This post is not an April Fool’s Day joke! This all really happened…

I arrived at Silvio with a sky filled with clouds. The forecast was for the sun to pop through shortly after sunrise. The temp was right around 32 degrees. I started the loop going clockwise like I usually do. I kept wondering how far I would get before the puddles would be too deep - well, it didn’t take long at all. I have good waterproof boots but the depth of the first puddles would have been too much even for my boots- so I turned around to try the loop counter clockwise.

The Sandhill Cranes are back!! As you know I tried to locate them recently with no luck…. On Thursday morning I received an email letting me know that they had arrived - four of them!I They arrived back at the Ashfield property where I have permission to wander around. As is the routine - the parents fly back with the previous year’s young ones. As soon as they arrive it is as if the parents are saying - ok we got you back to your place of birth - now it is time for you to begin your own lives somewhere else in the neighborhood!

What a morning I had this past Wednesday…. a spectacular morning at Silvio - slight breeze and about 28 degrees - yet another day with a face mask. I have to say I felt it in my bones that I would see an owl Wednesday morning…. Wednesday marked 6 months since my/our beloved Lorraine passed away…

I arrived 30 min before sunrise - exactly when I wanted to arrive. I decided I would do the loop as many times as it was going to take to spot an owl - so off I went. I went as quietly as possible - scanning from high to low and everywhere in between.

This morning I went to Ashfield looking for the Sandhill Cranes - they will be arriving any moment. It was 24 degrees once again a face mask was required! No cranes - after searching in all of the possible spots that I know of I decided to leave and go to Edge Hill in Ashfield and try my luck there. The sun was still behind the mountains there which meant that I had the chance to set up and get ready near the tiny pond and wait for the magic. The pond still had more than half of it covered in a thin layer of ice.

This past Thursday and Friday I spent many, many hours outside - no face masks required! What a treat to dress for just above freezing temps and head out. Thursday morning I went back over to Honey Pot. We had had a dusting of snow during the night so everything had a beautiful thin coat of snow on it. I was hoping to see the short-eared owl which is still being reported - but no luck again. But I did have luck with something else that I had also been hoping to see… Well before sunrise I was standing up alongside the CT river scanning the field behind me…

It has been quite some time since I have been out for an early morning outing - it was a treat to get in the car and head out. I decided to go to Honey Pot Road in Hadley this morning - I was looking for an easy walk to try and begin to get back into the rhythm of morning outings. It was a gorgeous March morning in New England - 28 degrees, perfectly clear and absolutely no wind. As I drove to Hadley the horizon was just starting to lighten with red, orange and yellow hues - it was setting up to be a beautiful sunrise.

A quick post to share some exciting news! I was contacted last week by Renee Gannon of the Trustees from The Trustees of Reservations asking my permission to share my incredible encounter with the bobcat at Bullitt! Bullitt Reservation is one of the many properties that The Trustees of Reservations oversees throughout Massachusetts. An employee at The Trustees had seen my blog post and passed it along to her which set this all in motion. Of course it was my absolute pleasure to grant permission.

I left the house Thursday morning for Silvio- temperature was 12 degrees and it was not going to hit 14 until 2 hours after sunrise. Thankfully - no wind! I arrived at Silvio well before sunrise and had decided that I better only make one loop because of the frigid temps. It was so incredibly cold that as I made my way to the first of the wooden walkways the wood was snapping and popping incredibly loudly with each step that I took. The popping sounds echoed throughout the woods - I certainly wasn’t going to sneak up on anyone anywhere near those wooden walkways.

Let me start by saying that today’s encounter still has might heart racing… and it happened about six and half hours ago! My day started at my usual hour in Deerfield - I went back to where I was yesterday in the hopes of seeing the Short-eared Owl again… I had absolutely no luck at all - it was extremely quiet. I hung in there for about 2 1/12 hours wandering around trying to find spots where I thought the owl might be hanging out - I just had no luck.

