All in all, nineteen birders enjoyed portions or all of the Big Morongo Weekend. Of these, fifteen spent Friday night in Yucca Valley, and two came up for just the Saturday. We were pleased to have one gentleman from Hawaii and another from Florida join us. The highlight was the result of sharp-eyed John Sanderson who is always scoping out the hillsides and canyons, while the rest of us simply and comfortably have our eyes on the trail in front of us. John found for us two long-eared owls: a mature female and her owlet standing at her side! The collective count of the various locations we cased out was 58. The joy of Big Morongo and area, however, is not the count, but is the species that we see. Several of our members had lifers on this trip. Look at the list below to see the many species you may not have seen for a long while or at all!

The overnighters spent Friday morning at Whitewater Canyon. This is part of the Pacific Coast Trail so it is interesting mixing with these folks who have already traveled a couple of hundred miles from Mexico and are contemplating many more. The towering bare rugged mountains encompass us and are in stark contrast to the cool fresh ponds and tall shady trees of the reserve itself. It was wonderful to see the Peregrine Falcon jet across the cliffs just to disappear into some small crevice. Diane Walkley refused to let it stay hidden and found it again for all to see. Late afternoon the Black Rock Canyon Campground seemed to have more Scott’s Orioles and Cactus Wrens for us than it had campers. A Say’s Phoebe just had to express her dominance by building her nest right over the entrance to the Administration Office. The group avoided the worn-out Travelodge and enjoyed both the Super 8 and the Best Western. Friday night’s happy hour and later the friendly atmosphere of the Las Casitas Restaurant rounded out a very special day.

Here is our list: