The Day Begins

Sunday January 26th, chosen because it is the Sunday before the Super Bowl and because there is no firearm hunting on Sundays in New Jersey (but more on this later).

The day of the 2020 NJ Pinelands Winter Bird Census.

The day began, just after midnight, me outside, in the cold, listening for owls. There were none. Just distant dogs barking. Off to bed.

My day resumed before sunrise, again finding me outside listening for owls. This time hearing only the neighborhood roosters announcing the morning (the dogs smart enough to still be sleeping).

I came inside, poured myself a cup of coffee, and sat on the living room couch to enjoy the sunrise, Patty soon joining me.

We had hoped for a sunny start to our day, but this cloud front, while pleasant to look at, dashed those hopes.

Still, we had twenty species, not counting the rooster, before we left the couch. A good start.