First Snow of 2019

Dark-eyed Junco

Belted Kingfisher

Red bellied woodpecker

We had our first measurable snowfall of the year last weekend. After 2018 ended up being the wettest year in Maryland's history, 2019 seems to be continuing the trend, with some sort of precipitation every few days. This weekend looks like another washout, with mostly rain. Last weekend, what was predicted to be only a couple of inches of snow at most until about the day before the storm, turned into almost 10 inches in spots.

I took a hike on Saturday afternoon while it was snowing, and Sunday morning after the storm had stopped on the Rachel Carson Trail along the Northwest Branch. The trail has become very busy in the last couple of years, so it was nice to have it returned to the locals for the weekend. I hardly saw anyone back there while hiking which was like the good 'ol days.

Sunday morning, a brilliant yellow sun and blue skies opened up. It felt almost like the Sierra in California for a moment. I've really been enjoying trying to capture photos of birds lately, and spent most of my time looking and listening...