Peregrines and Rattlesnakes

                 Photo Credit: Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks

I managed to avoid all rattlesnakes today, which was definitely good! They're usually shy, but surprise them and they get feisty! I used a photo from the KDWP to show what we're searching for.

This morning I accompanied the Ornithology class on a bird walk at 6 am. It was quite the windy morning, and after a beautiful sunrise we were able to locate about 25 birds by song or sight, including some first of the year birds for me in Illinois. Neotropical migrants such as the Summer Tanager, Scarlet Tanager, and Rose-breasted Grosbeak were moving through. I heard a Hooded Warbler, which made my morning!  

The rest of the day included classes, lunch, and meetings. This afternoon I ventured out to find the pair of Peregrine Falcons that I had located and studied last year. They moved to a different site to nest this year, and I am doing my capstone research on Peregrine Falcons, so this was a good research opportunity for me. Sure enough, I found the male on the bluffs, avoiding the wind.

Then I accompanied another student who is researching snakes on campus for his capstone research, so we visited a few hibernaculas, and marked them with a handheld arcGIS. Fortunately, we avoided the endangered Timber Rattlesnake, which inhabits the woods. 

What another beautiful day in southern Illinois! It's these bluebird days that remind me to enjoy wherever you live- whether or not you choose to be there or not! Wore my boots and MK's on this fine 80 degree day, mostly for protection from snakes! (And my appropriately-named Snake River shorts are in the wash today, because of my exploits in poison ivy)

Between Storms, Mountain Khakis Go Kayaking!

Today was incredible! My morning began at 6 am with a nice bike ride through some beautiful mature forests. I took my binoculars and saw and heard a few new birds for this year, including a Wood Thrush. The air was just dripping with humidity, and I knew it was going to be rainy day! At 7 I had my SLIAC Conference team championships, in which we lost in the first round. Maybe next year... Now that tennis is done I'll be able to spend more afternoons outside!

Later in the afternoon, a tornado watch was issued, and then upgraded to a tornado alert when a funnel cloud was spotted over the river. I took a short nap until the skies and cleared up, and when I awoke, the clouds had parted and there was a little blue sky! As I looked over the chapel green out at the Mississippi, I decided a quick paddle might do me some good!

I grabbed my gear, threw on the MK's, and bombed down the hill on my mountain bike through the puddles and over the channels that had formed in the trail from the day's deluge. I think I arrived at the river wetter and muddier than I was when I returned! After a quick eval of the how the river was flowing, what the wind looked like, I waited for a barge to pass by and then set my course for Elsah Bar, a small island directly across from the historic town of Elsah, IL. I pushed off under a patch of blue sky before the storm on the horizon blew in.

Looking downriver, the sun illuminated the clouds, and a small rainbow appeared (look hard in the center of the frame) Principia College is up on top of the bluffs on the left

The paddle was great... the wind gave me an interesting time navigating out there and back, but I had some great views of the passing storm, and the next front moved in very quickly as the last rays of sunshine dropped behind the oncoming storm. I watched a lot of birds flying around before the next front moved in- herons, ducks, cormorants, shorebirds, and pelicans!

I caught a clear glimpse of the moon before the clouds rolled in:

Overall, it was a wonderful day and an exciting adventure on the river in my MK's!

Day 80: Snake River Shorts are Rolling!

It's been a week of great weather! The weekend was full of tennis, we had a successful SLIAC Division 3 tournament, where I was able to place 3rd in my seed in both singles and doubles. One more week of tennis left!

Late last week my Snake River shorts came, and they are SWEET! I never have been more excited about  a pair of shorts before... I have been wearing them every day since then, but the weather has cooled off slightly since last week's 80 degree bliss. Today it started out cool (birding this morning was in the mid-40's) but this afternoon it warmed up and I cruised around on the longboard for a while. 

                            photo credit: Clayton DeLaney

Thanks for following the blog! It's hard to believe there's only 20 more days! I will be continuing blogging my adventures until I hit Mongolia, then my blog will switch to my blog. 

Until then, more MK's on the river, in the woods, and on the wall! 

Day 73: Mountain Khakis family

Today I met with Kevin Cox, a sales rep from Alpine Exposure. We had a good time talking about our travels and the Mountain Khakis College Ambassador Program. Kevin is traveling doing clinics, and as the sales rep for my region I was happy we could get together and talk!

                  Christian and Kevin outside REI in St. Louis




This weekend, the ALPINE SHOP in Kirkwood is having a Spring Gear Swap beginning April 18th. Come support this event and pick up some sweet new and used gear for the upcoming season's adventures! They have great staff and some sweet deals...

Days 69-71: It's a MK weekend!

It's been a long weekend! Lots of fun attending the PAC Conference about the End of Oil. Great speakers, and a renewed faith in our next generation of leaders!

Birding was successful on Friday; we did see the Henslow's Sparrow, along with many other spring migrants.

     Henslow's Sparrow!                (Photo Credit: Dr. Fuller)

It's the perfect time when wildflowers carpet the forest. (Photo credit: Dr. Fuller)

     Swamp Sparrow                              (Photo Credit: Dr. Fuller)

Visiting with other St. Louis birders   (Photo credit: Dr. Fuller)

A Principia College Student enjoying the bluebird view over the Mississippi River in his MK Teton Twills.

Day 68: No Shoes!

What a beautiful day in Elsah, Illinois! Today, April 8th TOMS shoes sponsored "One Day Without Shoes" to raise awareness for children that don't have shoes. Our campus showed support!

Students cruised through the Concourse in bare feet or sandals

This will be a super-weekend! Principia College is hosting the 61st annual Public Affairs Conference. (PAC) This year's topic is "The End of Oil? Energy Challenges in the 21st Century"  Should be a good one. I'm a delegate and will be attending numerous talks. Catch an update at the end of the weekend to hear about how it went! 

I have an early morning tomorrow: birding in Missouri with a target species: Henslow's Sparrow. Will it show itself? Time will tell!

Saturday I have tennis all day. Should be a fun match.

I'll be wearing my MK's all weekend! 

Enjoy the photos of spring, bare feet, and MK's in class!

A student shows her support for TOMS

Bare feet and MK's in class... what a good combo!  (OMP on left, Teton Twills on right)

Day 66: Spring has Sprung!

Spring Quarter has arrived (I'm back on campus) with the 70 and 80 degree temps assuring that spring is here! Here's a match to an antler I found last month. As you can see, green grass and spring flowers are up!

My Mountain Khakis are great... the tear is fixed! They performed well on a bike ride several days ago, although it was too warm to wear pants, I wore them anyways and decorated the backside with mud.
As I write this they are hanging out behind my dorm room drying in the sun from the rain showers we've had the past couple of days.

Now that spring is here, I will get busy posting more photos from my adventures. Spring in Illinois means having class outside, hitting the trails hard on the mountain bike, morels (mushrooms!) and lots of birdwatching!

Check out the MK site to find the 2010 Snake River Collection! They look sweet!