Baby Bald Eagles - Fledging soon and why is so HOT in my area?

 

Our eagle babies are growing up -

Here is the FLEDGE timeline: 

the average fledge (leaving the nest for the first flight out) is 10-12 weeks. That would put us looking for signs on May 29–> They will start getting more restless and triangulating (bobbing head around as they look and zero in on a place to land)

 They are often quite clumsy on landings for a bit, it’s a tough skill. 

Liberty’s offspring average fledge days are between 83-85 days. The longest stay was 93 days before fledge. 

You can really see the difference in their head shape in this photo. Sentry's head is more slender like a male & Star's head is wider & fuller like a female! 

 

Sentry (left) & Star (right) turned 9 Weeks Old yesterday.  Time has really flown by this season & before we know it these two will be flying by the Nest!

Yesterday we got up to 102 - Not too bad. Now when I say that, you can't compare 102 here with the humid south. Humidity around 12%. Trust me, when I say this - it is way more tolerable. You don't even break a sweat, unless you are working in it. It's just nice hot heat that does feel good on your bones. I do feel sorry for those who have to be working in the heat - but they are used to it. 

It's funny because we all act like its a big deal when the first triple digits hit - but we'll soon be wishing it was only 102 when it gets into the 110+ that we will soon get. 

Forecast shows us cooling down to high 80's-low 90's for a few days.  I'll take that! 

HOT REDDING SUMMERS - Everything you ever wanted to know...

One of my favorite photos I have taken of the Sacramento river on a hot summer evening. 

Redding routinely experiences the hottest summer temperatures anywhere in California north of the Mojave Desert. Daily maximums in Redding often top out a few degrees higher than other notoriously broiling Central Valley cities like Fresno and Bakersfield, even though these places are farther south with higher sun angles. Daily maximum temperatures above 90 degrees are the rule in Redding from about early June well into October. 

Redding has the 2nd most sunny days in the US, behind Yuma Arizona. 

Triple digit afternoons are common from about mid June through at least through mid-September. That's one reason I love the Autumn. I start wishing for Fall by the early August. 

This isn't even the hottest - taken a few years ago. 

The hottest I have ever experienced was when my parents bought their house (not this one) We helped them move and it was a 121. I vowed, I would never move up here to this "god-forsaken" place. 

Ahem...here I am, loving it (except for the heat) now for 14 years. 

WHY SO HOT?

My son, Foodie, enjoying the coolness of the high country. 

Mt Shasta in the distance. 

(near Castle Crags on a very tall mountain) 

Blame the scenery. 

 The mountains that give Redding its rugged backdrop also walls it off from any tempering ocean influence. Breezes fanning out from the Sacramento/San Joaquin delta may dramatically cool Sacramento, Stockton and other inland cities. It takes these delta breezes 160 miles up the Central Valley to Shasta County. We get no relief. 

I like to go over to Whiskeytown Lake after a horridly HOT summer day, at sunset. We love our sunsets because we can finally get out of the AC - I will say our evenings are beautiful - perfect temps with no hot sun shining on you. Still HOT but dry and pleasant. 

One thing people who don't live in California understand - we don't get rain in the summer like other states do. Most of California has a Mediterranean climate. We are supposed to get our rain in the winter. That's probably why we have such low humidity although our coast is humid - but the temperatures are cooler. It comes in the way of coastal fog. Still not like in the south or other humid places.

   

I took this May 2020 when we had the most beautiful rain. This was rare. 

Old timers say we live in the high desert - because it is so hot and dry. But I haven't found any factual information that would substantiate that - of course, who wants to argue with a crusty old timer who has lived here all his life WITHOUT air conditioning! 

Now perhaps in the future, with all the trees in the forest, burning down, our terrain could turn into a high desert. I don't know. I just hope I am not around to see it. 

Okay class, you're dismissed!