My last sighting of the adorable Fogo fox family was in the dying light of yet another incredible day for me on Fogo. I decided I would go after dinner and see if I had any luck seeing the family - did I ever - I saw them instantly! I had two challenges - the dying light and where to set up. I finally picked my spot and as soon as I did I lost sight of them - the three kits were running around like crazy! I was looking directly into the sun, away from the sun, and all around for them.

I need to start by making a correction - Bullitt Reservation in Ashfield, MA is owned and managed by The Trustees of Reservations (TTOR). Hilltown Land Trust is an affiliate of TTOR. This is a longer post than most but I thought it was best to share this incredible morning from start to finish. Sit back and relax - it is now time to come alone with me…

I was back at Bullitt - an absolutely beautiful morning - no wind and 50 degrees - just stunning. I knew that I wanted to spend all of my

I’ll be jumping back and forth with various posts as I will always be behind sharing my posts with you. I have very good intentions but…

I knew that I wanted another very early morning at Tilting Harbor so my wonderful guide picked me up again around 4:15 and off we went. My dear guide - you know who you are - thank you again! Tilting is on the eastern side of Fogo Island- an incredible place to catch a sunrise. An incredible place any time of the day…

Picking up where we left off with yesterday morning’s outing at Bullitt…. The lighting continued to get better and better and the parade of impressive birds continued. One of the many reasons that I love Bullitt so much is that there are great opportunities for me to set up with the sun behind me while looking into the woods along the upper field. I so love the sunlight breaking through into the woods creating intense splashes of light.

My luck continued… next I spotted a Black Throated Green warbler!

I will share much more from Fogo another day… I am thrilled that you are enjoying the Fogo posts as much as I am enjoying sharing them with you! I see that some of the wonderful people that I meant on my Fogo trip have signed up for my blog - thank you so very much - I miss all of you. For you newcomers… Bullitt Reservation is part of the non-profit Hilltown Land Trust in Ashfield, MA. I spend countless mornings there - I absolutely love it.

I am very excited to share this morning’s outing -

All of the puffin shots, and there will be countless puffin shots in my posts, are dedicated to Captain Tony and his First Mate, Aidan. Without these two incredible men I would not have had the experience of a lifetime and I would not have seen a single puffin while on Fogo Island. Not only was I in the safest of hands but I sincerely thank them for their patience while I took countless, and I mean countless, shots!

I would also like to say to everyone that I had the good fortune to meet on Fogo Island that you all touched my deeply.

My list of reasons for wanting to visit Fogo Island was quite a long list… at the top of the list - Atlantic Puffins! This is the time of year that massive amounts of puffins make their way to Newfoundland in order to breed. When they are not breeding they spend their lives bobbing out in the ocean feeding on small fish. On Tuesday I went out on a fishing boat about 4.5 miles off the shore of Fogo Island with an incredible Captain and First Mate to go see the puffins!

This post is a combination of parts of Wednesday and Thursday morning. Of course you know that I had to check on the kits… On Wednesday morning I was only able to grab two quick photos before they took off scrambling over the rocks and out of my vision!

The first Irish settlers of the town of Tilting on Fogo Island arrived in the mid-1800’s. I asked my wonderful guide to take me Tuesday morning to Tilting to see my first sunrise there for two reasons - 1) because the Irish settled here and, 2) it is on the east cost of the Fogo and a great place to try and see a sunrise. He arrived at 4:15 and off we went! We parked along a trail and then headed to a beautiful knoll to set up and watch the sunrise over Pigeon Island.

