something any visitor should check out if they come to Zion, I feel you really have to get down into Zion Valley to experience the park.  Point being, I only accomplished what a normal tourist would do on a trip to Zion, which ticked me off.  

sculpted sandstone in Zion

Desert life: sand, cactus, and old beer can

The view of Zion Valley from above

More Rock!  Notice the natural cool grooves in the rock. 

Vermillion Cliffs, AZ

The reason I had to leave Zion a bit earlier than planned was that I had the opportunity to stay with the employees of the California Condor reintroduction program, stationed out of Vermillion Cliffs, AZ.  The chance for a free shower, bed, and friendly company?   Um, YES!  I arrived at Vermillion Cliffs around 6:30, in time to chat with the three other guys that were working for the project at the time.  The town of Vermillion Cliffs isn’t more than a diner and a few houses behind it, all at the base of the huge Vermillion Cliffs which create an early shade on the “town”, which is quite convenient in the evening to help cool the body down after driving through the dry heat of the Southwest.  I spent quite a bit of time talking to one of the men, Eric, who has been working on the project for 6 years or so.  He talked to me a lot about the project, the politics behind it, and what it was like working in such a remote environment.  The main problem for the Condors is lead poisoning, ingested when the birds eat the animal gut piles which are left behind by hunters after retrieving the useful parts of their prize kill.  The project was doing quite well with over 70 birds flying around the Grand Canyon area this past winter.  That number has dropped to below 70 after a few birds died from lead poisoning.  As you can imagine, this is quite upsetting and frustrating to the field workers who put in hundreds of hours of their time to reintroduce these birds into the wild, only to have their efforts hindered by hunters who are too stubborn to switch from lead to copper bullets, which are much less harmful to condors if ingested.  I also heard stories of DUI’s, Meth houses, and Polygamy running rampid in some of the local communities, all things that a California Condor technician may have to deal with while out in the field.  All in all, I took in a lot more information than I was expecting.  Good conversation nonetheless.  I slept well that night, in a bed, clean, and tired from a long day’s festivities.

Vermillion Cliffs

Vermillion Cliffs, with trucks below for comparison

Theme of the week is rocks

I don’t know what it is about them, but rocks seem to be so attractive.  At least in my eyes.  I’ve taken more pictures of them than all my other photos combined.  But why?  Why waste my time taking pictures of such lifeless, still objects?  I guess its just because of their diversity.  Yes, rock diversity is enormous in the American Southwest.  Every turn in the road as you drive through a canyon or crest a mountain, or drive up to an overlook offers a new and exciting vista, something you’ve never seen before, and may never seen again.  Rocks out here are purple, orange, red, brown, black, gray, white, and many shades in between.  I know I have way too many pictures of sandstone sculptures from the past 4 or 5 days, but it’s all so interesting, I just couldn’t help myself.  It became almost annoying, pulling into roadside pull-offs just to get another picture of some enormous rock outcrop.  Regardless, these pictures will now help me to remember this trip forever.  So maybe rocks aren’t moving (on a human timescale at least), but out here, for whatever reason, they certainly deserve a second look.