Blue Heron Trail Sunset

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 I rode the bike home for the first time in a while this evening. Here are a couple of pics of the sunset from the Blue Heron Section of the Colorado River Trail in Grand Junction, Colorado.

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River Trail Birds May 2012

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Today we saw two barn swallows on the river trail in Grand Junction.

We'll call the swallow above Number One.

Swallow Number Two.

In the above picture, Number One is on the right.
Number Two is on the left.

In this pic, Number Two has moved to the right hand side.

Number One again.

This red-winged blackbird did not seem concerned by our presence.

Red-winged blackbird singing.

Geese and goslings.

With vegetation in the background.

The geese from a distance.

Blue Damselfly.

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Rain on the Horizon

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The view from the Connected Lakes / Audubon trail last Monday

View from Redlands Parkway

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View from bike trail on South Camp Road

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Click on the picture twice to see it full size.

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The Colorado River Trail at 10pm with hundreds of beady eyes is a whole different world. Tonight I saw my first Colorado skunk, my first Colorado raccoons, what I think was a very large jack-rabbit, a bullfrog with a body as large as my hand, and I got my first taste of Colorado adrenaline. Just as I was thinking that I was in a perfect place to startle a thirsty mountain lion, I rounded a turn right into a pair of fiery eyes, nearly my height, just 4 feet away. I screeched to a halt. I do believe that I was more shaken by the deer in the headlamp than it was by me.

 

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Flying Ants, Dragonfly Niads, and Stoneflies

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Today we rode our bikes from the botanical gardens in Grand Junction to the entrance to Corn Lake on 32 Road; we saw a lot of creatures along the way. We found a stonefly, some tiny tadpoles, and an assortment of frogs and toads. In one little pond we found a dragonfly nymph (or naiad), hundreds of water boatmen, a few water striders, snails, and some kind of aquatic insect that stays underwater and looks like a fat, spherical tick. A bit farther along the trail we found an ant nest whose winged members were preparing to participate in a mating flight.

Update: What I have always thought were water boatmen were not. They are actually backswimmers. I had no idea that the two were any different. It turns out that water boatmen surface upright and backswimmers surface on their backs. Other than that, they look very similar to one another. So what I saw were backswimmers and not water boatmen. I'm not sure that I've ever actually seen a water boatman.  Here is an article that describes backswimmers and another that describes water boatmen.

You don't want to see this if you are a small insect or crustacean.

A view for scale.

The dragonfly naiad is a decent-sized little critter.

I don't normally post pictures of dead insects, but I had never seen one of these before. It is a stonefly. We found it on the bike trail between a stagnant, receding pond and the swiftly flowing Colorado river. Look at this picture for a better idea of what the living version actually looks like. Another insect that I have yet to see is a dobsonfly. I've heard that they can be found around Grand Junction. I'm looking forward to finding one.

The stonefly is a medium-sized insect belonging to the order plecoptera. A plecopteran sighting is a good thing, as they can not handle water pollution. If you spot one, it means that the water source is healthy. When I first saw this one, I thought that it might be a female dobsonfly or caddisfly (two other species I've never actually seen) but a quick look online revealed that it must be a stonefly. 

In the process of trying to identify the stonefly, I discovered another insect I had spotted in Georgia way back in 2005 and had never been able to identify. An owlfly. The way that it rests on plant stalks is very distinctive, with its wings folded back and down in a very unusual manner.

 These tadpoles are quite a bit smaller than a pencil eraser.

 

 

A short video showing the tiny tadpoles we found. 

When they reach adulthood, we'll release them.

They are in the smallest critter keeper you can buy. 

Update: Another tadpole that started out just like these critters a month or so ago has become an adult. Check this link to see what Frida became. ~ http://bit.ly/NsCCFT

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Critters at Wingate Park in Grand Junction

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If you have kids who like critters, Wingate Park in Grand Junction is a great place to take them on a summer afternoon. I ride past this area regularly on my bike, and I see some kind of creature every time I'm there. The quail are always hanging out in the bushes near the vehicle entrance. I've seen rabbits on a few occasions in the same spot. There are usually a couple of different types of lizards near the shaded picnic area between noon and 4pm, and there are lots of small insects (beetles and pollinators) flying around in the flowering plants near the parking lot. If you want to go for an afternoon nature walk or a bike ride with your kids, a trip along the trail that leads towards Monument Road will almost always include sightings of a few birds, grasshoppers, lizards, a rabbit or two, and maybe even a snake.

Picnic area in the background.

