History(And Birds)

Mexican culture is alive at the La Fiesta de Tumacácori

Years ago I moved to Arizona.  Then I traveled the world just to confirm how cool Tucson really was. Maybe there was some place even more amazing?  But after all my adventures, it was Tucson that I would, without a doubt, call home. As I have invested myself into the community over the years, I have become part of the Tucson fabric.

My first true passion, before birds, was the Hispanic culture, specifically the Mexican one. 

The closest I could get to Mexico (and still be in the US) was Arizona.  I didn't want Texas, New Mexico or California.  I wanted Arizona.  My 8th grade trip to Flagstaff forever changed my life.  When I went back to Wisconsin after that magical summer in the canyons and mountains, I knew that one day I would leave my hometown for good.  Then during another magical trip to Mexico City my Senior year of high school, I altered my course once again.  Spanish. As I did my research, I discovered a little city(at the time) known as Tucson. This city had the best of both worlds.

Cactus Wren

This weekend, we took the history club around Southern Arizona to visit all of our amazing landmarks. It was such a fun time.  Not only did we combine the old missions and the mining towns of Tombstone and Bisbee, we were also able to watch live performances of traditional Mexican dance.  (And on the side), I had the students point out the birds that they were observing. It was the ultimate wildlife, historical and Mexican heritage tour ever.  Seeing Southern Arizona through their eyes reminded me of my love for this state. 

The Earps meet in Tombstone at the OK Corral

The trip was organized by my friends Lori and April who then invited me along for the fun. They hadn't been to many of these places before and I had mentioned that I often go to bird around these historical sites.  Once we packed the students up in the vans, our adventures began!

Common Raven

How often do I pass these places and not really look at the majestic churches or old towns?  Well in my defense, I'm forever looking for or at birds:)

the mission of San Xavier Del Bac

During our trip, I ran into a former student who graduated with a Natural Resource and Spanish degree (and was working at Saguaro National Park!)  My dream job!  She was at a booth in the festival promoting National Parks. I was so proud.  She told me she earned her Spanish degree because of my class. And that's always good to hear. Better than a paycheck. Then a current student met with my now much older former student and it was so strange! I saw the beginning of the end.  The teacher becomes the student again. And his former student becomes a mentor with wonderful advice about getting into the national parks system. 

Lark Sparrow at the Tubac Presidio Museum

 The current students had fun role playing at the Tubac Presidio.  Imagine being in this old classroom.  It has style!  I'd love to have a classroom like this!

I introduced the students to Mexican Jays. Or was it the other way around?:) Jays are always cooperative birds....with a little food.  Again, a student brought Ritz crackers and was munching on them when the jays heard the crinkle of the package and then........we had pretty blue jays all around us.  

Mexican Jay

We strolled along the roads of Bisbee doing a little holiday shopping in the wonderful fall like temps. 

the old mining town of Bisbee

Wherever we had wildlife, we stopped to look at it just like we would if we were on a tour in a mine or museum. 

White-tailed Deer at the Chiricahua National Monument

It was a beautiful weekend out. 

Lori and April at Tombstone

On a side note, if these posts feel like they are up and down emotionally, they are.  During this trip, my Grandma's husband finally passed away. Life doesn't care.  It forces me to keep going but it's amazing how I can go from laughter to tears each day. Between my Grandma, her husband Bob, my cat, the political scene here, conservation attacks, tours, it's amazing I haven't gone bonkers.  But writing has helped me process all of these emotions. This past weekend I took a bad spill on a road while hiking.  I was telling a student to be careful and as I said it, I tripped and did an acrobatic feat that I didn't even know I could do.  My training has taught me to roll.  So instead of breaking a bone, I have some nice scrapes and bruises on the left side of my body. I always wondered how people fell.  Now I know. It sucks.

I am reminded that life is full of surprises and I have to roll with the punches(and scars:). I do know that we had an amazing experience this weekend and I'm grateful for those moments. There is yet so much more work to be done and by educating our youth about these historical and wild spaces, we are helping the young understand the importance of these much needed landmarks. They are, after all, why I moved to Arizona in the first place. Until next time.....

Imagine the Impossible

Gila Woodpecker

As a person who likes photos, there is nothing more rewarding than getting excellent shots of the birds or creatures in the area. But not all birds are so photogenic like the birds above or below.....:)
 

Mexican Jay

I mean sure.  Jays, Flickers and Woodpeckers don't mind posing.  But there are others who WON'T stay still!  
 

Northern Flicker

Over the next several months, big trips have been planned, but sometimes I don't have to go far to work on my birds.  Probably the most daunting of tasks is getting decent shots of birds that hide in the grasses or reeds.  However, it's not impossible......
 

