Saturday, March 15, 2014

Fairbank Arizona, Whitewater Draw, and more birds. Always more birds.

On the way to Whitewater Draw, I stopped in Fairbank, AZ. It's a ghost town that has been stabilized and maintained by the BLM. I didn't stay long enough to hike any of the trails, so this is all you get.

Tin roof! RUSTED!



Lavender Pit Mine, closed when lavender mining became unprofitable. 



Road-non-runner. I think his name is Fresno.



Lee Road:











Back to Whitewater Draw.



Nan had a hard time picturing how a campground could be the way I described it yesterday, so here's a real picture instead of the one in your head.




Nobody move - I dropped my contact.










I KNOW what you're thinking, and I did NOT go into the owl roost area. On purpose.

Disapproving Owl






Why I oughta ...














This Great Horned owl was perched under the shelter, and not in the roosting area. He's no rooster.

"Thank you" to the birder with an excellent scope who showed me where to find him.

Not owl tracks














Tonight it's so windy ... [how windy is it?]


  • an owl laid the same egg three times
  • tumbleweeds are staying indoors for their own safety
  • air traffic won't clear any cranes for landing


14 comments:

Gail said...

Haha...that's great. I think someone must have accused that owl of being a rooster as his feathers appear a bit ruffled.

Anonymous said...

It's been windy here today, too. An unfortunate time to be out. We get these winds a few times in March. Were you able to go inside the buildings at Fairbank? They seem to be open odd times. But much to photograph on the outside.

Virtual hugs,

Judie

Unknown said...

Love the pics Roxanne! You have quite the eye, and that owl is so beautiful.

Anonymous said...

Weird—did this thing just eat my comment? And will it ever be regurgitated? Only time will tell.

Anonymous said...

Argh, guess it did. Here's what I said first:

Great pix! Sorry to hear that AZ can only afford one Fairbank; even Alaska has several, all right together. : )

Bob said...

Cool pics. Sure is wide open country. But then, that means the winds will blow "wide open". Kind of reminds me of biking in the Netherlands. It might be flat, but there's a reason for all those windmills. Headwinds both ways.

Dragonfly said...

Cool pictures. Lived the one tall white bird. Just remember, Egrets have no regrets.

Anonymous said...

That's one scary-looking owl! Beautiful location for a campground; nice shot of the sun & clouds. Also great shot of the roadrunner. "Lavender mining..." HA!

Renee

Dawn from Camano Island said...

Love the owl pics! Wide open plains. Bummer about the lavendar running out! Great photos!

Contessa said...

Love the owl photo essay, so expressive. Well done.

The Good Luck Duck said...

Thanks Contessa. I had a good owl.

Thanks Dawn. It was very prairie.

Renee, he looked at me like I was a mouse better eaten than watched.

Is a regret a bird do-over?

Never thought of why so many windmills, Bob, but that makes good sense. I always thought it was to keep the tulips cool.

Ha Bleen! I thought about your comment all day, and I just got it.

Thanks, Sandy. It was a photogenic owl.

Judie, there were signs telling us to stay out of the buildings. I got the impression they meant "forever" but I can't be sure.

It's true, Gail; I think he got his down in a twist.

Mary said...

You dated yourself with the contact comment! But I DID actually LOL.

Leigh said...

So jealous! I love all the birds.

The Good Luck Duck said...

Ha Mary! I did briefly date myself in college.

The birds ARE a Whitewater draw, Leigh. I love them, too.