Pelican Pilgrimage

Yesterday while on a bike ride for the first time in my life I had the fortune and pleasure of seeing hundreds and hundreds of American White Pelicans flying north along the Mississippi River at La Crosse. Most of them were flying very high and out of camera range but one group was flying lower for some reason and I was able to snap a photo (see above) of the lead birds in the group as they passed overhead. Out of curiosity I checked the Web when I got home to learn about the migration habits of American White Pelicans and discovered they spent the winter along the Gulf of Mexico from Mexico to Florida. In March they begin to head north along the Mississippi - usually spending three weeks in the Illinois area before continuing north in late March or early April to their nesting grounds in northern Wisconsin/Minnesota and southern Canada. Cool. I never knew that.

Return of the Eagles

Another sign that spring is just around the corner: After being absent most of the winter due to area rivers and lakes being froze over, American Bald Eagles have recently returned to the La Crosse area while on their way to nesting areas farther north. I took the above photo on March 14 as three eagles rested on an ice floe in the Mississippi River off Riverside Park in La Crosse . . . providing an easier than usual view of them as they tend to keep in the distance by perching in treetops or circling high in the sky.

Singing the Winter Blues

It's been a long time since I've experienced a winter like the current one. It seems like we've been in one endless cycle of snow and zero temps since December 1. The photo with this blog was taken this past Sunday of my neighbor lady shoveling her sidewalk during whiteout conditions as Mother Nature dumped more snow on La Crosse. Now everywhere I look I see nothing but white, white, white due to huge piles of snow smothering the landscape. I want spring with temps above 50-degrees, green trees and chirping birds. Speaking of birds, I've rarely seen a bird in the past couple weeks and want to feast my eyes on a Robin soon to give me hope that spring is just around the corner. Yes, wonderful spring: when I can ride my bike again and not have to dress like Nanook of the North when I venture outside. Hope "springs" eternal.