I haven't posted for a long time, so I now need an update on how my year is going. My ABA yearlist is currently at 171. I will post a Lake Tahoe trip report, describing my days there.
So, here goes:
On Monday, the 25th of November, we set off to pick up friends from the a hotel near the airport they had landed at, and set off towards Lake Tahoe. The trip took about six hours, made more fun by the scenery and the younger children in our car.
Lake Tahoe is a fault-formed mountain lake in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California, on the eastern side of the California border, near Nevada. Though not recognized as a prime birding destination of California, it nevertheless has some great hiking and scenery, as well as the potential for several lifers and yearbirds because of the very different habitat (pine and fir forests) from Santa Clara County (mostly oak woodland/grassland). Look in the last post for a list of target birds.
Upon arriving near Lake Tahoe at around 5:00 in the evening, we headed for Donner Lake, about 20 miles from Lake Tahoe and much smaller. My younger brother and dad (fishermen) were there for the trout fishing, but I decided to squeeze in some evening birding. I was sadly disappointed... the only birds I saw were CALIFORNIA GULLS gliding in the impending darkness over the lake.
I did manage to take some shots with the camera, which I was learning to use better by perusing the manual in the car. Here's one of Donner Lake:
Also, I snapped one of pine trees in the setting sun:
We then drove the remaining 20 miles to our rented house in the darkness, and settled in. It wasn't the best first day I could have hoped for, but I was ready to go birding around our neighborhood early (very early) tomorrow morning.
So, here goes:
On Monday, the 25th of November, we set off to pick up friends from the a hotel near the airport they had landed at, and set off towards Lake Tahoe. The trip took about six hours, made more fun by the scenery and the younger children in our car.
Lake Tahoe is a fault-formed mountain lake in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California, on the eastern side of the California border, near Nevada. Though not recognized as a prime birding destination of California, it nevertheless has some great hiking and scenery, as well as the potential for several lifers and yearbirds because of the very different habitat (pine and fir forests) from Santa Clara County (mostly oak woodland/grassland). Look in the last post for a list of target birds.
Upon arriving near Lake Tahoe at around 5:00 in the evening, we headed for Donner Lake, about 20 miles from Lake Tahoe and much smaller. My younger brother and dad (fishermen) were there for the trout fishing, but I decided to squeeze in some evening birding. I was sadly disappointed... the only birds I saw were CALIFORNIA GULLS gliding in the impending darkness over the lake.
I did manage to take some shots with the camera, which I was learning to use better by perusing the manual in the car. Here's one of Donner Lake:
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| Donner Lake at twilight |
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| Pine trees in the setting sun near Donner Lake |
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