Santa Cruz has miles of unused railroad tracks running through the county. Katherine and I have walked from the westside of Santa Cruz to Wilder Ranch State Park along these tracks. Several miles of paved multi-use trail have been put in next to the tracks which make some of this walk even easier. It’s also another great place to spot birds.
On our walks, we’ve seen sparrows and swallows, towhees and jays, Red-tailed and Red-shouldered Hawks, Peregrine Falcons and American Kestrels, Western Bluebirds and Western Meadowlarks, Great Blue Herons and Anna’s Hummingbirds, blackbirds and finches (Lesser, American and House), Northern Harriers and White-tailed Kites, Dark-eyed Juncos and Phoebes (Black and Say’s). I could go on or I could show you some photos!
We see birds preening…
Birds with attitude…
Birds flying…
Birds pausing for a portrait…
And, sadly (depending on your perspective), birds eating…
There is always a variety of birds engaged in a variety of activities along the tracks…
It never gets old! (Plus, we can take the dogs. The Red-shouldered Hawk pictured above had its eye on Sasha who had wandered below its tree.)