Winter Oriole & Fighting Procrastination

I went back to Hammonasset looking for a warbler I never ended up finding but this oriole was still there! It might as well hang out here until spring at this point!

Closer to home I found a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker during a walk down a neighborhood street.

I look forward to picking up the birding pace once I'm able to shrink my high priority to do list. Did you ever notice that thinking about things you should be doing can be worse than actually doing them? 

Whenever I start procrastinating, I have a flashback of a poem I read when I was a kid titled "When Thomas Takes His Pen"

Starting 2026 With A Ride Along River Road

It was cold this morning but worse than that it was very windy! I wanted to start the year off with a little bit of birding so I hopped in my car and took a cruise along river road. I stayed in the car with my heater on and the window rolled down. I only saw about a dozen species in the short time I was there. This mockingbird seemed a bit rude.

I told him to turn around and he seemed to listen to me.

I saw a dozen or 2 Common Mergansers but I enjoyed seeing this one keeping company with a solo Ring-necked Duck.

A slow and feeble start to the 2026 birding year but I still have 364 days to make up for it!

Hammonasset Campground After The Snow

I took a ride out to the Hammonasset campground to look for a warbler that seems to have lost track of the calendar (Townsend's). I think I may have gone a little too early and not stayed long enough because from all reports it's still there. I just didn't get to see it on this particular morning.

This one here looks like a Baltimore Oriole to me which also seems to be out of season.The back of it looks even more like an oriole. No luck on the Townsend's so far for me but I believe I will give it another shot this weekend for an hour or two. It always feels quiet and peaceful after a snowstorm though. Except for the sound of my boots stomping through the snow.

Bluebirds Add Warmth To A Cold Winter's Walk

I know that technically it isn't winter until December 21st but my internal thermometer tells me otherwise. With all the foliage gone a unique type of beauty emerges. The air feels clean again.

There's a pleasing simplicity to the raw contrast between the barren woods and open waters bordered by ice.

Even the slightest sign of sunshine brings anticipation that there will soon be relief from the chill that numbs the hands.

A bluebird perched on a tree breaks the spell of the silent woods. 

Watching the sun reflect off their feathers as they stand on the tracks is a welcome sight that adds warmth to a cold winter's walk.