On a day in mid-May with alternating sun and showers, a friend and I took a stroll on the Outer Point Trail. Our original intent was a walk on the Rainforest Trail, but that idea was jettisoned vigorously and immediately upon seeing a horde of tourists beginning a guided tour there. The Outer Point Trail was ours for a time, and a few others came later.

Here in Southeast, two species of swift reach the northern extent of their breeding range, although they are not common here.

The snow is still thick on the ground in some places and my pond still has a lot of ice. The small alders that grow at the pond edge were bent double by those heavy snows and still have their tops locked in the pond ice. Pairs of mallard visit the pond every day, foraging around the edges and on the fallen seeds on the ice. Other spring things are happening too!