osprey web cam

I have been out and about on lakes in the last two weeks, which has been kind of fun despite the fickle weather. Yesterday we didn't get much for fish in our nets (we're doing a survey for muskellunge, the barracuda of the north) but I did see lots of birds, including bufflehead, goldeneye and bluebill (scaup) ducks, loons, broad winged and sharp shinned hawks, and the first yellow rumped warblers and ruby crowned kinglets of the spring for me. And osprey. We saw two of them, and they seemed to be following us for a while, maybe looking for a dead fish or two.

It later dawned on me that I had seen an osprey nest platform at a farm not too far from the lake we were on, and I recalled seeing a sign that said they had a Web cam on the nest. So when I got back to the office I Googled it and found this site:

http://www.osprey-webcam.com/ (For some reason the video only shows up on Internet Explorer; not so good for a Firefox fan like me)

I believe this is the same osprey pair we saw. The female is sitting on the nest and they have three eggs! I'm going to be following this site; thanks to the Schjeldahls of Windemere Township for providing a nest site and sharing the results with everyone!

pond dog

"Please take me to the pond? Oh will you please? I love the pond! Oh please?"

That is how I have been greeted the last few afternoons. Sally is relentless. So I even caved in today, when it was about 40 degrees and windy. That's how dogs are.

northern prairie skink

We have a new addition to the list of Wildlife Known To Inhabit Sand Creek. Which is always good. Hooray for biodiversity!

Starflower and Mr. Attitude found this little lizard hanging out by the pond yesterday. The photo is larger than life; the red jasper stone in the upper right hand corner is about an inch long. I don't know how they managed to find something that small! But then again, these kids are no strangers to critters of all shapes and sizes around here. They thought it was a cross between a snake and a salamander at first.

I did not even think we had any lizard species around here. The northern prairie skink is one of the only, if not THE only, lizards found in Minnesota, and I think we're at the northern extreme of its range. But to see such a little one suggests that there are more, and they are reproducing.

Once again, the photo credit goes to Starflower. I have pretty much relinquished my Canon Powershot A520 to her, while I'm using the Kodak EasyShare Z740 more lately.

treasure found

Wow. This is the BIGGEST agate I have ever found!

This morning at work I had an unexpected errand across the river to our fish rearing ponds. We had some major work done there last fall, re-routing the drainage and stuff, so there was a lot of loose gravel and rock there, either recently placed or dug up from the work. I don't know. Anyway, as I was surveying the new layout I glanced at the ground and saw a stone that demanded picking up. I have been walking gravel roads for over thirty years now, and I know a Lake Superior agate when I see one!


This one is incredible. It has nice fine lines, and viewed from the end the lines form a heart shape. It is about four times the size of most of the agates I have picked up over the years.

For a rockhound like me, this is SWEET!

P.S. I hate to have the frog chorus as an afterthought ever, but tonight the sound is beautiful here. Peepers, wood frogs and Western chorus frogs.

budding out

I have this wonderful place to stop and watch the Kettle River while I'm waiting for Calvin's baseball practice to be over. The school is just up the hill, but this land is all part of Banning State Park. Lovely. This willow was in a spring mood yesterday. We've had highs in the 60's and sunny weather all week. I have to remind myself that I'm not too busy to enjoy it, and the enjoyment is free.

play ball!

(look at beyond the outfield. Nothing but woods! I love it!)

Calvin had his first baseball game yesterday. Although he is in sixth grade, the school is hard up for ball players so he is playing with seventh and eighth graders on a combined middle school team. That did not bode well for their first matchup; the opponents' team consisted of mostly eighth graders, or beyond. Calvin's team is about 50 percent sixth graders, most of whom have not played organized ball more than one season.

I won't dwell on the final score, and neither did the coaches. Calvin did get the first (of two) runs for his team, on a walk and stolen bases. He is third in the starting pitching rotation, so expect to hear a pitching scouting report next week!

The red winged blackbirds were reluctant to give up the field to human activities.

the long awaited day

With a string of sunny days with temperatures in the 50's, the ice is finally losing its grip on lakes. I've been watching the ice on the pond darken and pull away from shore further each day. Yesterday there was finally enough open water for a very excited Labrador to do what she enjoys best.

Sally was wondering why Mr. Attitude and I were standing on shore. Cold? What cold?

She was shivering just a bit as she did the shakeoff.

