The last time I visited Rocky Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge, I didn't
see many birds (click here to refresh your memory -
Water, trees, birds... animals too ;)). But there were
plenty of blackbirds, and last Sunday I fully expected to find them there
too ;) So, I started the morning with a walk around Lake Ladora…
Well… actually, before heading to the lake, I stopped to admire the view
of the Rocky Mountains. Dusted with fresh snow from the previous week,
the mountains looked absolutely stunning.
This is Lake Mary - the smaller one. I would come back there later, but
on my way to Ladora I passed it without going down to the water.
This row of trees looks almost too perfect. I always wonder whether they
were planted at equal distances from one another or if it just happened
naturally. Either way, I always stop to admire them. They look peaceful
and beautiful.
Here was my first catch - a killdeer balancing on this log just a few
feet from the shore. Maybe that’s why it allowed me to get surprisingly
close :) Usually they’re much more cautious around people.
A Yellow-headed blackbird. First of many I found that day :) You can always count on spotting them there.
I continued my hike around the lake, admiring the distant views at the
Rockies, watching people on the trail and not even trying to get close
to the water (because of a wall of grass blocking the access :) ).
An American Coot. Another bird you would see there quite often. I
stopped for a second to say hello, and the bird answered with a
quiet chirp before disappearing into the thick grass.
Then came a Red-winged blackbird - one of the most common birds around
Colorado lakes and ponds. I knew I’d be seeing many more of them, so I
didn’t stay long.
And just a few seconds later, I was rewarded by watching a coot and its chick swimming close to the shore.
I had no idea the chicks looked so wild and unkempt :) During the ten
minutes I watched them, they never drifted more than a couple of feet
apart. It was a really lovely encounter.
Another yellow-headed blackbird. Well, I knew it would be a blackbird
kind of day, so I simply enjoyed watching them and taking photographs
whenever they turned their bright yellow heads toward the sun ;)
This one was definitely an office worker and needed to stretch the wings after sitting at a desk for so long :)
Killdeer again. These birds are usually very easy to scare and rarely
let people get close. This one wasn’t much different and carefully kept
its distance. Honestly, I can’t blame it.
Then, around the next bend, another pair of birds appeared - a couple of American avocets.
It was my first time seeing these birds, so naturally I took my time (and took a good hundred photos too).
Graceful and fascinating birds. They waded through the shallow water,
sweeping their curved bills from side to side in search of aquatic
invertebrates.
At one point, they even put on a little show for me, dancing together before mating :)
As I said, it was my first time observing avocets, so I spent quite a while simply watching them and taking photographs.
Cormorants were there too, resting on a large log in the middle of the lake. Pretty typical behavior for them :)
It turned out the avocets weren’t just wading in shallow water, they
were swimming in deeper water too. I kept watching them until they
finally took off and disappeared somewhere across the lake.
And I continued my walk, seeing more killdeers and blackbirds (both females and males) along the way...
At one point, a red-winged blackbird started shouting loudly at me, and I
got the message - they wanted me out of there :) So I listened and
moved toward Lake Mary to see if I could find something different.
Well… I mostly found the same birds, but I also discovered some amazing reflections in the water.
I walked around a little more, took a 180-degree panorama, and finally
left the park. I had spent more than two hours there and was starting to
get hungry. But I know I’ll be back again, walking the trails and
watching for birds.
Photos taken on May 24, 2026
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