Clear and seasonably cool. Frost was out this morning, and temperatures reached the upper 40s. Winds were calm to light, depending on the location.
By the time I got out, it was early in the afternoon.
I had considered just going for a walk around town, but realized I could drop some stuff off at White E that’s been waiting to go for months.
I did walk along Kaagwaantaan Street, back down Katlian, and over to Castle Hill. It was fairly quiet bird-wise, though I did see my first slate-colored junco of the year in the brush patch between Kaagwaantaan and Tlingit Way.
Starlings were foraging on the beach near the grid. I don’t tend to pay much attention to them (at least when they’re not doing things I don’t appreciate in my yard), so it’s easy forget how striking they are in fresh plumage this time of year.
At the golf course things were much drier than my last visit, though water levels were still above normal in the pond.
A pair of ravens tussled overhead. I think one was trying to steal food (or something) from the other and being fairly aggressive (to my eyes) about it.
I just walked a loop of the lower area. On my return leg, I paused for a bit at the fork, and ultimately chose the path on the right (along the 7th fairway). I hadn’t walked far when I noticed an American Pipit in front of me.
I didn’t end up dallying after that, as golfers were beginning to show up in places that made me feel a bit in the line of fire.
Another couple dozen apples had fallen on the ground over the past few days. I added them to the growing collection on my kitchen table.
Kitty suggested going for a walk from Whale Park out along Silver Bay later in the afternoon, so I joined her for the outing.
It’s the time of year when Rowan (Sorbus aucuparia) trees stand out against the background of conifers. Over the past couple of years that I’ve been trying to pay attention, I have noticed several that have grown large enough to show up in forested locations. That said, it’s not typically big productive forest, but they do seem to be fairly well established in areas adjacent to at this point.
Green flash chasing season begins about three weeks after fall equinox, and today was the first day with the weather for it.
I did not actually remember the season started earlier in the week until later. I just took a chance because of the clear conditions.
As it turns out, the sun was already setting beyond the southern tip of Kruzof, but was in the zone that’s obscured by Makhnati Island. It will be a few days before it clears that to the south. With clouds forecast to move over tomorrow, I have no doubt on the next clear day the sun will be well on its way towards setting near Vitskari Rocks (and perhaps beyond).
While taking pictures of the last sunlight on the higher snow-covered peaks, I happened to notice just a bit of the moon poking up over the peaks beyond Lucky Chance.
It was a very nice moonrise. At one point I thought I might have a chance to catch a distant Bald Eagle flying in front of the moon, but the alignment didn’t end up working out.
This evening I reviewed recent Cape Edgecumbe buoy photos and noticed a couple showing several birds on the water. They were not close enough to be sure of their identity, but my best (with low confidence) guess is gulls based on what I can see.
My iNaturalist Observations for Today
