And here is the peak unofficially named False Portal Peak, because due to its prominence over the community of Portal, some people think it's Portal Peak --
I used the 100-400 f/5.6 lens with the 1.4x TC on both, just as the sun was hitting them, giving the rock a warm glow. False Portal Peak doesn't, and never had, an official name. Probably one of the reasons why "FPP" was mistaken for the real Portal Peak is from this angle the real peak doesn't look as tall -- as is certainly not as prominent. After breakfast I went to a friend's house to pick up "specimens". I have an Arizona "Scientific Collecting Permit" for collecting, in this case, dead birds. I get the "perished items" from friends who know I can take them off their hands, and someone associated with the Museum of Natural History in Los Angeles comes by to pick them up -- or I send them. Depending on the species category -- Fully Protected Species, Species of Special Concern, and the like -- specimens can be used for various purposes: scientific, educational, management. So the previously mentioned friend had found 2 bodies; a male Kestrel, and a Common Poorwill, both on the road, so he bagged them and put a piece of paper with each bird, stating where and when he found them, and what condition there were in. And gave them to me to hand over to the MNH. Later on in the day, I visited with another friend who I found out also had specimens, so I told her about my connection with Kimball Garrett, head of the ornithology department at MNH and the signer of the permit, and that I can take the birds "off her hands". In between doing all of this I was getting Faranuf ready for what I called The Faranuf Lunar Eclipse Viewing and Potluck Party, to be held starting 5pm that evening. In the meantime, I checked to see if the Big Bend Patchnose snake had returned to my back yard. As I hadn't seen him for a day I thought he might be gone, but he was there --
He'd apparently made his "burrow" as long as his body, and I believe had been using it all this time. I was great to see him still here, and I gave him Faranuf Residence status.
But the highlight of the day was the lunar eclipse party. I've gone into detail about this particular eclipse in the last blog entry so I won't repeat it here, but suffice to say another one of its magnitude won't be seen for another 18 years. So I invited a few friends over (I really can't host a larger number yet as I don't have enough dishes, silverware, etc) for a potluck; we started out with a guacamole dip and chips and had that and the following dinner on Faranuf's back porch. All during this time we were keeping an eye on the view east for moonrise -- and we had an unobscured view of the entire lunar eclipse. Here's a photo I took of "totality", the maximum coverage of the moon, using the 500 f/4 lens with a 1.4x TC on, giving a total reach of 700mm, and the camera exif is ISO 3200, f/5.6 @ 1/4 second --
As you can see, it was an amazing sight. And another perfect end to a memorable day at Faranuf, Portal, and the Chiricahua Mountains...
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