January 21st

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After a hard-working morning linked onto a Zoom meeting for Lutheran Marriage Encounter (yes, all you married couples SHOULD attend, what a blessing), we had cheesy scrambled eggs and ½ an English muffin (see, Rosemary, this IS our go-to fast meal), and drove 35 minutes or so to Madera Canyon, a famous birding place we had visited before. First we stopped at the entrance area, paid our fee, and walked a short way at the suggestion of a local couple to a little waterfall (about 20’). It was running freely.

Then we drove the mile or 2 up the canyon to the Lodge, where people hang humming bird feeders, put out corn, seeds of all sorts, and have piles of sticks to attract birds. And they were there in profusion. And there were about 12 of us hardy souls standing there at 50 degrees, rapt with wonder. We met a lovely pair of elderly ladies, one of whom really knew her stuff (that’s the kind of people we like to meet). Yvonne explained the difference between the dark-eyed junco and the yellow-eyed. Neither of them looks like the ones we have in Ohio. That gave us new bird #4 for this trip (we are aiming for 5). Every now and then a troupe of turkeys visited, made a lot of noise, ate all they could, and walked off.

It was fun comparing birdwatching with Yvonne and her friends, especially after we found out that she had been born in Wiltshire, not far from Bath. We had so much in common. Her next trip was to Iceland for birding (? – we weren’t into it then, darn!)

It was 40 degrees at the top of the canyon when we left. We could see the mining operations in the distance – strange “bath tubs” of unnaturally blue water where they mine copper. The ladies are staying in its shadow (from CO) and say if ever those walls would fail, the entire Green Valley retirement cty would be swept away. Actually there is another one right above us!

A quick stop at Fry’s again for another dinner of curry soup and a shared dragon roll (sorry Lucy, no photos of elegant meals), and we are in for the night to catch up on notes, blogs, devotions, and sleep. We intend to be at the canyon at 8 am tomorrow morning to catch sight of an elegant trogon, before an 11:30 church service. Wish us luck!

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