We live near the Willamette River. Almost daily David and I take a path from our house which parallels the river to Willamette Park. It is a beautiful walk with open fields, trees, overlooks where we can easily see the river and areas that are further from the rushing waters. There are nearly always a multitude of bird varieties calling or flying along our route. David has become quite the bird photographer with his zoom lens digital SLR camera. He has photographed Bald Eagles, Song Sparrows, vultures, crows, Cedar Waxwings, Western Bluebirds, an owl, Osprey (one even was carrying a fish!) and various other birds. We are still trying to identify the ones we see and we are doing better at recognizing many of the ones we frequently see.
We see different birds depending on the time of day we walk. In the early morning there is more bird song near the tall trees, but not many large birds around. Afternoons we see the vultures, osprey and hawks soaring or sometimes perching in the tree snags across the river. Sometimes we think we won't see a single bird besides the ubiquitous sparrow and robins, but are surprised by seeing a Great Blue Heron standing in the water or a Golden Eagle soaring in the sky.
The walks are invigorating but also peaceful. We often sit on a bench in the park for a while watching for birds many of which come to our "posing tree" for their photographs. Just watching the water is calming on a busy day. Even though we like our lovely new home, I think I like our proximity to the river more than the house itself. i often feel like we are out in the country rather than so close to town. It makes me grateful to be alive and in such a beautiful area.
We see different birds depending on the time of day we walk. In the early morning there is more bird song near the tall trees, but not many large birds around. Afternoons we see the vultures, osprey and hawks soaring or sometimes perching in the tree snags across the river. Sometimes we think we won't see a single bird besides the ubiquitous sparrow and robins, but are surprised by seeing a Great Blue Heron standing in the water or a Golden Eagle soaring in the sky.
The walks are invigorating but also peaceful. We often sit on a bench in the park for a while watching for birds many of which come to our "posing tree" for their photographs. Just watching the water is calming on a busy day. Even though we like our lovely new home, I think I like our proximity to the river more than the house itself. i often feel like we are out in the country rather than so close to town. It makes me grateful to be alive and in such a beautiful area.
No comments:
Post a Comment