Category: Blog

Dabbling for Breakfast

Saturday, October 13, 2018             730 am 56 degrees

       Fourteen fishing boats line the American River near the Fair Oaks Bridge. Twelve boats extend all the way around the river bend. The other two sit on the west side of the bridge. The deep green water is so still, there is hardly a ripple. In this cloudless deep blue sky, the sun glows like a brilliant yellow ball. I smell a faint, yet pungent odor.

So many fishermen and I have not seen any salmon jumping yet. Only two more weeks before fishing is banned until the end of the year. Have the salmon arrived yet?  I see one small fish floating next to the boat launch ramp this morning.

Mallard, duck, fishermen, American River, Fair Oaks Bridge, Fair Oaks Bluff, sunrise, water, nature, outdoor, photography
Mallard morning meeting

     Birds are busy greeting the morning from their station at the highest point of the bridge. “Ti Too! Ti Too!” From another direction, I hear a bird singing like a calliope in short, shrill bursts. I hear only one duck quack yet this morning. Where is everyone?

  A dozen ducks were busy with their morning rituals in the river alongside the boat ramp. One was splashing itself to take a bath, another bobbing for breakfast. The others gathered in a morning meeting to quack, confer and squabble. “Where to eat?” I imagined them asking. A single seagull landed in the water alongside the Mallard. The gull looked frustrated “So where is the food hiding this year?”

A dabbling duck works hard for its breakfast.

https://youtu.be/CHc-zDaYQ2s

Wildlife Look for Salmon

Thursday, October 25, 2018            720 am 48 degrees

mornings, Fair Oaks Bridge, American River, American River Parkway, mornings, water, wildlife, nature, writing,On my way to Fair Oaks Bridge I see deep pinks reflected in clouds. By the time I reach the bridge deck, the pinks have faded away into a soft golden glow at the horizon. Bright white, wispy clouds are my first sights of the morning. Clouds reflect in the still water. I wear my hooded fleece jacket for the first time since the first months of the year.

Five boats line the river channel on the east side. Occasionally, I hear a splash, see concentric circles in the water and guess that salmon are jumping. Three ducks swim down the center of the river corridor.

One duck quacks relentlessly. I wonder if she is giving directions? Is she the one that quacked and quacked without taking a breath last January and February? She quacks and quacks without stopping. As I write she is still chattering without end.

I see concentric circles in the water where salmon are jumping. Every few minutes, another one leaps. Once the duck stops quacking, the birds started to sing. Today I see my first glimpse of mist rolling on the water around the bend. As I write, a Great Blue Heron flies in and lands on a rock on the east riverbank. Minutes after the Great Blue Heron appears, an Egret flies in, landing on the west side of the bridge. 

Canada Geese, American River, Fair Oaks, mornings,
Canada Geese prints in dirt alongside the boat launch ramp.
Heart shaped in roses on the deck. Wondering what this meant to the one who created it?
Spider waits for prey to wander in

 

 

 

Everyone Waits for Salmon to Arrive

Wednesday, October 31, 2018   730 am, 44 degree

            I opened my front door to see the end of the brilliant pink strips of sunrise just before they faded to gray. By the time I reached Fair Oaks Bridge, bright white and scattered clouds showed no sign of the intense colors they held only moments before. The sun was already shining yellow over the horizon.  Today the chilly air feels heavy with moisture.

Today is the final day of fishing in this part of the American River for the rest of the year. I saw so no one catch salmon and missed their leaps high enough out of the water to be seen. I missed seeing their struggles to set themselves free – seeing only a few random splashes instead.

Other bridge visitors told me that salmon were swimming out in the river, but more of them had already reached the weir at the Nimbus Fish Hatchery. I will be looking for leaping salmon at “the narrows,” passage upriver in November during the heaviest part of the fall run.

Fair Oaks Bridge, Fair Oaks, American River, mornings, river, wildlife, water, ducks, fishermen, boats,
On this last day of fishing for 2018, this fishermen sits in one of a dozen boats lining the American River and around the bend. Ducks swim peacefully through the still water, reflecting the Fair Oaks Bridge.
clouds, American River, mornings, sky
Feather arrow clouds extend across the sky

           

 

I am surprised there is still no scent of decaying salmon. Nearly 100 seagulls gather and wait in the American River and on the sandbar a mile east of Fair Oaks Bridge. I watch and wonder when will the salmon show themselves?

seagulls, American River, salmon, mornings, Fair Oaks, food, Chinook salmon, salmon
Hungry seagulls wait for salmon to arrive
Great Blue Heron, American River, water, mornings, Fair Oaks Bridge, boat luanch ramp, study
Great Blue Heron studies the river

Great Blue Heron Stands Alone

Friday November 9, 2018 930 am

peaceful, Great Blue Heron, American River, mornings, Fair Oaks Bridge, beauty, wildlifeThe Great Blue Heron poses like a statue in the American River. It stood on the stub of a branch before I arrived and continued to pose and study the river long after I walked off Fair Oaks Bridge. Water is still. The sky pale blue and clear. Not a wisp of a cloud. A dozen ducks swim by, creating their own wake. Pigeons fly in dancing over the bridge and quickly depart.

