Now is the Time! Cranes...

Wednesday march 4: The ladies and I are walking at Laguna Creek. The storms have given us a small break of brilliant sunshine and bright skies for a short while. Our usual trail East has flooded, so we head Northwest across the soggy greens of Camden. The grasses are brilliant green and from all directions it seems we hear the sound of water rushing towards towards creek and sea. The breeze is gentle and moist, wafting from the water it is spiked with the heady aroma of soil. It's one of those jubilant spring days, when being outside invigorates body and spirit.


I hear a flock of cranes calling to one another in their thin reedy voices which carry so well on the winds. We stop in our tracks and try to find them in the sky to the South. Suddenly the sound and the flock match up, and we watch in amazement as 20 or so elegant grey birds fly purposefully over our heads, exchanging places in the 'V' pattern of their flight.


Exhilarating! Moments after this group disappears to the north, we hear another, larger flock to the south. These birds, perhaps 40 reach our area and begin circling and calling, waiting for yet another wave of birds behind them. They disappear into the sun, and appear again to the East and West on their revolutions. Their bodies are silvery grey, wings darker, and the wingtips almost black. By this time, we cannot speak, standing mute as the sound of hundreds of Sandhill Cranes gathering above us greet each other and head off to their Summer grounds in the North. The traffic din of Bond & Elk-Grove Florin Road cannot deny this beautiful seasonal symphony. Now we give up counting the waves of winged migrants passing overhead. Hundreds at a time are leaving on a long journey, threading their way between the storms and we are on hand to receive this gift. In units of 'V's they head almost due North with an intent and purpose that I truly envy. I am feeling heavy and earthbound in the presence of such magnificence. They know where they are going, when to leave, and they travel together, as families and tribes. The beauty of this moment still awes me.