Busy Birds

It's that time of year again: time to check on the rookery. Before I invite others to visit with me, I always do a preview.

The waters of the bay were higher than I've seen on any previous ride. A fellow cyclist even stopped to remark the same. High tide, sure; but still puzzling. [Until later, as I was riding home and remembered that the moon is almost full—two more days.]

There were birds to see along the way: egrets, great and snowy.

Eared grebes, feeding their ride-along offspring.

There were more fledglings than I expected at the rookery, but I should have remembered that from last year's visit.

With a stiff headwind along the bay (and a full loop of 45 miles with some 1,200 feet of climbing), of course I stopped at for a (now-traditional) fresh fruit tart on the way home. Stay tuned for next week's visit (with friends)!