One of the interesting things along the nature trail at Idyllwild County Park, was this mortar stone, an artifact of early native peoples for grinding acorns. This site had clearly been used for some time, as the holes were about 6 inches deep--that's a lot of acorns ground up! On top of that, this was the place I managed to spot a White-headed Woodpecker, one of my target birds for the hike! And no, you can't see any of the very poor pics I got of that wily bird! ;-) 5/30/21 www.sparhawkphotography.com
The last few days I have posted shots from the recent hike I took along Mill Creek in the San Bernardino Mountains. The creek bed itself is a very wide, rocky area, in which I photographed the Scotch Broom, the California Poppies and the blooming Yuccas. The creek bed is perhaps a 1/4 mile across; at the far side, the actual creek water runs. This shot is of a quiet area of the creek, at a place where I crossed over (stepping on rocks) to bird on the other side. I figured since I've been referring to Mill Creek all this time, I should show at least one view of the creek itself. 5/19/21 www.sparhawkphotography.com
While walking on the cliffs above La Jolla Cove, I had been hoping to see Black Oystercatchers. The tide was going out, and quite far out in the ocean, these rocks were being revealed by the receding tide. This is the favorite time for this bird to show up, as the mollusks and other sea creatures are newly reachable with their long orange bills. Thank heavens for the bright bills, or it would be easy to miss these birds out on the dark rocks. This is by no means a close up shot, but at least both the birds are visible! 5/1/21 wwwsparhawkphotography.com
