24/7 Chat About Anything

[maki2]

Many types of owls are cavity nesters but a fledgling is not going to move into a birdhouse. Birdhouses get used for nesting time only, laying and hatching eggs and raising the babies until they can fly away. That owl in the tree has already fledged and is no longer in the nesting phase of growth.

But some species will use "roosting boxes" at night or as shelter from a storm. A little birdhouse is not a roosting box.

 

[maki2]

Of course putting up birdhouses is a fun thing to do and excellent mental health therapy!

 

[Morgana]

Yeah, I'm not quite getting the connection between the owl and the birdhouse (or if they even are connected, aside from my confusion about them). Doesn't seem like they'd expect the owl to move in. Maybe they're hoping for more birds (?); we do have a lot around here. Fun when people do stuff like that, though.

 

[vanbrat]

Feeder and water source is good for attracting birds...... If the water moves a tiny bit even better....
I built a bird garden just for me once and it is still going strong. I love hanging out watching the many birds hanging around....

 

[maki2]

I will likely get around to designing and selling some e-file birdhouse plans within the next 2 years.

But today is more work on my build. I try to get a few hours of work in most days while camping at Lake Havasu as the supply stores here are pretty good. But it is somewhat hot with a high of 90. My heat beating plan today is between 3 and 5 pm to head to the really nice air-conditioned laundromat that has a nice view of the lake. It is time to wash all my bedding. I will be needing blankets again! Mid week I will begin the move to higher elevation, perhaps an overnight in Kingman or maybe not... No firm plans on exact dates because of the potential for high winds.

Downside of this Lone Tree BLM site is the ground under the pea gravel cover is too hard to get stakes into, solid rock. I guess that is what happens on a mountain side with no vegetation covering to create soil. So no shade cloth deployed to keep the sun off me at mid day.

I got my 2nd Moderna booster on Thursday. My arm was not nearly as sore as the previous vaccines in the series. No other side effects. No line to wait in which was very nice.

 

[BelgianPup]

Re: the connection between owls and birdhouses...

Some varieties of owls eat other birds. A birdhouse may be a source of food, sort of an avian cruise-thru for a meal.

 

[maki2]

today is my last day at Lake Havasu, going to get hot here for a few days. Tomorrow is my best chance to avoid strong winds while transitioning to higher elevation. It is warm enough at night now to avoid freezing temps in that region I want to head to.

 

[vanbrat]

today is my last day at Lake Havasu, going to get hot here for a few days. Tomorrow is my best chance to avoid strong winds while transitioning to higher elevation. It is warm enough at night now to avoid freezing temps in that region I want to head to.

Wish you could send some of that heat this way... anyway have fun getting away from Lake Havasu

 

[maki2]

Headed out early in the morning from Lake Havasu., not long after sunrise. Made it to Williams Az just before lunch. Stopped at the Safeway to get a few groceries and when I stepped out of my vehicle the temperature was just perfect, upper 60s and sunny with a light breeze. More strong winds in the forecast later this week but camping in the forested areas works as a good wind break.

A ranger dropped by. He was stopping at every campsite to let people know that tomorrow the fire restrictions begin. He complimented me on my tidy campsite. I did not tell him I had just arrived an hour or so before he came along. I had already unhitched and leveled up but had not yet set out my chair and outdoor table.

Already had met one neighbor as he was out riding his mountain bicycle and dropped by to take a closer look at my trailer and say hello.

 

[vanbrat]

Sounds like good vibes and time to relax and enjoy.

 

[maki2]

I am enjoying being among tall trees again. Lots of birds, squirrels. Much quieter here at night. Unlikely to have a lot of OHV traffic this weekend with the high wind warning and the fire restrictions now in place. No campfires, no smoking outside, no charcoal fires, also restrictions on some types of camp stoves being used out of doors, etc. None of that bothers me as that is my normal mode of living.

Strong winds predicted for this weekend, 45 mph gust. Gust of 25 were predicted today as well but the trees make a good wind break as do the hills in the area I am camped in. No rain in the forecast which is why with the wind the fire risk is high. I think the local weekend camping crowd has decided to stay home this weekend instead of coming out to play on their OHVs and/or go fishing at the resevoir. Compared to being here last year at this time the place is a ghost town.

 

[ohbejoyful]

I am enjoying being among tall trees again. Lots of birds, squirrels. Much quieter here at night. Unlikely to have a lot of OHV traffic this weekend with the high wind warning and the fire restrictions now in place. No campfires, no smoking outside, no charcoal fires, also restrictions on some types of camp stoves being used out of doors, etc. None of that bothers me as that is my normal mode of living.

