So Snowy! Part 1

 

It's been an amazingly snowy winter in the Great Basin. I thought I'd take a look at my snow photos for the winter and showcase some of this frigid wonder. Here's a photo of the west side of Wheeler Peak taken in November 2022. It already sports a nice cape of white.

At times the kids think they are too old for sledding. But once they're doing it, they love it!

In December, the Upper Lehman Campground in Great Basin National Park had enough snow that someone built a snowman!

On January 1st, we got a big snowstorm, coating the trees and electrical wires. 

Everything was white, including this old cart.

Desert Boy, Finn and I went for a walk. The sky and ground matched.

We had no idea that this was just the beginning of much, much more snow. 

I couldn't resist a couple artistic photos.

The abundant snow made the netting over the chicken pen collapse. The chickens still came out where they could keep their feet dry.

We went up to the Lehman Caves Visitor Center and found even more snow, although the handicapped walk has heaters in it so it was free of snow.

If you looked through the telescopes, you could see more snow!

I couldn't resist skiing up the Scenic Drive, where I saw white carpeting everything.

The pinyon pines looked very different than in summer!

Untracked snow!

We could even go sledding at a lower elevation site. 

This two-track road has been transformed.

I took Desert Boy skiing another day up the Scenic Drive. It might not be his favorite activity, but he's good at it. And the views are always amazing.

The Winter Raptor Route up Spring Valley involved very snowy roads.

From far in the north we could look at the distance Wheeler Peak under a cloudy sky.

In January of every year is the Ely Birkebiener cross-country ski race. The trail was nicely groomed.

I did the long (4.2 mile) race and Desert Girl did the short (1.5 mile) race. I was happy to finish faster than last year. 

Desert Girl finished first overall for her race!

She won a cool award.

We had wonderful snow for the race--but much more was to come!

To be continued

Birdwatching - the Hobby You Can Do Anywhere

Sandhill Cranes practicing a mating dance--or just trying to look cool? Although with something hanging out of your beak, you might not look as cool as you think.

We kept a Backyard Birdlist for 2022 and saw or heard 40 different species in our yard. The two previous years we had gotten to 45 species-Covid helped with that, as we were home more. I still feel pretty good about the 2022 total. 

For 2023, we're up to 16 species so far. The species I'm most excited about so far is the Bald Eagle that was flying overhead. 

I didn't take as many photos of birds in 2022 as some years, but I certainly have some. 

The elusive white turkey. Wait! It turns out there were three spotted in the area this past year. One in the Lehman Creek drainage (this one), one in the Snake Creek drainage, and one near Rudolph Canyon that was later seen carried away by a raptor. The white is good for camoflauge in the winter, but not so good the rest of the year!

I love having chickens--or my mini dinosaurs, as I sometimes call them. They have fun personalities and definitely know when I'm around and talk to me. Here are three of the seven we currently have. The overhead netting on their run is currently down due to snow collapse, so they are more vulnerable to Cooper's and Sharp Shinned Hawks invading. Once it stops snowing long enough, I'll put it back up!

Some burrowing owls! These are just the coolest birds.

A surprise Golden Eagle when we were backpacking up North Schell Peak near Ely, Nevada.

A California quail seen in Ely during a Christmas Bird Count. There was a large flock of them, and I'm wondering if one of the nearby residents is raising a free-ranging herd, as I've never seen that many. They are adorable!

My companions for part of the day on the Snake Valley Christmas Bird Count. You're never too early to start birding! Wait, you can't see birds because you're facing your mom? You can still hear them. LOL

Prairie falcon on a power pole. 

This hawk looks so demure. Just wait until it gets hungry!

Mature Golden eagle. They sure are big birds!

And now the best for last: the Great Horned Owls that nest in our backyard.

Mama owl after a snowstorm, incubating her eggs and ignoring all the snow on her. Based on photos, it looks like she started nesting between February 15th and 23rd, 2022.

Before too long, fuzzy owlets peeked up from the nest in the crotch of the tree. To our great surprise, there were three owlets!

It was a tight fit for all of them in the tree, but they managed it. It appeared to us that the parent owls successfully fledged all three owlets. Way to go!

I'm hearing the mama and papa owls hoot outside the window every evening. I'm wondering if they will pick the same nest again this year? I hope so, as I sure enjoy watching them. 

I plan to continue birdwatching into the foreseeable future. Everywhere I go, there are birds (even in caves we find bird bones, sometimes of species that are now extinct). 

