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Wow! What a gorgeous morning in Estabrook it turned out to be. To be honest, I didn’t have high expectations when I stepped outside because the clouds were back, and it was pretty dark out. The temperature was just around freezing, however, so mild for this time of year, the wind was calm, the trailContinue reading “Just a stupendous morning in the park”

The warmup came as forecast, and the critters in Estabrook came out to enjoy the reprieve. Our belted kingfisher, who I’ve heard all along but couldn’t spot recently, was fishing over some newly open water across from the boardwalk below the beer garden. Just north of the southern-most stairway, down the bluff from the playgroundContinue reading “Everyone enjoys a respite from the cold”

Despite a scarier forecast, the weather in Estabrook was just like yesterday morning, cold as heck but not too breezy and with plenty of sunshine, so not too bad. All the mammals were absent again, and many of the little birds were absent, too. Perhaps they are also fed up with the cold and takingContinue reading “Still plenty of new sights to see…”

It was a bit chilly this morning, and the only mammal I saw on my entire walk through Estabrook, to the north end and back, was this hapless little rodent that our new huntress had caught for her breakfast. I’m sure glad to see that she seems to be making herself at home. “Help yourselfContinue reading “Mammals on the menu…”

The weather this morning was a real mixed bag. Not too cold, but a wind chill near zero. Blue skies and sun, but dropping temps and a gale warning. I did not expect to see much. This little cutie, however, had other plans. Yes, indeedy, our American kestrel was back and farther south into theContinue reading “A quick visit before the gale blows in…”

I can hear the wind whipping outside as I type this, and the weather channel leads off its hourly forecast with “Gale Warning”, so maybe it’s just as well that I don’t have time to visit Estabrook today. Luckily, there’s been so much to see lately that I often haven’t been able to fit allContinue reading “A raft of rejects…”

It was another blue-sky morning in Estabrook with temps above 0°F. What more could I ask for? The thin layer of snow on the path along the river had a wonderfully crisp crunch underfoot this morning, so I wasn’t gonna be sneaking up on anybody today. I saw the common mergansers again first thing, butContinue reading “The high-pressure system sticks around…”

Sure, it was cold this morning, but there was much less cloud cover and wind than forecast, so my visit to Estabrook was far more pleasant than I anticipated. The birds seemed to enjoy it, too, because they were out in droves. I had just walked past the common mergansers at the south end, whomContinue reading “The old gang’s just about all here…”

The weather was what one might call suboptimal for taking pictures this morning, with temps around 20°F, winds around 20 mph, heavy gray skies, and light snow, but these pictures aren’t going to take themselves, so off to the park I went to see if anyone was up and about. Holy Smokes! I’m sure gladContinue reading “A cold front blows through…”

This morning was a bit warmer, at 21°F, a bit cloudier, and a bit breezier than yesterday, so not quite as magical, but also not bad by any means. I was glad to see that our gadwall drake was still here on the lower river and suffering from much less of an icing problem thisContinue reading “Winter appears to settle in…”