Chestnut-collared Longspur

Case in point, the Chestnut-collared Longspurs.  Birders would tell me, "Good luck. You're lucky if you even catch a glimpse of them." In fact, this bird is notorious for sounding off first and then shooting straight out of the grass into the air and down before one can can say..."That's a...!" They're that fast.  The trick is listening for their flight call.  And I wanted pics of these birds.  This particular trip wasn't for a life bird or even finding new birds for the year.......it was the photographer/OCD type in me that made me head over to Willcox.  And I'm glad I did.  The dizzying cloud flew around us 6 times.  I stood absolutely still as they zipped by my head.  Normally, it's one pass and VANISH!  However, this time I could prep my camera and predict patterns.
 

This is what most birders are lucky enough to see.  By the time we get our binoculars on these birds, they are gone!

I am a determined person. Sometimes, it's almost like there is a mental block telling me that I'll fail finding the birds. Thankfully there have been many teachers who have shared their experiences with me.  Their wise words have allowed me to take on the most difficult birds. The secret? It's all about understanding their individual habits and habitats.  And standing in those grasses this past weekend, I felt really proud of the moment.  There is this feeling of satisfaction and happiness.  Sometimes it takes many tries to get to that moment, but it makes that moment even sweeter when it happens.  No one, but a birder, knows the amount of effort that goes into discovering those impossible and challenging birds.  

And it's all quite beautiful. Once that mission was accomplished, I just relaxed and enjoyed the rest of the day. 

Harris's Hawk taken with my cell phone.

 Lately, I've had a lot of wildlife encounters. At work, I've had a Harris's Hawk chill out with me at a bridge while I was looking out over a dry wash.  It made a difficult day better. 

As I was tracking a Great Horned Owl, I noticed several deer heads pop up around the grasses.  We all continued on as if I were one of the herd. Magic.  Later I sat on a bench in the middle of a canyon with Pat and almost fell asleep under the canopy of the trees.  There was a lovely breeze that just whispered "siesta":)
 

Chiricahua National Monument

Today's post was centered around Willcox and the Chiricahua National Monument.  Until next time....
Check out amazing birds from around the world at Wild Bird Wednesdays!

Twisted

Greetings everyone, I hope you are all enjoying the month of October.  This month I am taking us to random and scary places both near and far.  Today's venture is an artsy look at trees with personalities.  I remember watching the Wizard of Oz as a kid growing up.  Everytime Dorothy and gang got close to that apple orchard, I freaked out.

                                               

Today's photo shoot happens to be up in the Chiricahua National Monument which isn't too far away..... 

Imagine if trees could fight back.  We'd all be goners! I imagine them throwing rocks at us or picking us up and crushing us with their bare branches!

Hmmm....do I spy some creature hiding behind this tree?

Is it a wood elf?

No no.....just a tourist who doesn't like to hike:)  More tomorrow friends.

Chiricahua National Monument

It feels good coming back to the garden and Southern Arizona after a month or so in the tropics. My summer flew by fast! While I loved my trip to Panama and completing my Peru journals, I realized that I need to be here for awhile.  In fact, during my trip to Panama, the fires were raging about in Willcox, Bisbee, and Sierra Vista.  Everyday, I'd go online to see how much or little containment had happened.  I don't mind wildfire season at all, but when it gets out of control(and caused by people!!!), that's when I get a little angry.  As it would happen, I would visit the Chiricahua National Monument the day before the Horseshoe 2 fire began.  Here is some info about this incredible park and our experiences there.  I took these photos before my Panama trip in June.

First off.  Getting to the Chiricahua National Monument from Tucson is a bit of a drive so leave early.  I'd like to say it took us 3 hours, but we were stopping along the way for pictures here and there.  The trip itself has patches of interesting and boring all mixed together.  There were stretches of road that went on for quite a ways without anything around it except tumbleweed!  Let me reassure you that the trip is worth it!

The rock formations at this park are incredible as is the wildlife.  Again this place is a hotspot for birders and other outdoor enthusiasts.  You can camp here, hike here, and even drive up and down the scenic roads if you're into those "Sunday Drives".  For me, it was a great break from the Tucson heat.  It's MUCH cooler here...especially at the higher altitudes.  It can also get extremely windy.

It had also been very dry so when the human caused Horseshoe 2 fire began, I knew it was time for this mountain region to take the "next great hit".  As we were driving up the roads through the park, we noticed A LOT of old growth.  Trees grew tall next to each other like they did on Mt. Lemmon before her fire.  One of the things my better half and I spoke about in the car was about how this area had been spared the devastating fires of recent years.

Well as Murphy's Law would have it, everything would change the next day.  Our canyons and forested areas are losing ground here in the state of Arizona.  It's not just drought.  I think it also has to do with the forest management regulations from earlier on.  If we rewind a bit back to say...the 1950's, the forest management policies were to preserve and protect forested areas.  Today, if that same area is burning and doesn't affect human settlements or endanger protected wildlife, the policy is to just let it burn. Well that's all good, BUT when the policy changed, unhealthy or dead trees should have been removed. As you can imagine, with all that dry timber over the years building up, a fire will catch quick.  In the above pic, you can see several dead trees standing.  While they were cool looking, it would also be fuel for the Horseshoe 2 fire. Today, I think the firefighters do an outstanding job as does the forest service.  We've learned a lot over the years as a people.  The drought has caused fires to burn hotter and longer which is why it is a bit more devastating for our state.

