A Great Day in Singayta

November 17, 1993 was a watershed day that helped to inspire my first painting in more than four months. It started at first light when I hopped aboard an Eastbound bus in San Blas, Nayarit, Mexico. After about five miles the highway rose up out of the Mangrove swamps and into the tropical forest. In a short time the bus stopped at the tiny village of Singayta and I got off.
I had already been to Singayta many times over the years and I decided to break away from my usual routine of walking through the village to explore the forest beyond. This time I continued on up the highway on foot. The forest canopy covered the entire highway so I walked in a shady tunnel of vegetation. There was a cacophony of bird calls all around.
One of the prize birds that I spotted that morning was the endemic, Russet-crowned Motmot in the photo above.

Another spectacular bird, the also endemic, Black-throated Magpie Jay. It is much more common than the motmot.

A difficult to spot inhabitant of the area is the Ivory-billed Woodcreeper. They behave very similar to the Brown Creepers of the Northern Hemisphere. White-striped, and Olivaceous Woodcreepers occur a little higher up.

The forest around San Blas and Singayta abound in parrots, Mexican Parrotlets, Orange-fronted Parakeets, Lilac-crowned Parrots, and White-fronted Parrots like the bird above. Higher in elevation, there are Military Macaws.

The tropical forests around Singayta are the best place I know of to see the endemic, Citreoline Trogon. There are Elegant Trogons as well. Other regular birds are Mexican Cacique, San Blas Jay, Masked Tityra, Rose-throated Becard, Golden-cheeked, lineated, and Pale-billed Woodpeckers, and so much more.
On that day I got my first Fan-tailed Warbler. The thing that set the day apart were the many hummingbirds I saw that day. Along with the usual, Black-chinned and Cinnamon Hummingbirds, I saw Berriline Hummingbird, and several new species, Mexican Hermit, Mexican Woodnymph, (both endemics) Plain-capped Startthroat, Violet-crowned Hummingbird, and Ruby-throated Hummingbird. I also saw a Magnificent Hummingbird.

Eventually the highway rose up out of the forest and flattened out across some agricultural fields. I saw a dirt road leading off to the left and guessed that it might ultimately connect up with the road that leads back to Singayta. I was right in that assumption and I was soon back into the forest. One of the birds I saw was, Collared Forest Falcon, above. Further along I saw a Blackish Crane Hawk, another of the many great local raptors.
As the day grew very hot, the birding action died down and biting insects prevailed throughout the forest. I drank all the water in both of my canteens, and still had more than a mile to walk, just to reach Singayta. Up ahead I heard a Happy Wren that sounded anything but happy. It was loudly scolding. I thought that it was upset at me, but soon noticed that it was paying no attention to me.
Its attention was focused on a clump of vegetation about eight feet above the road. I thought that there must be a snake hiding inside the tangle of vines and dead leaves. When I looked closely, I saw that the wren's attention was on a clump of curled dead leaves on top of the tangle. Then part of the clump turned, and there were two fierce yellow eyes staring back at me. I saw that it was an owl. A tiny owl, about five inches in length. Its markings looked like a Ferruginous, (now Ridgway's Pygmy Owl), but it was much smaller. It could only be a Colima Pygmy Owl. One of the world's smallest owls, and another lifer for the day.
I managed a few quick photos before it flew off, but I have since misplaced those poor quality photos.

So this is the first thing that I have painted since September. Colima Pygmy Owl, 8x10". I finished it today, but I'm not sure that it's finisned. I won't varnish it until I'm satisfied with it. The owl is passable but the setting still needs a better effort.

A Bicycle Odyssey

Scott Christy and his wife Jean Tam have contributed material for a number of blog posts in the past. This time they spent this fall travelling through select parts of New England on bicycles, fom Maine to Virginia. They rode for at least 400 miles through some very scenic and historic areas. That is Jean in Maine in the photo above.

They were accompanied on parts of their journey by friends, and Scott's sister. They rode collapsible bicycles that they could stow in their small airplane. They tried to avoid roads or trails open to motorized vehicles. They camped wherever they could.

New England is famous for its brilliant Autumn colors, and Jean And Scott hit the region during prime leaf transition.

A rustic covered bridge.

Just like, The Bridges of Madison County. Remember that movie?

I guess that this is some kind of Oak.

This photo reminds me of another old movie, On Golden Pond. This scene only lacks a loon. Speaking of loons, Jean and Scott live next to a small lake, (Connor's Lake) in Anchorage. They built and maintain a floating platform that is used by a nesting pair of Pacific Loons every year. They added loon cams to monitor the progress of egg hatching etc. Cornell Lab of Ornithology hosts a live feed of these loons on their website during the nesting season. I dont have the link on hand, but it's something like, www.cornell.edu.

A very picturesque, coastal hamlet in Maine.

This must be Red Maple.

The Maine coast.

Now it's on to points South. Stay tuned for more of Jean & Scott's travels through New England.

Artists For Conservation etc.

Right now it's the time of year for the annual Artists For Conservation book to come out. The rabbit painting which is the current header for this blog was in last year's book. It is quite an honor to be accepted into this organization which limits it's worldwide membership of nature oriented artists to 500.

This year I entered my Muskoxen painting, called, Shaggy Beasts. About 100 paintings get chosen for the book. It made the cut, Yippee!