I am writing this to you from Fogo Island in Newfoundland. Fogo Island is in the northeast corner of Newfoundland. It is so far east that it has its own time zone - 30 minutes ahead of Atlantic time which means it is 90 minutes ahead of Eastern time zone. I booked this trip last December after a friend recommended that I check this special place out. I arrived at 4pm on Monday and already I do not have the words to describe the sense of place that finds its way deep inside of you here. The warm and kind people,

Let me start by saying that I just couldn’t share you with you the angst I felt after I left the crane family on the morning of Episode 7. There is too much going on in this country and in the world that is creating way too much anxiety for all of us - the last thing that I want to do is to add to anyone’s anxiety. What I didn’t share with you was this… After the family left the swamp and made their way through the woods to that neighboring field I made my way back through the woods as well. to follow the cranes into that field. It took me about 30 minutes walking as quickly as I could…

Between a lot of bad weather and my schedule I didn’t get back to the nest until exactly 2 weeks after the first little one was born - it seemed like forever!. I could only imagine how much they had grown since I had last seen them - I was very excited to be headed back to the nest. The morning was very, very foggy with nice cool temperatures.

Because of the fog I was fighting with my camera trying to get my first shots at the nest -

This episode picks up 24 hrs after Episode 5…. Needless to say I was worn out, but exhilarated, after all of my time at the nest the previous days. I knew that I would kick myself if I didn’t get up and get back to the nest to see what was happening… So away I went again before sunrise. It was a slightly foggy misty morning.

I arrived at my spot, set up, and immediately zoomed in on the nesting site… and was instantly happy that I had made the trip! Right next to the resting crane on the nest…

This morning I went to Bullitt again…. It was very foggy/hazy when I arrived. Good temps - low 50’s, no wind. It started a little quieter than I would have anticipated - but I was committed to keep at it. As I slowly made my way around my first loop a beautiful Cedar Waxwing decided to land in this gorgeous spot -

I then heard the unmistakable beautiful song of a Common Yellowthroat. I finally spotted it in the fog and haze singing away.

There are mornings and then there are mornings… I hope you enjoy this morning’s outing as much as I did - except for the mosquitoes! I thought that the sunrise might be something special as the forecast was for smokey skies and often that makes for dramatic early morning skies. However, as I drove to Bullitt this morning it just seemed like it might turn out to be hazy…

This is not a Sandhill Crane post…there will be more but not today. This morning I went to the Edge Hill Conservation area in Ashfield - another spot that I love. Temperature was perfect - 44 degrees and no wind. Once the sun came up the sky was either cloud filled or full on sun - there was no in between this morning. I was having a very hard time getting any good looks at all of the wonderful birds singing and flitting around. They were enjoying teasing me and staying behind leaves etc. I kept at it and finally found a spot that I thought might bring me some luck.

The sun sure rises early this time of year! It certainly helps me get up and out the door a little after 4am knowing that not only I am wondering what will be happening at the nest, but also knowing so many of you are wondering the same thing! Thanks so much for your texts, emails, VMs and posts - I really appreciate knowing that you are enjoying following along with this truly remarkable family at the nest…

Please sit back, exhale, and I hope that you enjoy this episode.

Picking up where we left after Episode 3 - As planned, I went back to the swamp in the afternoon that same day. Of course since I left the swamp in the morning I was wondering, like all of you, if I would find a chick and the egg or 2 chicks when I returned. I arrived around 2:30 and hoofed it to my spot as quickly as I could. While walking through the woods my Merlin app was identifying all of the warblers I could hear but not see… black and whites, chestnut-sided, magnolias, yellows…

You guessed it - I was up very early to head back to the nest to arrive well before sunrise.. This was Mother’s Day morning and there had been a light frost in Ashfield. As I drove up past the various streams and wetlands fog and mist was rising - I absolutely love these mornings.

As soon as I arrived at the back of the swamp I could see that I would have to find a slightly different tree to set up against. They are certainly confined to their nest but when they are resting on it at a slightly different angle it totally changes how I can peek into their world.

Still the same afternoon as Episode 1… it was all too good to be true so I knew I would be staying as long as I could. I decided I would leave once the nest was in shadows from the setting sun - at that time it would definitely mean it was time for me to hoof it back through the woods to get to my car.

I honestly cannot believe how many opportunities I had with this parent and little one! In years past the nest was more hidden within the grasses and cattails -