"I am at home among trees." ~ J.R.R. Tolkien
For months I have been mostly MIA from my blog posts. I've missed sharing with my blog friends the news about life along the trail and in the backyard, and I've definitely missed the exercise; so I decided this first day of the new year would be a good time to get my feet back …
It was time for breakfast, and I was ready for my toast and cocoa, but one glance out the kitchen window told me we had a surprise guest. No need to set an extra place at the table though because this guest was huge, way too large to take a chair at the table...and he …
When summer rolls around, a familiar bird in our backyard is the Baltimore oriole pictured above. One glance at her beak as she zooms through the backyard is enough to tell you the oriole has recently enjoyed a taste of the grape jelly in the backyard buffet. Hummingbirds, another common bird in Northeast Ohio during …
In my blip yesterday, I wrote about the possibility of a freeze overnight and what that might do to my daffs. Well, we did have a freeze. First thing this morning I asked Alexa for a weather report. When she said it was 32 degrees, I dressed warmly, picked up my camera, and headed out …
At home, during the covid-19 lockdown here in northeast Ohio, I can't gather with my (human) friends for a cup of coffee (or a mug of cocoa, my preferred beverage). So this morning I turned to my backyard friends for entertainment, and the pileated woodpeckers didn't let me down. They flew in, and hung around …
If I'm wrong, please correct me, but I'm guessing this is a male American Redstart. I found a hot-spot for migratory birds along the trail today, and this colorful bird was among the crowd. A later spring migrant in northeast Ohio, redstarts arrive around mid-May. It is a medium-sized bird with bright orange patches on …
Rain, rain, go away Come again some other day. Little Johnny wants to play. Running through my head repeatedly, that rhyme, remembered from my childhood, couldn't be more true to the way I feel about April...and now May! Little Johnny and Little Sally would like the rain to stop and the temperature to warm up …
As you may be aware, this handsome red bird is not an unusual visitor to my blog. All birders in northeast Ohio, as well as many other states, are familiar with the Northern cardinals, which are year-round residents of this area. So while I was hoping to find some migratory warblers on my trail walk …
As I walked the trails in Chagrin River Park this week, I didn't see too many signs of spring; however, I am remaining true to the intentions I wrote about several weeks ago in this blog post. The most interesting thing I spotted today was this bird ... The towhee is not a rare bird, …
Walking in the park today, I saw a lot of mallard ducks, both male and female. The males, like the handsome fellow pictured above, were at times swimming sedately in the river and, at other times, diving down for a treat. Comically waving their orange-colored feet in the air, they scrambled around underwater, searching for …
SEEN ALONG THE TRAIL 