I walk to the boat launch ramp and see the ducks gather at the end of the ramp, looking at me with curiosity. They are likely wondering, Do you have food for us? I have no food to share. I hear an unseen woodpecker softly drumming on a nearby tree.

This peaceful place is an escape from other crises of the day. As I stand here and enjoy its beauty, catastrophic wildfires consume other areas of California – places of peace, joy and beauty where people and wildlife have lived and loved for years.

A Quiet Swim

Saturday, November 3, 2018 730 am 55 degrees

Fair Oaks Bridge, Fair Oaks, American River, water, mornings, nature, outdoors, writing, clouds, reflection, sunAll is quiet this morning. Boats are gone. Phoebe calls from the top of Fair Oaks Bridge. I finally identified the bird that greets me with Ti Too! Ti Too! I stand in the cool, moist air with no breeze. My hands are chilled. White clouds scatter across the sky reminding me of spilled milk. Clouds reflect in the American River. My camera’s eye sees the reflections more clearly than mine. Occasionally I hear a splash and look to see the concentric circles in the river – the sign of a salmon leap.

Where are the Buffleheads? I have yet to see even one swim through the center of the river channel, diving for breakfast.

A few ducks and a single Canada Goose swim downriver. Their wake extends half way across the river. Five Canada Geese fly silently overhead heading west. Then the Phoebe calls again. It is the only sound this morning besides the hum of Sunrise Blvd. traffic about half mile to the west.

 

Fair Oaks Bluff, Fair Oaks Bridge, American River, mornings, nature, outdoors, river, writing, photography,clouds, reflection

 

 

 

In the Quiet Smoky Haze

Friday November 16, 2018, 730 am, 40 degrees

mornings, frost, ice, Fair Oaks Bridge, American River, water, nature, outdoors, writing, smoke, haze
Layer of frost covers the deck, soon melted by warm sunlight.

Quiet river. Smoky haze. Gray sky features a hint of blue. Chilly air. 

Chickens roam Bridge Street searching for breakfast. One lone gull swims through the river, calling out to anyone to hear. So far, the gull is the only sign of wildlife this morning. A few walkers leave Fair Oaks Bridge as I walk. No one else approaches. No cyclists this morning. I walk the deck of the bridge and see no spider webs. As I walk farther across the deck, I see it coated with frost, thick enough to be slippery and marked with footprints. As I stand and write my observations, the frost is already disappearing.

I walk to the boat launch ramp where three ducks are gathered. Within a minute, two more fly in. Then two more arrive, and then four more. All of them swimming alongside the boat ramp dunking, washing, stretching and searching for breakfast. These ducks live here all year round. The Muscovy duck arrived at least a year ago and stays with the group.

mornings, Fair Oaks Bridge, American River, water, nature, writing, outdoors, seagull. smoke, chill,
A lonely seagull calls out for a friend to join. No one answers and it flies away.

Standing on the boat ramp, it seems that the sky has cleared, I see a deep blue sky. From another vantage point, looking around the bend in the river, the smoky haze sits above the water.

The lone seagull stretches its neck one more time and calls out. No gull answers. I imagine it calling, “No one else is here. There is no food. I am leaving.” The gull flies west and vanishes.

Minutes later, flying in from the east, another gull appears to join the ducks. It lands in the water, then flies to circles the river channel, calls out and lands again.

Buffleheads, Fair Oaks Bridge, chill, smoke, American River,morning,
First sighting this season of these new arrivals

Looking into the center of the river channel, I saw for the first time this season, small black ducks. Are they Buffleheads? They do not have the same characteristic white spot. They swim in groups of two, diving in the water and reappearing 20 yards away, over and again. All at once, eight of them fly over the river and land nearby Fair Oaks Bridge. A minute later, the ducks rise up and fly back to where they were. From a distance, I hear one Quack, Quack.

The water calm. No other walkers or cyclists, no boaters and few wildlife. I do not see dead salmon laying in the river or near the riverbank, and still wonder where are they?

Morning Mist Returns to the American River

Monday, November 19, 2018, 650 am, 31 degrees

Fair Oaks Bridge, mornings, American River, sunrise, nature, outdoors, morning mist, fog,
Sunrise on the American River at Fair Oaks Bluff

Water is completely still. The mist seems to have absorbed some of the smoke. Scattered bright white cloud cover resembles strands of spun gold reflected in the emerging sunlight. Clouds of mist begin around the bend to the east and roll slowly west across the surface of the river. In my full hour out here, I see one walker and one cyclist. Fair Oaks Bridge deck does not look frosty, yet it is still slippery in places. I wear my hooded jacket and wear warm gloves.

