Canyon Adventure Highlights
• Canyon country sites included the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, Zion National Park, Bryce National Park, and Arches National Park.
• Rain, Rain, Rain, Go away –Yes it rains in the desert and it rained on us every day. In Zion, their average for the year is 15 inches but by June they had had 30. With such a wet year, the birds didn’t seem to hang out at the water holes like the last time I was there. I saw more birds on a primitive trail in Arches than at the pond in Springdale, Utah near Zion. Two years ago the same pond held at least 15 different types of birds at any given time.
• Seeing the expression on one of my teen’s face the first time he saw the Grand Canyon. Both teens will be runners in college so all of our mornings started with them running and me birding. It is a great combination.
• While there wasn’t an abundance of birds, I did have several good finds. Life sighting for me, included Lesser Goldfinches, Rock wren, Canyon wren, Painted Redstart, Blue Grosbeak, and a Pinyon Jay. (I have always identified a Canyon Wren by song but I was able to see not just one but two!)
Itinerary
Day 1 Piled the teens into the car and drove to Bluewater State Park, New Mexico near Gallup for the first night. Our campsite was next to a canyon and we were able to listen to the canyon wrens as the sun sat. As we drove I noted several ravens in western Texas and eastern New Mexico and for the life of me I still can’t tell the difference but because of the terrain and location I decided that they were Chihuahuan Ravens. I also noted the familiar outline of western meadowlarks and morning doves as we drove.
Day 2 Awoke to find a small flock of Lesser Goldfinches, one or which perched on the tree above our tent and sang while I made the pancakes. We had a lot of flyovers coming out of the canyon and up over our campsite which included many Brewers Sparrows. We piled into the car again, for a drive to Flagstaff and then turning north to the North rim of the Grand Canyon. (I like the north side better because it has fewer people.) We crossed the Colorado River at Lee’s Ferry where we stopped to get out and look around. Two rock wrens were working one side of the canyon right beside the bridge –No need for my bins and it was my first spotting of this wren so I was excited. We arrived on the North Rim in the evening in time for the sunset but it started to rain. I think this kept most of the birds scrambling for cover. We headed for Zion and pulled in at midnight.
Day 3-5 The mornings were unusually quite. I had been at this same campsite two years ago and it had more birds then. The only visitors were a small flock of Cassin’s Finches just next to the ranger station in the trees. We explored the park and while the river was too high to hike up into the narrows, we did spot a Painted redstart feeding its fledging. We commented on how poorly the fledging looked until I pulled out the book to id it and noted the white line under the eye. This white line makes the bird appear to be sad or sick but in fact it is a beautiful bird and was a first for me. That night I was able to go to the Springdale Nature Pond which is in the town. I had been at Zion two years ago and had been to this pond. It is a must for birders since other water sources are fast moving. This pond usually attracts a wider variety but this year with all the rain only three were present, Yellow Warblers, Black Phoebes, and a singing Blue Grosbeak. During the remaining two days we hiked several of the hikes up the sides of the canyon and I added Dusky and Ash-Throated Flycatchers to my list. We left Zion on day 5 and drove to Bryce National Park which is higher and it was raining quite hard so we opted for a cabin in the campground at Ruby outside of the entrance to the park. I had stayed at this one too and it is a good birding site because of the pond but this time again with the rain I was only able to see an American Coot with a family.
Day 6 and 7 – After the morning run and a big breakfast at the restaurant, we headed for Arches. We stopped at a roadside diner with a hummingbird feeder where several Black chinned Hummingbirds were also dinning. We arrived at Arches after driving through a down poor and couldn’t find a campsite inside the park so we settled for a developed site in nearby Moab. The next day we opted for a primitive hike through the Devil’s Garden and this is where I found the most birds of the entire trip. They were dispersed along this hike out through the desert. I suppose with the record rainfall they were able to get the necessary water from the small puddles found in the rocks. This trail was also away from the crowds and these birds were more shy- at least some were. Birds seen on this hike included , Morning Doves, White throated Swift, Cliff swallows, Pinyon Jay, Bushtits, Gray Vireo, Black throated Gray warbler, Blue Grosbeak, Black Throated Sparrows, Brown Headed Cowbirds and Common Ravens.
Day 8 We awoke and packed up to drive to my sister’s in Leadville Colorado which is the highest town in the lower 48 states at 10,200 feet in elevation. During the drive we stopped at Redcliff, Colorado to take pictures of the old buildings that cling to the mountain side and saw a Western Tanager along with several Black billed Magpies. At my sister’s house, her hummingbird feeder was a very popular spot with as many as twelve hummingbirds at one time and many others fighting for a position. She had Broad tailed and Rufous Hummingbirds with a third that I am not sure about. It looked like a Ruby throated but could this be? This far west and this high?? Could they be black chinned or juveniles? I will pose this question in another forum. She usually has cross billed finches as well but I had very little to no time to bird and was only able to see Mountain Chickadees and Violet Green Swallows.
Notable Bird List
1. Western Meadowlark
2. Red winged Blackbirds
3. Brown headed Cowbird
4. Chihuahuan Raven
5. Common Raven
6. Pinion Jay
7. Steller’s Jay
8. Black Vultures
9. Turkey Vultures
10. Turkey
11. Ferruginous Hawk
12. American Coot
13. Lesser Goldfinch
14. Blue Grosbeak
15. Cassin’s Finch
16. Brewer’s Sparrows
17. Black Throated Sparrow
18. Rock Wren
19. Canyon Wren
20. Painted Redstart
21. Lucy’s Warbler
22. Black Throated Gray Warbler
23. Dusky Flycatcher
24. Ash-throated Flycatcher
25. White throated Swift
26. Cliff Swallow
27. Violet Green Swallow
28. Mountain Chickadee
29. Black Capped Chickadee
30. Bushtit
31. Black Tailed Gnatcatcher
32. American Robin
33. Northern Mockingbird
34. Gray Vireo
Good report.
Thanks. I am now able to add some pictures.