I enjoy birding and looking at nature close to home, but this month I really spread my wings and ventured out of county and out of country. It was time for some new adventures.

February opened with a pelagic birding trip out of Dana Point in Orange County. This one was on a catamaran, lower to the water. Although a little brisk, the seas were flat, and made for perfect viewing of alcids and shearwaters. There were distant whales, but the focus of this trip was birds. That was OK because I got my whale fix in Baja later in the month.

Two days later I went to San Jacinto Wildlife Area in Riverside County with two birding buddies. This was my first time there. It is a hunting area, so we had to time our visit on a day without guns. It was fabulous. It briefly rained on our way out there. The morning was gray and cloudy, but soon the clouds parted, and suddenly we could see the snow on the mountains. I took lots of scenery photos with my phone, in addition to the bird photos with my big camera. Raptors were my favorite. A Northern Harrier posed for us. We had a great air show with a Golden Eagle, three young Bald Eagles, Red-tailed Hawks, Turkey Vultures, and a pack of attacking Common Ravens. They were all high in the sky, so photos didn't really capture it, but it was a thrill.

Most of my time this month involved my field arts trip to Baja. First I spent time preparing, then the trip itself, and then another week processing the photos and the experience. It was so full of activities, habitats, and birds, that I had to break it up into three separate blogs.  

• https://kimssight.zenfolio.com/blog/2023/2/baja-sur---travels-part-1-field-arts-bootcamp
• https://kimssight.zenfolio.com/blog/2023/2/baja-sur---travels-part-2-magdalena-bay-and-whale-camp
• https://kimssight.zenfolio.com/blog/2023/2/baja-sur---travels-part-3-mountains_sea_of_cortez_loreto

I may take a break next month.

Get outside. It's good for you!

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Watch the slideshows or click on the links to look through at your own pace. Links open in a new tab.

Dana Point Pelagic Trip:    https://kimssight.zenfolio.com/pelagic_feb-2023

San Jacinto:    https://kimssight.zenfolio.com/san_jacinto_feb-2023