I walk down to the boat launch ramp to watch the mist as it rolls under the bridge. A lone seagull flies overhead. One Mallard swims along the ramp calling good morning with a few quiet Quack, Quack! Likely wondering if I brought breakfast. One year ago I took similar photos at this place on the ramp – now one of them is the front cover of Mornings on Fair Oaks Bridge: Watching Wildlife at the Lower American River .

Fair Oaks Bridge, mist, morning, nature, American River, outdoors, writing, beauty, peaceful

This is the season to experience the most beautiful and peaceful mornings on the American River.

As I stand and watch the mist roll across the river and rise as it goes under the bridge, a Great Blue Heron arrives. It sounds its characteristic good morning chortle and continues its flight east.

morning mist, American River, Fair Oaks Bridge, nature, outdoors, beauty, peace, outdoor,
Mist continues to roll across the American River at Fair Oaks Bluff

The pale blue sky covered by strips of white clouds gives no hint of the smoke that blanketed skies across the region through the week. Another seagull flies over. Four ducks emerge from the riverbank. I hear a bird call from a distance. Early morning mist continues to roll slowly across the surface of the river, enveloping the corridor in a blanket of white.

Swimming in the Mist

Friday December 7, 2018 710 am, 38 degrees

Chickens are quiet in Fair Oaks parks. None of them are out searching for food on Bridge Street. Birds whistle and chirp, hidden in trees near Fair Oaks Bridge. Ice clings loosely to the car windshield. I wear my hooded jacket, leggings and gloves.

misty morning, mist, mornings, Fair Oaks Bridge, American River, wildlife, nature, writing, Fair Oaks Bridge, American River, outdoor, peaceful, quiet,Heavy mist hangs in the air as if suspended by invisible wires. The blanket of mist begins behind a curve in the river corridor at far right of photo. Ducks create their own wake as they swim in the still water. I hear the call of a seagull in the distance. So few of them are watching and waiting near the boat launch ramp. I have seen far less salmon this year than last year or the year before.

I watch the mist cloud roll slowly forward along the surface as waves gently cover the shoreline at a beach.

Thin strips of golden clouds line the sky just above the emerging yellow sun. Bridge deck is dry even though the air is filled with moisture.  Strips of water crossing the deck marking the site of upright posts is the only clue of moisture in the air. A dozen cyclists pass by. No walkers. I walk to the boat launch ramp to enjoy a closer view of the ducks and random seagulls flying in.

seagull, boat launch ramp, Fair Oaks Bridge, American River, mornings, nature, outdoors, water, misty morrningsOne seagull stands alone on a rock next to the ramp. It calls out and I imagine it saying, Where is everyone? Where is the food? Two seagulls circle overhead and vanish. 

Buffleheads, American River, Fair Oaks Bridge, water, mist, swim, nature, I see a Bufflehead swimming in the center of the river. Then three appear, swimming together in the swirling mist. Another bird calls. Scattered clouds in the eastern sky form the shape of a cyclone in the sky on this peaceful morning.

A Postcard Morning

Thursday, December 13, 2018 710 am 41 degrees

As I walk down Bridge Street I see a chicken and rooster pair searching for food. I see no growing chicks with them. First there were five little peeps. Later only two followed behind. Weeks later, I saw only one small hen scratching the ground with them. Today the pair is alone. I wonder if their chicks died at the paws of a predator, from dehydration or not enough to eat?

Fair Oaks Bluff, mornings, Fair oaks Bridge, American River, water, wildlife,

Pale orange stripes of clouds cross the sky at sunrise. Higher cloud cover blankets the sky in small round puffs revealing patches of blue sky through the openings. Are they dots and dashes of code or cotton batting stretched out? White clouds reflect in the river below. Mist rolls along the surface of the river and around the bend.

sunrise, morning, Fair Oaks Bluff, Fair Oaks Bridge, American River, mist, clouds

I disturbed a Great Blue Heron standing on the water’s edge of boat launch ramp because I stood too close. It scolded me with a chortle while flying to the opposite riverbank.

A single gull circles over the river in front of me several times and then flies east around the bend. Four ducks fly in from their hiding places and ski into the water. Everyone is looking for breakfast. Today I see three dead and decaying salmon lying at the end of the ramp. This is the first week I have smelled the scent of decaying salmon in the air. I expected this fishy smell to saturate the air weeks ago. On my walk back to Fair Oaks Bridge, I hear the distant call of a rooster roaming on Bridge Street.

 

 

 

Sunrises on American River

Images taken standing on Fair Oaks Bridge of sunrise and sunset over Fair Oaks Bluff.

So many beautiful scenes, watching the sunrise, listening to birds sing and roosters call.  In these images, look for the duck cloud flying through the sky. Canada Geese fly over Fair Oaks Bridge. Brilliant colored streaks line the sky at sunrise and clouds above reflect in the river. Sunset over the Sunrise Blvd. river crossing looks like fire in the sky.

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