I knew I’d been ignoring my blog – but I didn’t realize the last post was in January! I did take some winter pictures but nothing particularly interesting came of them.

The Montana Audubon Center here in Billings is offering a Montana Master Naturalist course. The stated purpose is “to develop the knowledge, skills, and habits to forge a closer relationship with the natural world.” Deciding it might be fun to meet others and to learn more about the geography, plants and creatures of the area, I signed up.

One of the requirements is to keep a naturalist journal with the recommendation to visit the same outdoor location repeatedly. Since Phipps Park is just up the road from my home, I scoped it out before the class started. All photos in this post were taken that afternoon in mid-April.