I came across something unusual a few feet from the water:

These remains were once a fairly good sized black crappie. From time to time a few odd bluegills have ended up in the pond, never to be seen again. I vaguely recall helping a few very small crappies find their way to this body of water at least two years ago, but I never saw any sign of them. Until now. I'm guessing this one succumbed to low oxygen levels, and floated up on shore when the ice receded. Some lucky critter made a meal of it.

It's another beautiful day here. I hope you enjoy your day!

Killdeer conference

While I was waiting at the school parking lot to pick up Calvin from baseball practice (An activity I am getting used to this week), I heard a commotion by the side of the road, near one of those nice mitigation ponds they dug when they developed the school site. I looked and saw this group of three killdeers. What could they be discussing?

It has been a busy week, with baseball practice, parent teacher conferences, and of course Twins games to watch. I have been running whenever I get a chance, but not two days in a row yet. Tonight was the best run in a long time; I heard the first frogs of the season! 1.2 miles, running hard a lot of the way.

Tonight we have clear skies and a full moon will be rising shortly. The woodcock will be displaying, and the ruffed grouse will be drumming all night. This is the real spring moon.

The kids have tomorrow off of school; I'm not so lucky.

are we fans?

Ummm. yeah. Rabid fans at that.

Although the boys were actively celebrating, notice Starflower, lower left corner. She had had enough by close to 10 PM.

The Twins pulled off a ninth inning, two out victory over the Mariners tonight. Way to go Casilla!

dueling woodpeckers

We were at my uncle's lake home today for an early Easter family get together. After the meal, as we were all sitting around in a post-meal stupor, the kids excitedly told me there was a huge woodpecker at the feeder. I grabbed the camera, and I was so excited to get a shot of a pileated woodpecker I didn't even notice the downy in the photo! I rounded out the day by seeing hairy and red-bellied woodpeckers. And some first-of-year great blue herons, common mergansers, and oh yes, the trumpeter swans. Great birding day!

New bird at Sand Creek

This morning as I was walking to the house from the cabin after checking my seedlings, I heard a strange honking sound coming from out by the road. It wasn't Canada geese, it wasn't even our obnoxious gray geese. Was something wrong with one of the neighbor's cows?

I looked down the driveway just in time to see two enormous white birds flying low, their raucous bugle calls filling the air. Trumpeter swans! WOW!

Trumpeter swans have made a comeback in Minnesota during my lifetime, thanks to the efforts of the Department of Natural Resources and Hennepin County Parks. They are still relatively rare but their numbers are increasing and it's not unusual to see breeding pairs in small lakes around here. With luck I'll find a breeding pair this summer to document for the Minnesota Breeding Bird Atlas.

milestones

The night before last, Mr. Attitude lost the second of his top front teeth. His toothless smile is adorable, and I'm glad this all happened well before sweet corn eatin' season. Still I can't help but think, this is the last of my children to lose his baby front teeth.

Today Calvin starts baseball practice. He will be playing for a combined-grade middle school team. I think he will be one of the more prepared sixth graders there; in the last few days he has described details of the batting stances of all of baseball's top hitters, and ever since it has been warm enough to go outside he has been practicing pitching and fielding. Still I can't help but think, my oldest kid is now playing on a sports team for his school!

And I can't forget Starflower. Today I took her to the doctor with her 100th case of strep throat. Okay, maybe I exaggerate a bit, but it seems she comes down with strep pretty often!

Morning run

The morning air was still chilly, in the 20's, when I set out, but the sun already had warmth to it and the eaves were dripping.

About a hundred yards from where I started, an immature bald eagle took flight and crossed the road ahead of me. Of course the camera was not ready. But I anticipated what I saw next, and the camera was ready:

These two pairs of Canada geese have been enjoying the deep pool on Sand Creek for the last few days. One day I saw a pair of hooded mergansers with them, but they were not there today.

Further up the road I was serenaded by bluebirds.
blue on blue

I was doing my "creek run", where I cross Sand Creek, run up to the corner, turn right and run to where that road crosses Sand Creek, upstream from the first crossing. The creek was flowing strong with the spring runoff, but from the ice suspended above the water surface I could tell it had been higher a few days ago.

I have forgotten the exact length of this run; perhaps 2 1/2 miles. The middle of the run is uphill, with the corner being the highest point. Even if I have been a slacker at running the last few months, today felt good and even after I turned the corner and headed for home, I felt as if I could go on much further.

