Quest for the Lewis' Woodpecker

Of the species of birds that I have always wanted to see, Lewis’ Woodpecker has been at the top of the list. I’m not sure what it is about this bird, but it has captivated my interest for decades.

I’ve been following the bird reports hoping to find a Lewis’ location that meshed with my travel plans. Thankfully, several had recently been sighted in the San Bernardino Mountains at Silverwood Lake State Recreation Area. I added it to my itinerary.

When I arrived at the park a few days ago it was closed due to heavy snowfall. I opted to camp nearby, hoping that that the conditions would improve and the park would reopen. Thankfully the next morning was sunny and warm, which melted the icy park roads. I was waiting at the gates when the ranger opened the park mid morning.

I searched for a long time in the area where the birds had allegedly been hanging out, but to no avail. Finally, as I was walking back to the van - ready to pack it in and head to the coast - I made one last scan. In the distance there was a lone bird sitting high up on a dead tree. Could it be? Elated, I had found my life (first ever) Lewis’ Woodpecker.

Now that I was on to them, I quickly found two additional Lewis'. After enjoying satisfying views, I rigged up my camera gear with lots of magnification to try for some photos. It was very difficult to get close to them with an unobstructed view, but I kept working until I had a few reasonably clean shots.

That evening, when I went to download the memory card to see my precious photos, they were all gone! There had been a problem with the card or camera and it appeared that all the files were either lost or corrupted. My heart sunk! After a frantic email to Lexar for technical support, they promptly sent me the recovery software. The photo gods must be on my side, because it worked!

Although these aren't prize winners, I'm just plain excited to have any photos of Lewis' Woodpecker!

EOS 50D; 500/4 + 1.4x TC

Snow, Rain and Great Light

Here's a photo of heavy snowfall in Joshua Tree. I'm not a big cold weather/snow fan (it's why I've escaped from Canada for the winter), but even I was taken by the beauty of snow in the desert.



After leaving Joshua Tree en route to the San Bernardino Mountains, I got a call notifying me that someone had been attempting to fraudulantly use my credit card. What a pain to deal with! After many calls and wracking my brain to figure out where I would be so that a new card could be couriered (not an easy thing when you're travelling like a photo nomad) I finally got it all worked out. At this point I was a bit cranky, but kept focussing on the goal of seeing my life Lewis' Woodpecker. So you can imagine my mood when I arrived at the park where the woodpecker had been seen, only to find the park closed indefinitely due to heavy snowfall. I found a nearby campsite to chill out for the night.

The campground was pretty darn nice and there wasn't another person there - I had it entirely to myself. There were electical hookups to run a heater (it was going well below freezing) and showers. You can't imagine how much of a luxury a hot shower is when you're living on the road. Things were looking up.

And here's the view from my campsite.... not bad, eh!


I quickly forgot all of the hassles of the day at dusk, when the passing storm front resulted in this incredible light. The sky was purple!

EOS 1DsIII; 24-70; Singh-Ray LB Colorcombo filter & 3 stop soft edge ND grad


EOS 1DsIII; 24-70; Singh-Ray LB Colorcombo filter & 3 stop soft edge ND grad


As for my attempt to find the Lewis' Woodpecker...... did I end up seeing it? I'll save that story for the next post. Check back soon.