Day 183: July 1st – The top of Bear Mountain

Sunny, hazy, and warm

       Well, today marks the half waypoint of this “project 365”.  The goal was and still is to publish a blog about the natural world each and every day containing images recorded on the very day for a full year.  This being a “leap year”, it is more appropriately called a “Project 366” I suppose.

       I decided to head up to the summit of Bear Mountain, knowing full well that there would be a crowd growing on this beautiful summer day as the morning wore on.  When I first arrived, however, there were a few motorcyclists, a few more bicyclists, and a smattering of cars at the top.  I went down to the north view overlook and was pleased to find that at least for the moment, it was just the birds and me. 

       I’ve always found Bear Mountain to be a pretty safe bet as far as finding singing birds in the summer.  Things may be pretty quiet down in the valley, but up here on top of the mountain, there just seems to be action.  Today was no different.  When I arrived at the overlook, I immediately heard the familiar refrain of the Prairie warbler.  Its ascending trill is unmistakable.  I’ve often seen the bird perched in one of several trees, and sure enough, there he was this morning.  I had quite nice lighting which is so often the case earlier in the mornings, and I took advantage of the situation by capturing several images.

       As I shot my photos of the warbler, it flew off only to be replaced by a Chipping sparrow singing energetically as well.  Soon, both birds tired of my presence and departed. 

Chipping sparrow

       Still, I continued to hear quite a few more birds, but as the crowds and traffic increased, the birds seemed to move further into the forest.  Good looks at the Eastern towhee and audible “sightings” of Red-eyed vireos, Scarlet tanagers, Eastern wood pewee, Yellow warbler, and more Prairies were all that I could muster as the morning wore on.  Still, I know that I’ll have to return during the week when the mountain top will basically be there for just Sharon and me.  Looking forward to it…..and looking forward to sharing the next half of 2012 with all of you!