I’ve got a crick in my neck from watching huge flocks of birds flying overhead while I was out walking this morning. They weren’t geese — they didn’t have the same tight formation that geese use — but they seemed similar, at least from my viewpoint, standing on the ground far beneath the flocks, craning my neck to watch them for as long as they were in sight. The sounds they made were also different from those of a goose, more of a warble than a honk. I’ve spent the past hour or so trying to figure out what the birds are, and I think they are sandhill cranes. The sound is right, the time of year is right, and according to at least one map, the migratory path is right.
If I had my binoculars with me, I would have been able to see them more clearly. And, of course, if I had followed through on my plan to get a birding camera when I got here, I could have taken a photo instead of relying on this free image.
The last time I experienced such a vast migration was the turkey vulture migration I saw when I lived in California. Those might be unattractive birds when seen close up, but in flight, they are every bit as beautiful as the birds — the cranes — I saw today.
And those cranes certainly were beautiful and elegant.
I was especially delighted to see the cranes today — not just because they were a treat for my eyes and ears (though not for my neck), but also because of the reminder that despite all the sham, broken dreams, and the political machinations we are currently being subjected to, it’s still a beautiful world.
p.s. In case you’re wondering, my use of the word “craning” was no accident.
***
We’re getting closer to the October 20th publication date every day!
If you are planning to get a Kindle version of my new novel, Bob, The Right Hand of God, you can now pre-order on Amazon, and the minute the book is published, the book will appear in your Kindle. Click here to purchase: Kindle version of Bob, The Right Hand of God.
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I truly hope this book will amuse you, entertain you, make you think and perhaps even dream a bit about what it would be like if God decided to recreate the world.
Bertram's Blog 
October 16, 2020 at 1:01 pm
Wish I had seen the Sandhill cranes. They are truly beautiful. Thanks for the memory.
October 16, 2020 at 1:29 pm
They were so high up, I could only see wings, a long tail and a long neck. But I could hear them. It was a compelling experience. I remember when I was there, how all sorts of people went out looking for the cranes so they could count them.
October 17, 2020 at 7:30 am
They sometimes appear here, in the savannah areas along the Mississippi, but a year ago when I was in New Mexico they arrived early for winter and I was able to see them at the nature preserve near Socorro. They have a curious call that reminds me of a washboard being scraped by fingers, as in a jug band.
October 17, 2020 at 8:53 am
Good description of their sound. I’d never heard it before. How cool that you got to see them at the nature preserve!