I Never Promised You A Rose Garden

But what if I find one and go there? Should I expect to find some blooms in the middle of September? Actually, I would expect to find a lot of blooming roses there...

 

In the air... on the ground... in the water...

Whoosh... This cormorant flew way too low over my head and made my jump! On the other hand - it was quite an encounter, and I decided to stay a little longer and watch the birds maneuvering through the sky...

 

Beautiful morning and some unexpected finds :)

I know - it's the middle of February, and it’s supposed to feel like winter, right? But it feels like... just kidding, I have no idea what it feels like, but definitely not like any winter I remember :) Last Saturday morning I woke up with the strange feeling that something interesting was waiting for me. I didn’t know what it would be, but the feeling was there. So I drove to City Park, hoping to find some cormorants. Unfortunately, I was disappointed, they haven’t arrived yet. The lake was iceless, and geese were everywhere. Just ordinary geese, not even snow geese. That was a bummer for sure.

 

Different parks... different birds...

I wandered around different parks capturing different birds... City Park, Barr Lake State Park and Rocky Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge... Probably the most exciting find was a Snow Egret. Sometimes this bird keeps its distance, but sometimes lets you get really close.. And it's fun to watch this bird in search of food :)

 

Spring Birds...

Yep, spring is here - and so are the birds. Some of them will disappear in a month or two, while others will simply change growing up - like these adorable Canadian goose chicks. Aren’t they the sweetest?

 

Day of roses

The storm that had broken so many trees was in the past (click here to see - After the storm) and the sun was working very hard to get the snow melted, disintegrated, evaporated... The roads and trails were clear, so we decided that the best way to spend a Sunday morning would be a walk in some beautiful place... And one of the most beautiful places we know is the City Park ;) It is magnificent in spring with flowering trees, beautiful in summer with its green leaves, stunning in fall with these leaves in yellow and red, a bit dull in winter with faded colors and cold... but today it promised a pleasant walk and some vibrant colors in a nice contrast with the white snow. And we weren't disappointed at all... despite the snow, everything was still breathing fall...

 

Angry birds ;)

Not exactly angry, maybe just crazy. Let's go back in time and look at some birds I met this Spring in City park. The most impressive (at least for me) were the cormorants. Big black birds flying like cruise missiles low over the water.

 

A sad day for merganser family

Last Friday I stopped by the small pond in City Park to check on the merganser family. If you remember, just a week ago (six days to be exact :) ) I discovered that the merganser momma had returned and had 10 (!) ducklings (click here to read this story - They are back!). So I wanted to see if the small ones had grown and how the whole family was doing. But the family was still sleeping at the far end of the pond... so I watched them for a couple of minutes before heading towards the big lake in hopes of finding some more waterfowls...

 

They are back!

This morning I stopped by the City Park and they were back! The merganser family is back! Merganser mama and her 10 ducklings (last year there were 8)...

 

Bird's Island

Let's go around the lake... And look for birds (and more). We'll start with a hike around Standley Lake, and continue through the City park, and end with a walk around Belmar Lake. Yep, I will mix the pictures together and... the landscapes may be a little different, but the birds in all three places are very similar... so there's no point in separating them ;)

 

A few birds I found in the City Park

City Park is a cool place to walk in the morning. There are still not too many people on the trails and the birds are everywhere. Do you remember the Common Merganser family? Yep, the funny one ;) So, I was really interested to check on them and I found they still live in the same small lake and the Merganser-mom is still watching for any danger...

 

Birds, Mountains, and Nature's Delights

Embarking on an adventurous Saturday morning, I made a spontaneous decision to visit City Park, curious to catch a glimpse of the endearing Common Merganser family. My intention was simple: to ensure their well-being, to affirm their safety in this bustling world.

 

It's all about family... and some feathery drama!

Ah, it's that time of the year when the water birds start playing matchmaker. Take a leisurely stroll around a nearby lake or pond, and lo and behold, you'll witness some mallard lovebirds paddling around with their adorable ducklings...

 

Long weekend...

South Valley is a great place to spend a couple of hours. Close to the city (probably the closest location you can find), beautiful and easy to hike. So we went there on Saturday morning and... it was absolutely amazing!

 

Birds... angry birds...

Okay, okay... not all of them were angry, but some were! But, let's start from the beginning... In the beginning it was a sunny, but hazy morning and the sky wasn't blue at all... But the bird's silhouettes looked very beautiful against slightly pink-ish background ;)

 

Black and white...

And this is not what you imagine when you hear "black and white". I mean it's definitely about black and white, but about white and black birds, not about movies, photos or chessboards ;) And these birds are black and white in their own beautiful way.

 

City park birds and animals...

This is an early spring and everything in the parks is waking up. The grass is getting greener every day, the buds are about to blossom... And all the animals are even more active and are constantly looking for something tasty... Just look at this squirrel that is looking hungrily at someone who passed by with a hamburger in his hand ;)

 

A day of cormorant's life

Gorgeous black bird with a long neck, orange accent and green eyes... Double Crested Cormorant is a large waterbird... You can meet this bird near rivers and lakes throughout the States - they are widely distributed from the Aleutian Islands in Alaska down to Florida and Mexico.

 

Life of birds

There are a lot of different birds that call Colorado home. We see many of them every day, but some of them are not as common and you need to go somewhere to see them. City Park, for example. Did you know the small island in the middle of City Park is home for a big community of gorgeous black birds? Not a Blackbirds though ;) 

You can meet Double-Crested Cormorants in many places in Colorado, but in City Park they have an island where they feel at home. Stop by and watch these big birds cutting through the air with great speed...

 

Gorgeous day...

The Fall is still here... Can you believe it's November already? I cannot... The days are still warm and nice, the foliage is bright... How much longer can we enjoy watching all this beauty? It doesn't matter... The only important thing that we still can do!