Back to Chicago & Summer Recap Post
Monday 17 August 2015
87 °F
Today I flew home from Sun Valley, Idaho to Chicago because I will start school again tomorrow (ugh). Here are a few photos from my travels:
Takeoff from Sun Valley - my last view of the Wood River Valley, Idaho:
Rocky Mountain National Park seen during my plane's descent into my layover in Denver:
Longs Peak, one of the highest mountains in the lower 48:
There is an interesting twist to the plot now - I am posting this from my layover in Denver International Airport and my flight to Chicago was canceled due to weather in Chicago, so I am on the "standby" lists for the next Chicago flights! Hopefully I get on soon...(!)
Anyway, here is my summer recap - a nice way to spend the time on this layover. Blog posts for all of these events can be found using the sidebar navigation on the right.
May 31: 1st day of summer for me
June 2: Awesome daytrip in Chicago, finding Conecticut and Hooded Warblers
June 11: Meeting Suzanne Coleman and finding a Prothonotary Warbler
June 19: I get a tour of the Field Museum's expansive bird skin collection
June 21: Oak Park Kids Bird Walks & I leave for my tour with my choir to NYC and Washington DC
July 4: Independence Day in southwest Michigan, finding Hooded Warbler & Red-shouldered Hawk
July 11: Meeting a new birding friend Jonathan and birding with him in Chicago area
July 14: I leave for my LIFE-CHANGING trip to Costa Rica on which I found 168 birds, including 100 lifers
July 19: I find my 1st nemesis bird, the Resplendent Quetzal, in Costa Rica
July 27: I leave for my trip to Sun Valley, Idaho
August 9: I meet birder Ryan Anderson and we each find a life bird
August 14: I find my 2nd nemesis bird, the Great Gray Owl, with birders Kathleen C, Poo WP, and Maria A
August 17: Today, my final day of summer
It was a GREAT summer!
My favorite trip was my trip to Costa Rica with a group from my high school from July 14 to July 23.
Bird-of-the-summer goes to my life bird RESPLENDENT QUETZAL found in Monteverde, Costa Rica which used to be my #1 "nemesis bird," a species that evaded me in the past. Runner-up goes to my life bird GREAT GRAY OWL found in Stanley, Idaho, which was my #2 "nemesis bird" until just three days ago!
Stay tuned, because I will post again this Saturday after I go on a day trip with the Illinois Young Birders Club in search of shorebirds. After that, posts on this blog will be much less frequent because like any school year, this one is already looking to be very busy with challenging courses at school and many, many musical events.
This fall; however, I will be posting daily on my other bird blog called "Arrivals and Influxes" which is a blog devoted to predicting bird migration for each morning to let birders know when they should get out and what they should expect to see.
ilmigration.blogspot.com
Good birding, and thank you for following my avian adventures this summer!
Happy birding,
Henry
World Life List: 854 Species (no life birds today)
We enjoyed all your posts this summer and all your sightings. Have a great school year!
by Ann Gunkel