I spent some time this morning editing the photos I took yesterday. I took this one, of a grey heron, out the car window. He pulled the car over along this tiny, narrow road as I quickly stuck my camera out the window and hit the shutter twice. I didn’t have much hope that either of them would turn out, and was pleased this one worked.

The bird photographers were out in force yesterday. Lining the roads that crisscross through the Skagit Valley farmland. Some had lenses mounted on tripods, while others held lenses that were so big, I wondered how they held them steady. I admit, I have lens envy.

I study this photo until I narrow down what it is that I like… remnants of winter coming to and end, tiny green shoots here and there, signs of spring, as Percy calls them, the tones and textures of the earth and how they match the heron, making him hard to spot, the ditch of rainwater in front of him and the muddy field behind, along with the interesting weeds that rise above him. . . I like all of these things. I also like spending the day with him and the dog, just going for a ride, just to see what we might see. I feel like we hit pay dirt.