The forecast for this morning was for light snow throughout the morning with temps rights around freezing and little to no wind with cloudy skies all day. I decided it was time to spend time walking the perimeter of farmland in Deerfield that I have permission to wander around on. I left the house at around 6:10 and the sky was still pitch black - no stars and no moon - just beautiful dry fluffy flakes falling down. I followed the Town sanding truck for most of my short 15 min drive to the farmland.

Yesterday I finally decided to get up and out and face the frigid mornings we have been having and head to Silvio. When I arrived it was the windchill was 12 degrees and the wind was howling…. brrrr!!! I chose Silvio because I knew I would have some protection from the winds as I planned on spending my time doing the loop. Of course I was hoping to start the New Year with an owl and I really thought the frigid temperatures just might do the trick…

Wow…. As I was driving back from a beautiful walk on Goose Rocks Beach in Kennebunkport I saw a barred owl sitting in a tree in front of a barn! I was so lucky as there was a dead end street just ahead on the right… I pulled in and parked and grabbed my camera and tripod and walked back to get a good angle to the barred. I then set up behind a tree for over an hour. Today was gorgeous - low 30’s and no wind…

Here are my favorite landscapes so far from my time in Kennebunk…. I was out again today all day in the cold… so many calm and still moments… absolutely stunning….

I am tired out from a lot hours behind my camera today in very cold temps - it was a very peaceful and beautiful time on the river. I decided to do something totally different this year so I am in Kennebunk, ME for a few days this week. These photos are from my entire day on the banks of the Kennebunk River - not far from where it dumps into the Atlantic. The river is fascinating as the tides are constantly changing… about 4 foot differences today between the high and low tides.

There are mornings and then there are mornings… this morning was one of those extra special mornings that I will never forget. I went to Silvio - perfect conditions - 32 degrees, no wind, and I knew the sun was going to show up. I arrived at about my usual time - about 40 minutes before sunrise. I decided to commit to the 1 mile loop and see what I could spot. It was incredibly quiet and beautiful. I made my way around the first time with hardly a peep or chirp from anyone. I decided to go around again -

I had been thinking I would do another post with shots from a variety of mornings until yesterday morning happened. I had gone to Silvio the previous day and witnessed a gorgeous sunrise and a very quiet morning in the wildlife department. So I decided I would go back yesterday morning - gorgeous temps - a little above freezing and absolutely no wind. I pulled in the parking lot and got out of the car hoping I would hear a hoot or two - no hoots but a sweet rabbit hopped over to say to good morning. I pulled out my gear…

Yesterday morning I was up very early after the Election and was in a real daze. I decided the best thing that I could do for myself was to head out to Silvio O. Conte in Hadley. I usually listen to the news when I head out in the morning but I did not do that yesterday - I drove in silence. There were clouds on the horizon making for some very nice light at dawn. I was willing myself to only focus on positive things in our world - like beautiful early morning light. I pulled into Silvio and got out of the car. I was hoping to hear a hoot or two - nothing but beautiful silence…

For this post I thought I would give you some highlights from 3 separate recent outings. I’ll start with the recent full Harvest Moon. I drove to Ashfield on a very cold and frosty morning in time to set up to see the Harvest Moon setting - it was stunning. The grasses crunched under my boots because the frost was so heavy - just so beautiful.

This morning I went to Bullitt…. we had a nice frost, no wind, and it just below 32 degrees. My game plan was to start in the upper field and then work my way down back to the fields near the building. I have been at Bullitt a few times trying to figure out where to be when based on the dramatic low angle light we have this time of year. It was so still this morning that every little song and peep helped me spot our little feathered friends…

Hi Everyone…. I made it out to Bullitt this morning. This weather has been so gorgeous that I promised myself last night I would head out in the morning - I am so glad that I did. I arrived well before sunrise and as soon as I got out of the car I could hear a deer snorting in the woods on the edge of the field by the barn. I got my gear out of the car as quickly as I could as I was hoping I would eventually see the deer. I never did see the deer but wow he or she kept snorting a lot - clearly was not happy about something… maybe me!