After checking out of our hotel the next morning, Carrie and I were back at the Moose-Wilson Road Overlook before 7:00 a.m. We had a busy day planned, but our first stop would be our final attempt on this trip to see the Gray Ghost--the Great Gray Owl in Jackson Hole. Soon after we arrived, we noticed the Elk on the mountain across the road from the overlook where they had been the previous night. In the first shot, an Elk cow is nursing her fawn. By the time I took the second shot, the lighting was much better.
Carrie wanted to stay by the overlook to watch for the owl that morning, but I decided to do some more birding on the trail, while she waited. I found a Plumbeous/Cassin's type vireo and pointed the bird out to some other birders, who determined it was a Cassin's Vireo, but I was never able to get a good enough look at the bird to identify it myself because it was on the side of the trail that was facing the sun and therefore the vireo was backlit the whole time it was in view. I decided not to count the bird, not because I did not trust the ability of the other birders but because I was unable to recognize any diagnostic field marks to differentiate between Plumbeous and Cassin's myself. The other birders thanked me for the Cassin's, but I still look forward to recognizing my first Cassin's and Plumbeous Vireos, perhaps in Arizona next year.
The previous day, Carrie and I had both seen a couple of Red-naped Sapsuckers on this trail, but the distance and lighting were not right for any decent photos. This morning, however, I was able to get between the bird and the sun, and the bird was fairly close at eye level. This species is very similar to a species that migrates through Illinois--Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Notice the red on the nape (lower back of the head or back of the neck) in the second photo. Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers never have any red on their napes. However, Red-naped Sapsuckers are named for this trait though not all of them possess it.
A lot of people were at the overlook as on the previous day, but not all of them were looking for the owl. The area we were overlooking was supposed to be good habitat for Moose. No Moose were seen at any time while we were waiting at this location, but on this particular morning, another Black Bear was seen from the overlook. This particular Black Bear seemed larger and darker than the one Carrie and I had seen the previous day. Occasionally, it would come into view, while it was eating berries in the tall vegetation.
We were happy to see another Black Bear, especially since this time we were at a much safer distance than the last. However, the Gray Ghost never came, and it was time to search for something else. We continued further into the Tetons park . . .
encountering our only Bald Eagle of the trip near Moose Junction.
We had a new target, but seeing this species would require some physical effort. Matt Fraker had given specific directions concerning where to find this bird, but to be successful in our search, about three miles of hiking were required, and as with the owl, there were no guarantees. We followed Fraker's directions and took the ferry across Jenny Lake, where we would begin our hike. The scenic ferry ride afforded a majestic view of the mountains.
When we arrived at the other side of the lake, we hiked half a mile to Hidden Falls. The trail offered just the right amount of challenge, but was slightly crowded.
After a brief pause at the falls, we continued another half a mile to Inspiration Point. The trail got really hairy just before we reached the top.
Here are a couple of shots from the top.
We continued on the trail past Inspiration Point toward Cascade Canyon until the trail converged with the creek. We were looking for a huge boulder as a landmark, but we were not sure exactly how huge the boulder was or what it looked like. We stopped to look for our target by a boulder that was in the creek, and Carrie spotted the target--an American Dipper!
We briefly watched it prance on the rocks and dive in the water, but then it disappeared, and we stopped by the creek to sit on the rocks and eat our lunch of beef jerky, cheese, nuts, pears, and Vienna sausages. After lunch, I was not quite satisfied with the looks we had had of the dipper, and, therefore, I hoped to relocate this bird. I did not think we had yet reached the huge boulder that Fraker had described as the landmark for the area by the creek where he had an American Dipper walking up to his feet. So I convinced Carrie to go a little further with me along the trail, and it was not long until we found this!
It was the huge boulder! We looked to our left and noticed that the trail had converged with the creek once again, and there on the rocks by the creek was another American Dipper--a youngster! We watched this bird for about 15-20 minutes hopping on the rocks and swimming in the creek, and at times approaching very close to us.
After some great looks at the second American Dipper, we headed back the way we came to Inspiration Point, where we saw this Uinta Squirrel
A little further down the trail, a man was looking at a Pika sticking it's head out from beneath a rock! I eventually was able to get on it with my binoculars, but then it slipped away before I could get my camera up for a shot. I only got another brief glimpse of it running under the rocks, and then it was gone.
Between the falls and the lake, we saw some folks looking at something. When we asked, what they were looking at, they pointed out a Moose cow and calf up the hill above us. The pair was retreating out of sight, but I was able to manage a couple of poor shots.
After taking the ferry back across the lake, we stopped by the gift store for Pepsis, and started heading South toward Jackson. Once again, we took the Gros Ventre Road Loop, stopping occasionally to gaze on the Grand Tetons.
And we came across some people photographing this Pronghorn Antelope. I took these shots from the window of my car at a safe distance.
I was amazed and disturbed as these people, who were standing outside their cars kept inching their tripods closer to this animal. He was about 15 yards or less from the edge of the road, yet they were fearlessly walking out into the sage to get closer.
After a drive around the loop, we decided to go back to Death Canyon Road to check again for Black-backed Woodpecker. Carrie decided to wait in the car when we got to the burn at the end of the road. Since the birders we had spoken to that morning, who were going to look for it, had not sent us any texts to notify us that they had found it, it seemed unlikely that we would see it. However, just a few minutes after I had gotten out of the car, I had found not one, but a pair of Black-backed Woodpeckers! I called Carrie to tell her that they were there, and she quickly joined me to see the pair! For several minutes both woodpeckers were on the same tree. Like American Dipper, Black-backed Woodpecker was a lifer for both of us. Here are a few shots of the female.
And here are a couple of shots of the male which was noticeably larger than the female.
After a great day of hiking and birding, we drove back to Jackson and then West into Idaho to see the Matthews family. We arrived at the home of Mark, Heidi, and their two sons Caleb and Daniel by 7:00 p.m. It was good to see our friends, meet their boys, and catch up on old times. They also had a Border Collie named Nick, who loved to play frisbee and scarfed down his food faster than any other living creature that I have ever seen eating. Mark and Heidi kindly put us in their room, where we slept very comfortably, looking forward to another day with them when we awoke. It had been four days since we had left Normal, IL, and we still had another six days before our vacation would end, yet we had already seen so many amazing creatures and such wonderful scenery. We had been hitting it pretty hard for the last couple of days, so it would be nice to slow things down for the next day or two before we took on Yellowstone.
These events took place on September 2, 2014, but this post was written and published on September 23, 2014.
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