Charging batteries, clearing SD cards, bagging tent and clothes and everything else--summer has unofficially started, and in less than an hour I'll be hitting the road for Arizona with some stops along the way. The weather here at home has been wet: three days of rain with a few impressive shots of lightning. Thankfully, forecasts are looking good for the trip (fingers crossed, knock on wood). Hopefully I can avoid any other troubles which could upset the trip, such as what happened the day before my ill-fated 2023 Arizona road trip.
Over the last week or so, I've continued the spring's occasional, light birdwatching, making stops down at the park and campgrounds, adding a few migrating and nesting species here and there.
The backyard has also seen some fun visitors, including this bunting shot through the screen on a cloudy day.
The last time I stayed in Arizona, I reported 84 species (including 45 lifers) over 16 days. That was in 2021 when I flew into Phoenix, but basically all of my birding was limited to the Jerome and Cottonwood area north of Phoenix. This time, I'll be driving all the way and making several stops, so even though the trip will be shorter, I'm hoping to see a lot more birds. Time to get back to packing.