Along with the book, there is a companion calendar. Being chosen for last year's calendar was one of the highlights of my artistic carreer.

Imagine my surprize when I found this painting also included in this year's calendar. What an unexpected thrill. Frankly I think that there were many other paintings in the book that deserved to be in the calendar more than this painting.

I'll flesh this post out with some winter shots of the Coastal Trail.

I know that I have included very similar views in the past. I have not gone anywhere good in a while.

Sleeping Lady, also known as Mount Susitna. The Coastal Trail is a barren place in the winter.

There is usually something living to see, but it can be a lot of walking before you see any signs of life.

Let's Get Vertical

Horizontal photos fit the format of a blog much better; but this post is all about vertically oriented photos. See the footprints of some unknown animal leading to the water? This is the Eagle River Valley, on the edge of Chugach State Park. A favorite place of mine. I lived twelve miles downriver from here for thirteen years.

Notice that this is the same peak as the former photo? It was also featured upside down in the last post; Polar Bear Peak, ( in the summer) with it's hanging glacier.

.And a sinewy waterfall on a mountain slope in the Eagle River Valley..

Another dramatic Autumn vista in the Eagle River Valley.

Now for some of the wildlife of the Eagle River Valley, like this Rock Ptarmigan, high on a slope above the valley floor.

This is not another ptarmigan, but a close relative from down in the bottom of the valley. It's a Spruce Hen. These two species of game bird can be quite tasty. They can also be very tough and gamey, depending on what they have been eating.

When this fledgeling Great-horned Owl reaches adulthood, it will no doubt happily feast upon either of the former birds. It was right near the Eagle River Nature Center.

A Hermit Thrush carries a beak full of worms to it's young in the nest not far from where I saw the G.H.O.

Also nearby, a Common Redpoll.

Every August, Sockeye Salmon show up in the Eagle River Valley to spawn. It is always fascinating to watch, but you also have to watch out for bears who show up for dinner.

Loving Those Mountains

Years ago I met a woman living in the White Mountains of Arizona who grew up on the Great Plains. She remarked to me that she was intimidated by big mountains and especially terrified whenever she had to drive along steep, narrow mountain roads. 
I have shared her stress being on death defying roads like Papallacta Pass in Ecuador. The Salt River Canyon in Arizona is notoriously scary to many people. At least it has good roads with frequent pull outs.
Other than driving challenges, I have always loved mountains, and always lived in, or near them.
I also love painting them, like this small 8x10" Caribou set against a mountainous backdrop.

This is an upside down view of Polar Bear Peak above Eagle River. I may have posted this photo before, but I really liked how utterly still the water was when I shot this photo.

The land of the midnight sun. It was about midnight when I shot this photo of Iliamna, (an active volcano) while I was standing on the beach near Homer.

The big boss of North American Mountains is Mount Mckinley. Called Mount Denali by the politically correct. It can sometimes be seen from Anchorage. In this view it is barely visible on the right, in this photo from the hills above town. That's Mount Foraker on the left.

A close view from the Parks Highway, taken on a bitterly cold, Winter day.

Mt. Mckinley and Foraker from the other side. The big mountain looks completely different from different angles. Some mountains like the Grand Tetons or the Matterhorn hav a very distinctive, and majestic look. Mckinley looks like a big pile of cow poop from most angles. Nevertheless, it retains its majesty.

It certainly looks regal when viewed from Reflection Pond in Denali National Park. Many people travel to the park hoping to get a good view of the mountain. It is hidden in clouds of its own making most of the time. They leave disappointed in their quest, but they always see great wildlife.

This angle deserves another look without the pond.

Getting even closer. The base of the mountain is blocked by its foothills.

From this viewpoint you can see twin summits. I forget which of the two is actually highest.

Mckinley is 20,320 ft high. You can feel the cold emanating from it as you get closer. There are always hearty souls who feel the need to climb it. That is no easy feat, and many people die in the attempt. I certainly have never been that adventurous nor physically capable of such an attempt. But what a glorious pile of cow dung it is.

A Mystery Bird and Other Stuff.

My nephew Jeremy sent me a few more photos from Petersburg, including a mystery bird. This is not it. In fact, it's the local scavenger that hangs around his neighborhood.

Jeremy says he took this photo out of his window.

Another bird photo taken from his window. Also not the mystery bird. It's the dark, Northwestern race of the Song Sparrow.

This is the bird in question. Clearly a merganser, although it's not at all clear, concerning both focus and species.

At first I confidently e-mailed Jeremy, telling him it was a male, Common Merganser. Now I'm not entirely sure. It has odd markings. It may be a wierd Red-breasted Merganser, or possibly a hybrid of the two species. Any thoughts on the subject?

Yesterday I had a wonderful Thanksgiving meal at my nephew Danny's house in Wasilla. That's him at the head of the table. His wife Angie, at the bottom of the photo is a wonderful cook.

After stuffing my face, I went for a short walk with two of my nieces through the neighborhood. Surprisingly, there is no snow in Wasilla right now.

The temperature never rose above the low teens farenhiet. That's Jessie in the photo above.

Jessie leads her little sister Olivia through the woods on their property.

Late afternoon alpenglow on the nearby, Talkeetna Mountains.