Author Archives: Andrew Dressel

Yesterday afternoon was so beautiful, I couldn’t help but go to Estabrook a second time, and that’s what it took to finally capture some images of the killdeer that I’ve been hearing on the river. I had an exam to proctor this morning, so I couldn’t go early, but I hurried home as soon asContinue reading “The killdeer are back…”

It was a nice enough morning in Estabrook, but the air was a little foggy, so no good for long shots, and the birds were a little busy, so in no mood for portraits. Thus, I didn’t take many pictures and saved a lot on film. I was happy to see again the great blueContinue reading “A couple of new sights for the season…”

It was pretty dreary looking this morning, when the sun did finally come up, so I didn’t mind going to campus instead of the park. Plus, the sun started to burn through the clouds a bit later this morning, when I got back home from school. There are still plenty of fancy water fowl around,Continue reading “More signs that spring is on its way…”

If you asked me to design the perfect mid-March morning, I don’t know what changes I would make to today’s specifications. It was cold enough overnight to firm up the trail, but in the mid-30s already when the sun came up, so I hardly needed gloves. Plus, the air was nearly still, and the sunContinue reading “Ah, that’s more like it….”

It seemed as though it took a whole extra hour for dawn to come this morning, and it brought an extra surprise with it when it finally arrived. The great blue heron, however, whom we’ve been seeing on the river at the south end lately, did not appear to be as excited about one lastContinue reading “From last blast to last gasp…”

Wow, that was cold! The thermometer said 9°F this morning, but the stiff breeze out of the north made if feel as though it was well below zero. The sun rose right on schedule, at 6:09 AM, and I was out the door soon after that, but I didn’t even hear a cardinal singing untilContinue reading “Winter’s last blast, for real this time.”

Our streak of nice weather continued this morning with nicely frozen trails and clear skies. The great blue heron was up early and had found itself a nice sunny spot on the far shore. Northern cardinals were singing to the heavens from seemingly every available perch. Above the falls, one pair of buffleheads had extricatedContinue reading “The dating games…”

It’s getting light enough early enough for me to squeeze in a quick trip to Estabrook before I go to school, so that’s what I did this morning. The thermometer said 20°F, but the breeze was supposed to make it feel like 7°F, and the cloud cover was pretty thick, so it sure felt likeContinue reading “That’ll wake you up!”

It was another picture-perfect morning in Estabrook with cool, still air, blue skies, and a nice warm sun. The lower river is pretty quiet, now that most of the ice has cleared out, with just a few geese, a few mallards, and only one goldeneye hen and one common merganser hen this morning. I didContinue reading “In case you thought it couldn’t get better.”

The forecast for this morning was just too good to pass up, with temps in the 20s, to firm up all the mud, crystal blue skies, and light winds, so I squeezed in a trip to Estabrook before school, and the 6:15am sunrise sure helped. Right off the bat, at the far south end, IContinue reading “There’s a party going on right here.”