Lizards can regularly be spotted here on summer afternoons.

This lizard was seen on Thursday, July 14th at noon.

Another lizard seen under the bushes near the turtle.

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Deer on Blue Heron Trail

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Yesterday as I was riding, this deer appeared off the side of Blue Heron Trail. I'm sure that there are tons of deer along this stretch, but this is the first one that I've seen there.

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Rabbits and Lizards on South Camp Rd.

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Two of the most common sights while biking near the Colorado National Monument on South Camp Road are rabbits and lizards. Today was no exception. Here are some pictures:

There were two rabbits near the entrance to Wingate Park. 

This one looked a little nervous.

This one didn't seem to mind my presence at all.

I believe that this is a whiptail lizard.
Perhaps the western whiptail...
Anyone else out there know?

It was very active, and ate several small insects as I followed it.

A short video of the lizard looking for insects in the grass:

Frogs on Colorado River in Grand Junction

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Today was "Frog Day" along the Riverside Trails in Grand Junction.
This frog was spotted between 29 Road and Corn Lake.

We saw several frogs and tadpoles in the water and on the trails.
Here you can see the frog from the first picture alongside the trail.
This frog was the smallest one that we saw by far.

First frog we saw, in a little pond created by the flooding river

near the trail entrance at the Botanical Gardens on 7th Street in GJ.

There were several tadpoles, with bodies the size of large goldfish.

This frog was seen on the Palisade Section of the Riverside Trails.

There is a place where this trail is washed out, and this frog was 

in a flooded section between the trail and the Grand Valley Canal.
They definitely appear to be enjoying the flood waters.

This frog has had enough attention for today.

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Palisade Section of Colorado Riverfront Trails

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The Palisade-Riverbend Park Section of the Riverfront Trail can be accessed at 36 1/4 Rd. just south of the Grand Valley Canal. There is a small parking lot with this sign next to the path entrance.

Although it is a relatively short section, it features wonderful views of Mt. Garfield, the Bookcliffs, and the Grand Mesa. I also regularly see different birds on this portion of the trail than on the others. Yesterday I saw American goldfinches, several types of water birds, and possibly a western tanager.

You can stop at Riverbend Park on your way into Palisade, but just be sure to keep your horses off that lawn! Relax in the shade, listen to the sounds of the river and the birds before continuing.

As of June 29th the drinking fountain did not work. There is water from the sinks in the restrooms, but I have no idea what the source of that water is. It would be a good place to refill water bottles if that water is potable. I'll have to check on that.

So far, the only place that I've found along the Riverside Trails where water bottles can be filled (other than gas stations and grocery stores) is Riverside Park just south of the intersection of West Avenue and Broadway. This is a nice place to relax for a few minutes before continuing, especially if you're planning to ride the entire trail.

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South Camp Road from Monument Road

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I really enjoy the scenery along South Camp Road in Grand Junction, so much so that I usually ride it twice (out and back), rather than just return to town on Monument Road. 

I usually start at the Blue Heron Section of the Colorado River Trail, follow that onto Redlands Parkway, then take South Broadway to South Camp Road. When I arrive at Monument Avenue, I turn around and head back towards the Connected Lakes portion of the river trail via South Rim Drive. 

I follow the Connected Lakes path which joins the Audubon Section at some point and then winds up at the Albertson's shopping center near the intersection of Broadway and Dike Road. From here, if I still feel like riding I can continue heading southeast on the Riverside Section, and then on towards Corn Lake and Palisade. 

Right now there are some sections closed and impassable because of flooding and washed out bits of the trails. There are other places that are marked as dangerous, but which are still able to be navigated. There are always new sights to be seen, and I spot something new on every trip.

Today I saw a snake, a few lizards, some cottontail rabbits, a bunch of quail, lots of desert grasshoppers, dragonflies, swallowtail butterflies and a black headed grosbeak.

Here are some pics from South Camp Road this afternoon:

Looking east from intersection South Camp and Monument Roads.
Mt. Garfield, the Bookcliffs and Grand Mesa visible in the distance.

The houses in this area have one of the best views in town.

The view from the bike path is not that bad either.

Desert Grasshopper - Perhaps a Least Desert Grasshopper?

 

"But it's a dry heat..."
Really, it didn't feel like 100 degrees.

Wingate Park is located next to the elementary school.
 The Monument is their backdrop.

Some folks were out enjoying a game of softball.

Gambel's Quail showed up just as I was leaving.

Turns out they were off to somewhere else as well.
(notice they're headed down "Quail Drive.")


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