Headed out Kougarok Road

On the windy, treeless plains and hillsides surrounding Nome we find lots of life. Not just the birds and mammals I've photographed, but also the summer explosion of flowers.

Aside from the willow trees, we see few that grow more than a foot or so from the ground. The harsh weather prevents growing farther than that from the mother earth. But the beauty in these limited ranges is quite strinking.

A bit farther from the earth, on the willows are the williow ptarmigans.

It is afternoon and we've driven about an hour out of town. in the image below you can see the truck parked on the dirt road we traveled. Arrayed in front of you is the scenery we enjoyed every day. Quite a place, eh? the large rock outcropping in the foreground is where we've come to sit for an hour or so to see the american pipit.

These birds like rocky places to hangout. So, we sat down about 10-15 feet away, set up our tripods and waited. Soon, with the help of the appropriate birds call, we were rewarded his appearance. We even caught him with lunch in his mouth! Over the next few days, you'll get to see much more of him as we sat and photographed.