One last story about birds--when I was in Hungary in May, I heard a distinctive cuckoo. What?? Where's the cuckoo clock? Nowhere, it was a real cuckoo bird I was hearing. I was so amazed. I was familiar with cuckoo clocks, but never had given thought to the bird that influenced it. Now anytime I hear the sound of a cuckoo, I think of camping out in Hungary and the bird that surprised me so much!

Favorite 2022 Books

 I love books. Over the years, I find that I tend to listen to more audiobooks than I read, but I still have several physical books next to my bed and in the living room and at my desk that I've partially read. I've given up trying to finish everything, there are just too many. 

Here are some that I enjoyed quite a bit this year. Maybe you will, too. Keep reading to the bottom for my favorite book of the year.

Cave divers are crazy, and that makes for excellent reading. Jill Heinerth's Into the Planet has such a variety of adventures. She also has an interesting podcast.

Keeping with the water theme, Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt follows the life of an octopus and some people and weaves them together nicely.

For a sci-fi series that is told from the robot's point of view, check out Martha Wells' All Systems Red. It's a novella, as are four others in the series. The fifth book is full length. Desert Boy really enjoys these.

A mystery series with a very different setting: Colin Cotterill places his series that starts with The Coroner's Lunch in Laos in the 1970s, a time of communism. It's fascinating to see how different life is.

Another mystery series, set in the England countryside: M.C. Beaton's Agatha Raisin series keeps growing on me. Agatha Raisin is middle-aged and a bit crazy. The cast of characters is colorful. Audible includes most of the early books for free. There are 30+, so I have quite a few to enjoy. There's even a TV series that I may eventually get into.

For a roller-coaster ride, that's not quite believable but still attention-grabbing, I like the Michael Bennett series. James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge have partnered for a 14-book series (I'm only about 4 in).

Jojo Moyes' The Giver of Stars ventures into Kentucky history and paints such a beautiful picture of the countryside. Some nefarious characters and plot twists add to the book.

Drumroll please, my favorite book of 2022: Matt Haig's The Midnight Library kept me thinking, why didn't I write something like this? It's ingenious. I loved how he tapped into our yearning for wanting to know how our lives could turn out if we made different choices. Ultimately, there is no perfect life, and the message he leaves the reader with is just right. I can see why this is a best seller.

If you need a few more, here are suggestions from 2021. I've made the switch from Overdrive to Libby (free library app), and am still getting used to it. I get most of my books from there, with a few bought via Audible and other sources. 

Happy reading. And please let me know your favorites!

Desert Experimental Range, Utah

 

We had the chance to go on a tour of the Desert Experimental Range in the West Desert of Utah recently. This is one of many experimental areas run by the US Forest Service. Most are experimental forests, but a couple are experimental ranges. This one was designated in 1933 by President Hoover, and the CCC helped build it, including the impressive entrance.

Although we were early for the tour, others were already there when we arrived. We joined the group, led by Stan Kitchen, retired USFS research scientist who had managed the Desert Experimental Range for decades.

Because the Desert Experimental Range is so remote, it has numerous buildings so people can stay there. We went into the dorm, while the north house and south house are also still kept up for visitors. Because of their age, the buildings are part of the National Register of Historic Places. 

We were allowed to go into some of the buildings. There are two houses and a dormitory that are still used regularly.

Here's the interior of the dorm.

Outside of the dorm.

There's even an old tennis court!

The South House has some trees of varying health around it.

Interior of the south house.

I thought this old light fixture was cool.

There are some interpretive signs giving additional information.

I think this is the old Ice House.

The utility section is located a short distance away.

Although the houses have modern plumbing, there's a scenic outhouse on the premises.

There are also barns and trailers. They didn't look like they've been used lately.

The Desert Experimental Range has been designated as a United Nations Biosphere Reserve.

Another view of the housing area.

Then we toured part of the range, where fences have allowed various treatments over the decades. Most of the studies have focused on various cattle and sheep grazing regimes and how they impact the vegetation.

Although this trip was in October, we found some flowers blooming, like this globemallow.

Stan pointed out the "silver dollars," circles where gophers have eaten vegetation and in good conditions winterfat grows hardily. In many circles throughout the region, cheatgrass has taken over. I was delighted and baffled to find some harvest ant circles nearby. I'd love to know more about what determines which is predominant.

On the driving tour there are also interpretive signs.

Some robust globemallow! The group is talking on the other side of the fence.

One of the biggest issues is the halogeton invasion of winterfat shrublands. Halogeton is poisonous to livestock. Winterfat is very nutritious. But it appears halogeton often outcompetes winterfat, and no one knows how to reverse that trend.

Some of the beautiful winterfat, also known as white sage.

You can find out lots more about the Desert Experimental Range at: Desert Experimental Range | Rocky Mountain Research Station (usda.gov)