1/31/2010 A Month of Walking

Today was the end of the first month of my walking, 31 straight days. Only 11 months to go now.  My friend Christie and I drove to Wenatchee Confluence State Park on our way out of town today for my walk.  After we crossed a pedestrian bridge, we opted to walk through the Horan Natural Area which takes you through a variety of animal habitats. We walked over 2 miles, but stopped frequently to take pictures. It was a gorgeous, crisp day, and the late afternoon sun cast a warm glow on the trees and shrubs. 

I was excited to see a variety of birds, ducks, and geese. I saw a Flicker who blended in with the bare trees, several Red-Winged Blackbirds sitting on cattails, an abundance of Canadian Geese and even some Cedar Waxwings. I hadn't seen that bird before; it has a distinctive yellow band at the end of its tail. Just as we were ready to take a picture, they flew off.  This walk took us along several man-made channels that actually fill with irrigation overflow in the growing season. Right now, many of them are frozen over. I remember kayaking through these channels a few years ago in the summer.  Signs of beavers were everywhere.

It appears they are actually a problem in the area, based on the many trees we saw with fencing around them to keep the beavers away.  They had been quite busy on the one in the picture above, even recently. The Horan area was created by the Chelan PUD, and they have built many boxes in the area for the Wood Ducks to nest in. I really look forward to walking through here again in the spring, summer and fall.  You can see my route here: http://www.trimbleoutdoors.com/ViewTrip/611741