Night at Conn Dam

This is Conn Dam at night, with the moon lighting up the water going over the spillway. I had planned to go south to the marshes, but thick fog was coming in. It would have been much better to check out this area in daylight, find a good composition, and come back at night. Anyway, this is an exposure of one and a half minutes, and you can see a small star trail. This picture will open if you click on it.

Out in the Yard

Today, I siphoned all the pools at IBRRC, which is a good time to admire the beauty of the birds. Too bad it was foggy all day - sunlight would have lit up their colors.

Canvas Back Duck

Ring-necked Duck, side view.

Ring-necked Duck, face on.

Common Murres apparently enjoying the spray from a hose. These were found beached and oiled, but now look great. They mostly need to put on muscle and get their red blood cells up.

Kramer showing off his plumes.



Our Black Swan, Natalie, who has become quite tame. She is not a native.



Kramer tries to chase away other egrets who are trying to compete with him for a chance to steal food. Sometimes he goes crazy trying to chase away 3 or 4 at once.

New Trail

Today, I hiked a new area out of Hood Mountain Regional Park near Santa Rosa. The day warmed up beautifully as I headed up streams and steep hills. After about 6 miles, I reached the crest and could look down the other side at Napa Valley.

The streams were running clear.

There were areas of spider webs covered in dew. Where the sun hit them, they lit up like tiny prismatic beads.

Manzanita flowers look like petite Chinese lanterns.

Looking west towards the ocean. Well, that's it for today.

Mysterious Deck

Today, I hiked up Oat Hill Mine Trail, and at the top, took a lightly used trail onto the new Land Trust area. After about a half mile, I left that trail and headed to the base of a tall cliff that was screened off by some Douglas Firs. Surprise! I discovered a deck built into the opening of a cave.

At first, I thought this was a mine - wrong. I think it is just a hangout for the ranch folks. Down below was an old stone foundation, and a more recent BBQ setup. Maybe this was/is their hunting camp.
It was well-built and very secluded. It was also built around a tree.

A pretty cool place to hang out, I think. Overhead were 20 -30 ravens doing aerobatics - I think this is their home, as I saw them above the same cliff last spring.

Nearby was a pool fed by a spring that looked deep enough to soak in on a hot day. Well, that's it for today - time to eat!