is the lovely sego lily, now dominating the blooming wildflowers around Round Mountain.
Sego lily (Calochortus nuttallii).
The calm before the storm...
where a rapidly moving cell dropped 0.35" of rain and slammed Castle Valley with 1/4"+ diameter hail in one hour’s time.
Nakedstem sunray (Enceliopsis nudicaulis).
The San Rafael Swell...
holds some of the best kept secret places in central Utah. Here are some images that were captured during a several day trip with friends this week.
Portion of the extraordinary Buckhorn Wash pictograph panel.
Stormy sunset view of the Little Grand Canyon of the San Rafael River from The Wedge Overlook.
The stunning petroglyphs of the Rochester Panel in the western part of the Swell.
The historic San Rafael “swinging bridge,” built during 1935-1937 by the Civilian Conservation Corps.
Temple Mountain, an important site for uranium mining during the last century.
Little Wild Horse Canyon.
Main Fork of Mill Creek Canyon...
contains a wonderful petroglyph panel, hidden right at the edge of Moab.
Rory and Ellen examining the so-called “Connection Panel” where all key icons are connected by a continuous thread.
Increased contrast in order to see detail on the panel.
The view south across Mill Creek, towards the La Sal Mountains, from the panel’s location.
A bevy of these blue beauties...
are regulars at my feeding stations now, and when the sunlight strikes their feathers at the correct angle it appears like bright neon.
Breeding male Lazuli Bunting (Passerina amoena).
The black half-collar...
at the nape of its neck gives this chunky dove its name.
Eurasian Collared-Dove (Streptopelia decaocto).
Placer Creek continues to flow...
at a turbid but moderate pace, with plenty of channel capacity, all the way to its confluence with Castle Creek. Here’s the view upstream from the arroyo at the end of East Pace Lane.
(Click on image to enlarginate.)
As lovely as the gemstone...
after which it is named, one of my spring favorites joins me for morning coffee.
Adult male Lazuli Bunting (Passerina amoena).
Here are a couple of more shots captured later in the afternoon, under more favorable lighting. Quite the handsome fellow.
Exceptional aquifer recharge is occurring...
this spring in Castle Valley, Utah. Placer Creek is flowing all the way to its confluence with Castle Creek low in the valley, a once-a-decade occurrence, and in doing so is losing a large amount of its flow into the coarse, gravelly ground.
View upstream of Placer Creek and its distant headwaters in the Pinhook Valley, to the right (west) of Round Mountain.
View downstream of Placer Creek at the Buchanan Lane crossing.
Today's toxic topic...
involves this appropriately named - both common and scientific - poisonous beauty, now in full bloom in Castle Valley. In other words, don’t eat it.
Panicled death camas (Toxicoscordion paniculatum) among the blackbrush (Coleogyne ramosissima).
Enjoying a clover breakfast...
as I sip my coffee, my ever-present companion Bugs Buddy is up early to join me in greeting the day.
Despite this heavyset finch's name...
this visitor was caught early this morning at the feeding station.
Evening Grosbeak (Coccothraustes vespertinus), either a female or immature male.
Headcutting not flooding...
is the issue confronting some residents of Castle Valley that live in the so-called Upper 80, where the road crosses Placer Creek. The stream has been running steady for more than a week, eroding the crossing, and the Castle Valley Road Department has used large boulders and concrete in an attempt to limit headward erosion of the nickpoint across the road. This minimal approach is only a band aid solution provided that discharge in the stream does not rapidly increase.
View upstream at road crossing.
View downstream below road crossing.
Named after a 19th century naturalist…
that collected a specimen on the 1859 exploration of the San Juan River drainage, this lovely early bloomer bears the name of Dr. John S. Newberry, the expedition’s doctor and naturalist.
Newberry’s twinpod (Physaria newberryi).
The sugar wars have commenced...
around the hummingbird feeder, with this little one, no bigger than your little finger, staking out a defensive position in the nearby brush and preventing others from tanking up.
Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri).
A brand new visitor...
at my feeding station, a large sparrow that spends much of its time scratching at the leaf litter beneath brushy cover.
Green-tailed Towhee (Pipilo chlorurus).
The snaggletoothed cowboy poet...
of Castleton, Utah, reciting some of his work as I shoot a test video this morning. I will be working with local poet Rory Tyler, shooting several hours of him reciting his poetry, and posting clips on YouTube. Stay tuned, it's wonderful stuff.
Rory Tyler, rock art guru and cowboy poet.
The view from Rory’s porch. Inspiring.
If you hang it...
they will come. Within hours of hanging the hummingbird feeder the air was filled with the high-pitched whirring sounds of the tiny birds zooming off the back deck.
Adult male Broad-tailed Hummingbird (Selasphorus platycercus).
Resembling upturned paintbrushes...
the brilliant Indian paintbrush is the dominant flash of color on the slow-to-awaken high desert this chilly and wet spring.
Vibrant Common Indian paintbrush (Castilleja chromosa) with the greening Round Mountain.
This spark of scarlet beauty is enhanced by the hemiparasitic nature of this perennial plant, robbing water and nutrients from nearby neighbors.
Vibrant breeding plumage...
makes an appearance at the feeding stations, especially on the male American Goldfinches. Here’s one with a prized sunflower seed.
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis).