Wednesday, July 20, 2016

A Day with Friends at Greys Lake Refuge

Bob and Nancy visited us last week and of course I told them of all the fish we were catching. We spent a day on the Little Grey and then a day on Salt Creek and you can probably figure out what happened. The water had dropped at both streams and the fishing was nonexistent. Still we had nice picnics and of course the scenery was beautiful, but no fish. So on their last day we decided to take a break from fishing and go birding at the Greys Lake Refuge. Surely the birds would cooperate.
Arriving at the refuge headquarters Renita first spotted a family of sandhill cranes. The day was already a success! A little further down the road Nancy spotted a pair really close to the road and so we tried to take some images as they walked through the thick grass and reeds.
Further on we stopped to watch a turkey vulture sitting on a fence post. A flock of mountain bluebirds put in an appearance and the day became a day of relaxing bird watching. Stopping at some open water we pointed out yellowheaded blackbirds and to add to the stop, three white faced ibis flew overhead. The breeding colored iridescence had faded from their wings but no matter it was a nice trio of close flying birds.
We really spotted quite a few sandhills, many more then we saw during our last trip. Stopping along the road we showed them the volcanic rock that dominates the landscape. Some was hardened pyroclastic breccia which told of nuee-ardente, Its  the most dangerous type of lava that flows down the volcano's sides at several hundred miles per hour.

In places the basaltic lava flows were full of vesicules, bubbles that formed when the molten lava out gassed much like a shaken can of pop. However the lava had cooled so quickly that the bubbles were trapped, forever frozen in the stone.
Leaving the refuge we returned along Tin Cup Creek and found a nice place to stop for a picnic. As we ate a sheep herder drove his flock on the road near us and in the flock was a single black lamb. Renita and Nancy ended up taking way to many images of the sheep drive, but that's what the new cameras are for, taking lots of very inexpensive images.
So we had a nice day of birding and after the necessary hugs and goodbyes waved them adieu promising to see them again, down the road, Of course we went fishing the next day and Renita and I both caught beautiful cutthroats, but that's the way fishing goes. Clear skies.

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