Poor quality image, but high-quality experience.
At the end of a 2 mile (3.2k) morning walk in the Scratchgravels, I heard a few Pinyon Jays in the distance to the west of the parking area. Since I was certain they were Pinyon Jays, I could count them for the year list by sound only, but since they’re Pinyon Jays, I always want to see them. I love the way they strut around in their dusty blue feathers. The second image is from April of 2023, just to show how lovely they are.
So, we stayed for a few minutes and started to head off in their direction. Something caused them all to take flight and make a wonderful ruckus- as only Corvids can and then at least a hundred Pinyon Jays exploded up out of the trees about 200 meters away- squawking and swirling like crazy.
They flew over us in four waves while we just watched and listened. They looped around and came back over us so I grabbed the camera and got a quick shot of the last group of 20+ as they flew over. We followed them for a bit to try to get a good image, but they were having none of it. They kept heading southwest, away from the trailhead.
Still standing in the parking lot, two folks came off the trail and asked if I had seen all the Pinyon Jays. We stood around and talked about Corvids for a few minutes before heading out. It’s always nice to meet folks who are similarly engaged in nature. Helena’s two greatest resources are its friendly people and it’s easy access to trails.
Happy Trails!
Nature, every day. 
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