Fall colors work with these Hawks. Their red colors blend with the leaves. To quote Ellen “and we almost walked past this bird”.

Red-shouldered Hawk in Spanish Moss.
It was dark and raining the morning, day after Thanksgiving, so we made more coffee and hunkered down.
Rain finally stopped and we couldn’t take it anymore. Off to local swamps. As Ellen said, we can just come home if we want. Famous last words.
Well, we had hardly entered swamp and looked up… a Red-shoulder in our face. Big, close, and gone! We couldn’t even say anything, it was by far one of the best opportunities in a long time.
Not much further we found this Hawk too. We knew they were gathering, but this was a promise of good days.
Best viewed large.
Because it was dark and wet I had a shorter midsized lens mounted. My trusty bargain basement sale 40-150 Olympus R. In a swamp distance isn’t always critical.
Red-shouldered Hawk in a swamp.
There’s a small rough covered bridge/hut that separates two swamp ponds. It’s not large but it can protect from rain, and has a bench. This is where you rest, shed your pack, change a lens, even share space with the swamp locals at times.
The scene below was taken while sitting, resting, and enjoying the view.