Spring Chukar

Optimism has arrived with spring, in more ways than one. Chukar sounds have returned to the reservoirs in Hells Canyon, after last year's spring silence along most of the shorelines we surveyed. The mild winter and easy spring conditions make finger-crossing less necessary than last year at this time. My mom follows a bird photographer's …

Losing Stuff

Winter So much of bird hunting is about loss. Take yesterday, for example. In the truck, on the icy road to our destination, I lost traction a couple of times. On the hunt, I lost track of Leslie periodically, as well as the friends we hunted with. Peat, whose pad has healed nicely thanks to …

Pad Problem

Peat's right rear pad has been bugging him for a while now, and I thought I'd see if I could get a boot on it so we could look for birds today since hell hasn't frozen over yet. Leslie decided to video the experience (see below). Obviously, the boot was a no-go. I'm not sure …

I’ve Been Cast

Surprised this week by the good folks at Project Upland: they asked if I'd be willing to be interviewed for their podcast series. I was happy to oblige, and really enjoyed talking with the host Nick Larson. This was the second interview I've granted in my short life; the first was in 1978, when a …