Video of Condors at Pinnacles National Monument

Took a fabulous hike up Pinnacles National Monument with my husband last week-end.  We went up the High Ridge trail in the afternoon, the temperature was perfect. And the wildflowers are happening ~ while not as abundant as previous years, there is a wide variety of flowers.

We had seen Condors fly by at the top of this trail a few years ago, and my husband joked that they would make an appearance today, 5pm!  We sat down on the bench, on the very top of the trail, where the winds were blowing ferouciously.  But, all bundled up, we were ok, waiting for the show.  Right at five o’clock, swallows whizzed by.  Then, a couple crows.  I remarked this was kind of like the scene in “Close Encounters of the Third Kind”, where folks were gathered at the top of the hill, waiting for the “mothership.” If you remember back that far…first, a small glowing object sped by…then another..and then the big event!

Well, same here, on top of Pinnacles… a few minutes past five, two HUGE condors flew so close over our heads that we could hear their wings soar!  My camera misfunctioned, but my husband had the wearwithall to turn on the video camera ~ check it out! Condors at Pinnacles National Monument  My husband Daniel also took the fabulous picture of the condor flying over the moon…quite a magical moment!

With all the hiking and Condor sighting I didn’t have time to paint, but a studio painting is sure to follow…