Strong winds predicted for this weekend, 45 mph gust. Gust of 25 were predicted today as well but the trees make a good wind break as do the hills in the area I am camped in. No rain in the forecast which is why with the wind the fire risk is high. I think the local weekend camping crowd has decided to stay home this weekend instead of coming out to play on their OHVs and/or go fishing at the resevoir. Compared to being here last year at this time the place is a ghost town.

Gosh, I love wind and trees. The sound feels like a fluffy comforter wrapping me up. Strong winds are a different story of course; it's nice to have the option of just driving away.

 

[NctryBen]

Spent the last three weeks traveling west to see kids as my oldest turned 40. How can a young guy like me have a forty year old kid. Haha.
Anyways, what a pleasant surprise to come home to ice free lake and everything greening up. And just when the fire danger was increasing we have a couple days of rain...
Maki, I’ll have a much different look coming back this fall... when diesel is pushing $6 a gallon I don’t think I can afford to keep driving that truck. I hope I came up with a great alternative for a camper. I learned a lot what I’ll need on this latest trip. Enjoy your time there... nothing like some trees...

 

[maki2]

Ben it is very odd to see my son looking older than I do.

I am definitely cutting back on trips to town due to the higher fuel cost in Northern AZ. But I did drive down to the Resevoir this morning before the wind kicked up to 45mph gust. There is a campground and day use area there. Nice to have access to the dumpsters this year. I also noticed that this year they have a big container of portable water for filling up jugs. Only 1 mile to the Resevoir versus 5 miles into town. Plus I enjoy sitting by the water.

I made myself a Mother's Day Brunch, pancakes, maple syrup, sausage, and eggs over easy.

 

[maki2]

Driving away from the wind? No need for that because the wind storm itself is just passing through.

 

[vanbrat]

I used to love listening to the wind in trees.... then one landed beside my house where I was eating lunch with 6 preschoolers. scared the @#$% out of me and busted up a bunch of concrete and the new roof and the window and...... And then another storm and wind blew over another tree smashing a brand new 2 day old deck I had just built. Last wind had a huge tree branch poke a hole in the roof of the shop. Nope wind blows now and we head for cover. We have weak trees it seems. All this after 29 yrs with no wind damage.

 

[Bunpoh]

I used to love listening to the wind in trees.... then one landed beside my house where I was eating lunch with 6 preschoolers. scared the @#$% out of me and busted up a bunch of concrete and the new roof and the window and...... And then another storm and wind blew over another tree smashing a brand new 2 day old deck I had just built. Last wind had a huge tree branch poke a hole in the roof of the shop. Nope wind blows now and we head for cover. We have weak trees it seems. All this after 29 yrs with no wind damage.

I lived in my home for 18 years. It has towering maples and other trees along one side, many decades old. Six years ago, multiple huge maple trunks cracked off during a bad windstorm and fell on our roof. One made it through the ceiling. We were lucky to be alive. Four years ago, a GIGANTIC hemlock broke and lodged itself in the corner of my roof, flexing the entire structure and releasing all the lathe and plaster. Again, lucky I wasn't crushed. Had to be rebuilt from studs out, got screwed by insurance. And then another maple from the same side nearly killed my next door neighbor.

I have PTSD during high winds now. I do think climate change weakened these mighty trees due to cycles of drought, oversaturation of the soil and higher winds than normal. I'm very glad I sold the house and am out of there now.

 

[maki2]

Big leaf Maples and hemlocks are both trees easily damaged by wind. Knowledge gained from years of living in the Pacific NW. Not good trees to have planted close by your house.

 

[maki2]

I was as thinking I would be camping solo this next few weeks but I now have great company at my campsite. One text came in this morning asking for my pin location and another arrived a few hours later. My 2 friends had never met each other but they coincidentally shared the same professional careers. So fun easy going conversations this evening and looking forward to more of the same over the next couple of weeks.

 

[Bunpoh]

Maki, this may be so, but those trees had to be there for at least 70 years, I think. They survived a lot of windstorms, and had any of them fall to anyone's knowledge. But according to several things I read, climate change is weakening these giant trees in the PNW. Here's one article about what it's doing to the Big Leaf Maples. But I also came across specific ones a few years back that I haven't been able to dig up on short notice regarding how recent extended bouts of extreme weather, especially drought, had made trees more fragile and susceptible to breakage, and it was causing more trees to fall in our neighborhoods.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/09/210930111107.htm