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I took a break from my very amateur birdwatching during the fall — the weather was too perfect for bike riding, and I rarely have time for both. However, now we have a fresh batch of snow on the ground and days with highs of ~30 degrees, so my binoculars have been seeing more action.
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This weekend Dan and I opened our map of Colorado’s state parks and chose St. Vrain, about 45 minutes from Fort Collins.
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St. Vrain is tailored for camping and fishing — when we pulled up and asked a ranger where we might walk around, we got a bit of an odd look. (I think he assumed we meant hike.)
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Once the ranger realized we were prepared to tromp through the snow and look for birds, he recommended Pelican Pond. Dan and I circled Pelican as well as Blue Heron Pond for about 2.5 miles of birdwatching (during which we saw exactly one other pair of people, walking a dog).
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Though birds are somewhat more sparse in the winter, I think Dan and I cleaned up. My list included bald eagle (seen above, photo by Dan), blue heron, kestrel, belted kingfisher, lesser scaup (new to me), red-breasted merganser, common goldeneye, and more.
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