After being gob smacked by the beauty of the Wallowa Mountains, but disappointed in the opportunities for sound recording, it was time to head south. My first stop was in the Blue Mountains, west of La Grande. The rugged peaks of the Wallowas smoothed into rounded pine-covered mountains surrounding meadows and small streams. I found […]
Exploring northeastern Oregon, Part 2 Read More »
One of my favorite places to visit and record in northern Nevada is Stillwater National Wildlife Refuge, near Fallon. It’s a collection of ponds, ditches, and marshes, where the Carson and a portion of the Truckee Rivers end. It is such a critical oasis in the arid Great Basin that it’s part of the Western
Seasons of Stillwater revisited Read More »
Spring has arrived full force in the western US, and with it the bird breeding season. Resident birds and newly arrived migrants are singing up a storm as they set up territories and attract mates, adding an incredible sonorous background to our daily lives. In early April, I headed over the Sierras to see and
Early spring in the Sierra Nevada foothills Read More »
As I usually do in early July, this last summer the dog and I headed off to the hinterlands of northern Nevada. The trip is timed to allow us to get far from civilization to spare Shadow the horrors of fireworks. This years trip took us across central Nevada to Ruby Lakes Wildlife Refuge, then
That time when the dog got stoned Read More »
Following my amazing southwestern recording trip with Lang Elliott, I stopped at Bears Ears National Monument on the way home. I had my sights set on two areas to explore: Comb Ridge and Cedar Mesa. I whet my appetite for the place with a recently released book, Behind the Bears Ears, by R.E. Burrillo, which
Celebrating Bears Ears Read More »
Part of my recording tour of the southwest with Lang Elliott this spring took us to Big Bend National Park. From a westerner’s perspective, this is the end of the earth. It’s a long, long ways from anywhere, even by Texas standards. But this remoteness, incredible topography, and habitat diversity make it a good spot
The beaver pond at the end of the road Read More »
I recently returned from a 7-week sound recording expedition to the southwest U.S. From Carson City, to southern California, southern Arizona, southern Texas, western New Mexico, central and southern Arizona, a quick trip to Albuquerque to see friends, back to Arizona, and finally home through Utah and central Nevada. Almost 7,500 miles, and almost all
In far northeastern California lies a remote range of mountains known as the Warner Mountains. More than 90 miles long, they hug the California-Nevada border, and just cross into Oregon east of Lakeview. The peaks at the southern end approach 10,000 ft, while those in the north only rise to a little over 8,000 ft.
Exploring the Warner Mountains Read More »
In southern Nevada, a bit more than 100 miles north of Las Vegas, lies a mountain range known as the Quinn Canyon Range. I first became aware of it when I was pondering over some vegetation maps of Nevada, and noticed that this range had an unusually high diversity of trees. Some, such as white
Although I stayed pretty close to home during the spring, avoiding Covid-19 and all, by June I couldn’t stand it anymore. So I June 1st, I packed up the car and headed into central Nevada to record the sounds of the wild. My first stop was Stillwater National Wildlife Refuge, near Fallon. Breeding activity was
Although I focused most of this summer exploring the Great Basin and its soundscapes, I also dabbled on it’s edges in northern California and southern Idaho. In early June, I detoured a bit from my search for Brewer’s sparrows to check out a small mountain range that borders the northern Great Basin. Waters on the
Spring in the Rockies Read More »
I take my dog for a walk almost everyday, usually to a chunk of BLM land on the east side of town. The city and BLM have created a small recreation area there, with many trails winding up and around a mountain. The trails are in a stand of big sage, an ancient stand where
Sagebrush Soliloquy Read More »
