Spring Break Highlights

It's amazing how quiet our house is when we don't have five additional people in here. I must say that at least two of our pets are rather relieved to have the house to themselves once more. Although I have a feeling Harvey is a little sad. He misses all the attention he got due to the standoffishness (good word, huh?) of the other two around the little ones. He is looking even more bored than normal.

So, here are some of the highlights from the Renslow's recent visit, in no particular order.

Aside from the snow on Sunday, we did have some pretty spectacular weather. And I think all seven of us got sunburned at least once. The mildest day was probably at the Grand Canyon, where it was a pleasant 60 degrees. After enjoying some yummy hot chocolate at the El Tovar hotel, we all went outside to enjoy the view.

On our way out of the park we stopped by one of our favorite overlooks along the Little Colorado River Gorge, just east of the Grand Canyon. I was surprised that Becca was brave enough to stand so close to the edge, considering it's a sheer drop of well over 800 feet.

Her dad was also brave, for about three seconds. You can see how white his knuckles are from the death grip he's got on that railing. I don't think Sarah came within 50 feet of this spot.

The Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix was also a highlight. Everyone got to see some really cool cacti and the best lizard encounters of the whole week.

The kids even tried their handing at grinding some mesquite beans on a metate.

Hannah was particularly delighted by the butterfly pavilion.

On Tuesday we convinced Curt and Janine to drive their truck up a high-clearance road outside of Sedona to one of our favorite red rock hikes. Curt was giggling like a little girl as he rocked and rolled the truck over the rocks on the road. I think he had fun. We took a short trail out to the Cowpies, several large and flat red rock formations perfect for kids to explore.

Curt, Sarah and I tried to make the trek out to Mitten Ridge Saddle, but the trail was a little too much for both of them to handle, so we turned around early. At least Sarah will have a good story to tell her friends.

Sarah also got a hold of my camera one evening and started taking close-ups of everyone around. Becca was a more than willing photo subject.

Condors at the Canyon

Every time I see a California Condor soaring over the South Rim of the Grand Canyon I get chills down my spine. To think that these amazing birds came within 22 individuals of becoming extinct in the 1980's makes me both very sad and incredibly hopeful. It is almost laughably easy to spot any of over 200 condors now living around Grand Canyon National Park. On many days, hundreds (if not thousands) of visitors are awed by the enormous size of these birds as they soar overhead, often so close you feel as though you can touch them.

Today, Sonja and I had yet another encounter with these relics from the Pleistocene, this time with our nephew from New Hampshire, Sean, who was seeing them for the very first time. And as you can see, my digiscoping abilities seem to be improving. I can't believe the detail that came out in this picture, particularly since I took it through our binoculars. But then, #81 is always photogenic.

They put on quite a show for us this afternoon. Not only were they incredibly close, but they kept landing then launching themselves off the cliff to go harass each other as more and more began to appear in the sky over the rim lodges.

I think the most we counted at one time was eight. And when that many birds, each with a wingspan approaching 10 feet, continually buzz your heads as you stand near the rim, it's easy to forget that California Condors are still critically endangered. Even non-birders can't help but be amazed at the spectacle of watching these living fossils soar once again over the Grand Canyon.

I put together a little montage of footage I took this afternoon while watching the condors fly overhead. Click on the arrow in the box below to watch it (make sure the sound is turned up).

I could have stood there for hours watching them fly around, but Sean and Sonja wanted to see more than just condors.

I couldn't really complain that much. Spending a day doing nothing but gazing down into the Grand Canyon is always worthwhile.

Even the plague-ridden rock squirrels agree.

A Week in Pictures

Sonja's sister, Sue, came for a five-day visit this past week. Unfortunately, I had to work the entire time she was here, so I didn't get to go exploring with the two of them. Even so, we all had a great time together in the evenings after a long day of hiking and driving around by Sonja and Sue. We watched a couple movies, sat around and chatted, and even played a game of Scrabble, during which I scored the highest point total for a single word I've ever gotten (87 points). That was my highlight of the week (ok, not really. But I'm pretty proud of it, considering the word I scored those points with was "slimey").

Anyway, since I wasn't along most of the time I can't really add much to these photos. I guess they'll have to speak for themselves, mostly.

Ok, this 5 foot bull snake wasn't actually from Sue's visit. I took this the day before she arrived at the Castle. I just haven't had a chance to post it, yet, so here it is. The rest of these pictures were taken by Sonja and Sue during their adventures.

We did actually see a snake while Sue was here. This is a tiny western diamondback rattler that was crossing the road just down from our house. It was kinda dark out, so the picture quality wasn't that great. This was Sue's first rattlesnake!

Sonja and Sue's first adventure was to hike the Broken Arrow Trail outside of Sedona.

The century plants were still in bloom.

Next, they explored the Verde Valley, including a visit to Tuzigoot National Monument. I think it was a little on the windy side that day.

Sonja took Sue over to a llama farm to help with some llama-sitting chores, too.

I don't even want to guess what the llama on the left is thinking. At least the sheep looks appreciative of the effort Sonja and Sue put into feeding them.

Their next adventure took them up to Flagstaff and Walnut Canyon National Monument.

Sue at Sunset Crater National Monument, just north of Flagstaff, standing amongst the Aa lava.

And yesterday, they both spent several hours in the car to get to one of the most recognizable natural landmarks on the planet, the Grand Canyon. Here's Sue at Mather Point.

This was Sonja's second time visiting the "Big Ditch", and she was very excited to report having seen her first "crap-load" of condors (I think that's the official classification for a group of condors). Some of her pictures came out really good, too, so I turned them into a fun little montage. It's not often you get to look down at a soaring California Condor.

So, that's the last week in the life of the Olligs and a Fogarty. I'd have added all sorts of random links to this post, but my creative juices don't seem to be flowing tonight.