The rocks formations are amazing here.  We felt like we were in another place entering this national monument.

If you love hiking, you'll really enjoy this park.  There were trails everywhere.  In fact, this shot was taken from one!

Tomorrow, I'll return to Mt. Lemmon for some artsy shoots.  They are reflections that while fires are devastating, they also have a purpose.  So while the Chiricahua area suffered "damage", it will come back in the next several decades.  I think it hits people the hardest because decades mean nothing for Mother Nature.  I remember an old man during the Aspen fire on Mt. Lemmon.  He told me that he was very sad.  Growing up in their 100 year old family cabin, he recalled all the happy memories up on the mountain.  If you hadn't seen Mt. Lemmon before the fire, it was incredibly magnificent.....it still is, but it isn't the same.  The older gentlemen lost that family cabin, sold the land, and made a statement that I won't forget......"I will never again see the Mt. Lemmon of my youth.  By the time the forest restores itself, I will be dead and gone."  And that's when it hit me.

The 90's were fun.  I'd take my special needs kids up to Mt. Lemmon or Chiricahua for a picnic and hike on my summer program.  Large areas of trees smothered the trails with their super tall and giantesque build.  Most of them are all but gone as is the quircky little lodge I used to sit and drink my coffee at while writing letters to my family back home.  In a moment of hunger, I would go to the pie place across the road.  The owner has since died and the place no longer is open.  And what hit me?  Change.  Everything changes and we have to learn to adapt because life likes to throw us curve balls.

If there is one image I could share with you all about the devastation of a fire, it would be this.  After the Aspen fire, my friends who own their cabin on Mt. Lemmon, allowed me to come up with them to see the damage.  There were charred remains everywhere and only stone chimneys stood to remind me that cabins once existed. Smoke hung heavy in the air.  But I will never forget this image.  While my friends were spared their cabin, the surrounding neighbors hadn't been so lucky. While we were walking around the ruins, a deer emerged from an island of woods.  She had ash on her and looked beaten up, but the deer walked and searched for food.  On Mt. Lemmon, I have two secret spots that I go to reflect.  One is still there while the other place has been erased from history.  There had been a cool little red cabin trapped in time among an old area of growth.  I went to that cabin and discovered that it, along with the surrounding vegetation, had all been burned.  But the deer was there and to me, it was a sign that things would be okay.  It's hard to grasp the devastation a fire can cause and for many people who lived on Mt. Lemmon. They will never forget the day the mushroom cloud formed on top of Summerhaven as gas tanks exploded everywhere from the intense heat. I was driving home from work in the afternoon when it all happened.  It was like someone dropped a nuclear bomb on top of the mountain.  Today, several years later, the place is showing signs of life and regrowth.  I hope the next set of posts will encourage those who have been affected by our terrible wildfire season. Whether it's Madera, Sabino, or Carr canyon, Mt. Lemmon, or the Chiricahua National Monument, life still moves forward. There are always ways to help or volunteer your time.  For more info on the Chiricahua National Monument, click on this link here....  http://www.nps.gov/chir/index.htm

Lest We Forget

Cabins have been rebuilt to replace those lost in the Aspen Fire

Returning back home for awhile, I thought it would be important to visit Tucson with a photo series dating back to May before the major fires burned a historic amount of land in the state of Arizona from this past summer.  It just happened that we also visited the Chiricahua Monument a day before the Horseshoe 2 fire. We'll take a look at this National Park tomorrow and then return to Mt. Lemmon for several days.  I wanted to capture in this next series of posts some of the benefits a fire can bring to our environment.  So today, I'm up on Mt. Lemmon many years after the Aspen Fire taking a look at what's going on.....

New growth is everywhere!!

While the tree canopy does not tower over many areas on Mt. Lemmon like it once did, sunlight now passes onto exposed land allowing new trees a chance to grow. 

Some trees still fall today from those fires, but for the most part, there is a resurgence of new plant growth. Ash from the fires help create better soil.

On the road to the cabin

Some areas on Mt. Lemmon were spared the devastation which now act as an oasis for birds and other mammals.  Fires, we found out, carry on their own personalities.  My friend's cabin and this patch of woods in the above pic weren't touched because of the way the wind happened to be blowing during the fire.  While heat slowly killed several of the larger trees around their place, a lot the original vegetation still remains.  Some call this Russian Roulette.  Others will plainly say that they were lucky.

This trail is near the cabin off the road with the ski lifts.  I know my way around the mountain, but I don't know the names of the trails or streets!!  It's like my hometown of Two Rivers. I still don't know those streets!!!

This pic is what Mt. Lemmon looks like today.  Here we took a walk with the 5 dogs for a little exercise.  While I was on this shoot, I noticed a lot of amazing things happening ecologically and I'll present them over the next several days as we explore this series I'm calling, "After the Fires"