Hike Our Planet - @HikeOurPlanet

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In 2009 when I began my foray into Nature photography I was not a birder.  When I began hiking in Hot Springs National Park during the winter of 2009-2010 Birds became my companions.  Even in the harshest weather Woodpeckers, Cardinals, Sparrows, Mockingbirds and Pine Warblers were with me along each trail.  In those early days of hiking I only had my 5-year-old Sony Cybershot and each clear shot of a moving bird felt like a miracle.  I used to call my camera the “Magic Box” as often I had no clue what I had captured until I returned home and scoured the Internet for bird identification.

To get better shots of the many beautiful birds I would stand out-of-sight in the pagoda on Hot Springs Mountain.  One morning in February of 2010 as I was looking out over the valley when I heard loud squawking on the lawn below.  I glance down and saw a flock of Robins grabbing at seeds and in the melee were smaller Birds holding their own. The Lovely Creatures of the Forest on the Hot Springs Trails  I realized they were the same type of Bird I had seen briefly in January.

The exotic markings on the Cedar Waxwing made me take a second look all Birds.  I began to see them all with a greater appreciation for their unique and individual beauty. Nature’s winged artistry.

Love to ALL!
Lee