While I haven’t yet found an ap to download the images from my mind to facebook or this blog – I can share with you some wildlife stories from the past couple weeks.  It seems either I’m getting away from the desk and spending a little more time outside or the animals/birds are making a concerted effort to find me when I do venture out.   

Recently we’ve had a young bear visiting the camp. Late night visits seemed to be the norm.  He’d just travel around camp tipping trash cans, and peruse campsites looking for s’more remnants.   He’s no longer restricting himself to the evening hours as he has figured out that if he waits until evening – we’ve emptied the lunch boxes (garbage cans).  Yesterday I went to clean a cabin.  I stopped by to strip the bedding, then ran to the laundry to start the wash and stock up on clean sheets.  By the time I returned (15 minutes later) the trash can was tipped but there  was very little there.  Sota often goes houskeeping with me, and as soon as I stopped the car – she was out the window headed to cabin 6.  The young bear had dragged the bag of trash up to the privacy of the side yard to dine.  She chased him off, but  not before he tore the bag apart – spreading the contents of the bag in a 15 ft circle.  He also left a rather large pile of steaming poo – ugh.   So I spent the next 5 minutes rebagging the trash ( I even scooped up the poo). 

Last Saturday we were working on rebuilding firepits in the campground and planting flowers by the campsite signs during our work weekend.  After the morning projects were completed and guests had gone,  Sota and I were tidying up some of the tools etc.  As we stopped by Campsite 8 Sota jumped off the 4 wheeler and ran over to check out something at the base of a Balsam tree.  I thought perhaps she and a bunny or chipmunk were playing a game of hide and seek as they often do.  Suddenly I realized the crows were going crazy in the treetops – screaming over and over at the top of their lungs.  Now, I don’t often take the time to pay attention to the birds, but they just wouldn’t stop, so I went over to see what Sota was doing and what all the ruckus was about.    Here at the base of the tree was a crow fledgling, who had apparently fallen out of the nest.   I don’t know whether the fledgling was alive or not when Sota got to it, but while it appeared to be in good shape, it clearly was not responsive.  I thought perhaps it might be in shock so  I took Sota and we left the Crow family in peace.  Sadly I returned later to find the fledgling  the same  as I had left it .

Yesterday as I drove to town for Wyatt’s 5th Grade Graduation – I felt lucky when I saw a momma fox and her kit of 4 playing on the warm pavement.  As I approached I slowed.  Three of the kit’s quickly moved to the roadside, but I could see the discussion between mamma and the stubborn one, as she tried to convince it to get off the road.  In the end it moved to join it’s siblings, while mamma moved to the other side of the road.  As I passed I peeked in my rear view mirror to see the playful 4, bound happily over the pavement to momma as the danger had passed.  On the way home I saw a beautifully tan colored deer waiting by the roaside.  She moved off into the woods as I neared, but I noticed she looked rather thin.  I wonder if there was a newborn fawn nearby.

Yesterday ( an eventful wildlife day) while cleaning the entry door of a cabin I heard a knocking.  I looked to see if someone was trying to get my attention, and heard it again.  I quickly noticed the Piliated Wood pecker at the base of a nearby aspen.  I watched as he sampled several different spots of the tree trunk before finally flying off.

Every day there is a whole other world out there – if you just stop for a minute and look.