Fountain Creek Nature Center

It's always a nice walk at Fountain Creek. If we get to see some birds - all the better!

There are always lots of Barn Swallows flying around the Visitor's Center.

The Red-winged Blackbirds are certainly noisy!

This one had me stumped - but I've decided it is a female Yellow Warbler. What a cute little face!

The Yellow Warbler from the back.

I think I take this bunny's picture every time we visit.

This woodpecker really caught our eye because she was so big - much larger than a Downy. It must be a Hairy Woodpecker.

Another view.

No sooner did we tentatively identify the Hairy when we spotted this Downy so we could compare the two. I was amazed at the difference in size - a good 3 inches.

The White-breasted Nuthatches are cute little energetic birds.

I love listening to the House Wrens. They may be plain birds - but they sure can sing!

Lots of Phoebes hunting for insects.

A female Mallard and her babies.

So cute!

We saw other creatures including this unidentified butterfly....

...and this small lizard.

Another look at the House Wren. I wonder what she is pondering.

Back at the homestead, I decided I'd better take some pictures of the yard. We are having storms almost every afternoon with threats of hail and tornadoes. A good hail storm and these flowers would be done. Bill says he hopes these pics are not the "before."

We like to keep the yard somewhat rustic as it draws more birds.

We are seeing more House Finches than anything else these days. Yesterday, I saw only one Cedar Waxwing - so the major influx has ended. We are seeing a couple of Lesser Goldfinches - but certainly not the quantity we've had some years. But we keep looking!

Pictures from a Short Ride in the Country

This is a Mountain Bluebird. They sure look different than the Eastern Bluebirds we see in Florida.

Once we get outside of Colorado Springs proper, the Western Meadowlarks are everywhere singing and singing.

This one was flashing his tail...

over and over. I assume it's a mating thing.

I'm always surprised at how big they are.

The baby Robins are out of the nest and looking for food.

As are the Lesser Goldfinches.

Another baby Robin.

Nothing out of the very ordinary on this ride - which was disappointing - but it's always nice spending time with Bill.

Still Sewing!

I'm working on a Super Mario quilt. It looks like a crayon box full of primary colors.

There are two squares: a nine patch and a star. It's been slow going because I got a couple of false starts with colors that just did not look good and the Super Mario material is harder to work with than the other fabrics.

Bird Update: Yes, the Cedar Waxwings are still in the yard which might be the real reason the quilt making process is in slow gear.

Vinny and Lori

We had a wonderful visit with friends from Ocala, Vinny and Lori. They are here in Colorado visiting Lori's little sister, Maggie. On Monday, Bill took them up into the mountains to see Cripple Creek, where we ate lunch and the mining operations in Victor.

 Vinny and Lori with Cripple Creek in the background.

This is the house in Victor where Bill lived in the 70's with his wife and two young daughters. Bill had an art gallery in Cripple Creek before gambling came to town. In the winters, he worked at the Cripple Creek/Victor Mine as an assayer. His previous residence is abandoned now.

This is the view from in front of the house. The building in the right of the picture is Bill's kiln where he fired his pottery.

Another view of Victor from the house.

Some of the abandoned mining operations.

And a view of the huge gold mining operations that go on today.

Vinny and Lori posing in one of the old truck tires. The trucks are massive.

Each time we visit, Bill and I can't believe how much the mining operations have grown. That little dot in the middle of the picture is one of the massive trucks.

The next evening Vinny and Lori brought Maggie over for a BBQ.

Since Bill was making steaks, he lit the charcoal barbecue.

The steaks were gorgeous and HUGE!

The master at work...

They smelled so good...

Lori and Vinny relaxing with a little wine from the cellar.

 Maggie with Lori & Vinny.

Vinny decided he needed to get in on the action!

It must have been a good picture!

Yum, asparagus on the grill!

Almost ready to dig in!

Waiting eagerly for the feast to begin!

Time to eat!!

Just a Couple More Waxwings (I Promise!)

Yes, the Cedar Waxwings are still here and in as many numbers as before. I swear they are not going to leave a single bud on our bushes.

We still see an occasional Black-headed Grosbeak.

But the Waxwings are the stars of the yard.

I love the Robins.

This picture shows the red waxy projections at the end of the feathers that give them their name.

Over the weekend we went to La Junta, Colorado to watch some baseball. Naturally, we went the long way and did a little birding. The next three pictures are of a Swainson's Hawk being pursued by a Western Kingbird. That nasty kingbird would not leave him alone!

We stopped at a pond where we saw this Lark Sparrow.

Another Western Kingbird.

 It was quite a surprise to see Black-crowned Night Herons. There were about a dozen in the trees on the other side of the pond.

One more shot of the Lark Sparrow.

During the break between baseball games we visited the Comanche National Grasslands just south of La Junta.

This was very cool - what remains of a stage coach route through the area.

On our way back to Colorado Springs, we heard that there were terrible storms in town. This was the view from east of town.