Running gets me into this meditative state that is hard to describe. Words form in my head, poetry comes effortlessly, and I feel during that time that all is right in my corner of the world. Indeed I have the luxury of beautiful surroundings, and of rarely having to contend with traffic. There is no need to listen to my iPod while I run; it would only be a distraction from what is real.

New 'puter!

I came home from work and hooked the whole thing up. Now we're online in the new house, and if I want to blog at 3 AM there isn't a long walk thru cold and mud to stop me!

Ahem...more coherent posts are forthcoming. :)

Spring unfolds...

...and it's hard to keep up. Within a week we've gone from redpolls to juncos, robins, and bluebirds. Kestrels, killdeers, and sandhill cranes. Woodcock, the original twitterers. And lots of eagles lately.

Me, I've been slogging through the mud between the house and the cabin, hearing the rain on the roof and dreading more mud. But mud is a fact of life.

I've been playing flute and banjo more, hoping to establish a good habit in my life. I've decided my new musical goal is to learn to play on flute, completely up to speed, The Bothy Band's set "A Jig and Five Reels". I downloaded and arranged a two page copy of the tunes, and tonight I sat down and learned them. Not up to speed by any means, but I have a core understanding of the tunes now.

Too bad the nice weather will come along soon and take away my music learning momentum!

more posts coming...soon

I have been quieter than usual on this blog lately, and I apologize for it. There are a few reasons, including:

Spring is in the air, and I want to be out experiencing it. Heard my first sandhill cranes today!

I am uncomfortable with doing more than a quick post from work lately...I'm sure there's already a file on me...

I am on Facebook now, which makes it easier for me to write a quick "what's on my mind" there rather than write a coherent blog post here about every little thing that happens. I think it's a win win situation; I get the instant gratification, this blog gets the stuff I've actually taken time to think about. Don't worry, I still enjoy all of your blogs, even if you're not my Facebook friend. :)

Our home computer, a monstrously slow beast, is still in the cabin so I have to slog through the mud to see the "low disk space" alert that pops up every minute. I've worked on the disk space, but I think it comes down to the fact this thing has a small brain to begin with. The computer, not me. :)

By the time I get to the cabin, I don't feel like typing out a thoughtfully long blog post and fighting to upload pictures.

The last couple of reasons will soon change. The Hermit and I, after much discussion, have decided to buy a new 'puter. There's a local business ten miles away that puts together custom systems at a reasonable price, and we'd rather give them our business than buy something on the Internet. It will be ready on Friday, and we will set it up in the new house. One less reason to go to the cabin, although I still have my seed starting shelf in here. I think with the computer in the house I will be more inclined to sit down in the evening, maybe even morning, and compose a blog post or two.

One for the life list!

There are some advantages to not having indoor plumbing yet.

This morning I was outside at 4 AM, and besides the usual rumble of freight trains off in the distance (4 AM seems like the usual time for them), I heard something from nearby in the woods. It sounded like someone blowing the same note on a pennywhistle over and over.

Northern Saw-whet Owl!

I have been hoping to hear one of these little owls here; we are right within their year round range and we have the mixed conifer/hardwood forest that is their preferred habitat. Now if I could only find it and take a look; I've seen photos and they are so cute. Of course, I should probably not use the word "cute" to describe something that could rip my flesh apart with its talons and bill.

wonder

Mr. Attitude is my Birdman! :)

Robin!

Yes, I saw my first robin since Christmas today. It was in the 50's here. Spring has arrived. :)

I took a nice run/walk this morning and the new header photo is one of the results. I had to spend way too much time loading Kodak Easyshare, which somehow disappeared from our hard drive, so by the time I was done with that I didn't feel like blogging about my walk. I'll try to do it tomorrow.

I have a new post up on Under the Blue Roof. I have lots more ideas for posts there, so stay tuned.

Tonight I'm cooking stuffed pork chops, probably with peas and an oriental cabbage salad. I actually made out a meal plan for the entire week, and meat is thawing in the refrigerator. I guess spring weather does that to me.

UPDATE: There is enough leftover pork to make fried rice tomorrow! Which bumps my meal plan, which I guess is okay.

Geese!

I took off work two hours early just because. Just because I was tired of being there, and it was so nice outside, and I really had no pressing need to be there.

When I got home, The Hermit asked if I wanted to drive with him to Moose Lake, where he needed to pick up a couple prescriptions. I was up for a ride.

On the way we saw three snow buntings. I had not seen any of them in about a month. Then, as we drove into town, crossing the river and seeing open water, we saw them. Two Canada geese.

Spring is here!