August 18, 2020

Mornings are finally getting back to the normal bright sunshine that Whisper and I prefer for our outings. Wildfire haze is also diminishing though I don’t know how long that will last. Even better, I had a good number of wildlife encounters to share in this post. OK it was only three but that is a good step up from recent walks. First I came across the turkeys that have been hanging around the Osprey Picnic Area lately. This time it was only one hen and two chicks and I did not spot them off in the field. Instead they were walking down the trail just as bold as you please. These are not your normal turkeys. As I approached they did not flee the scene but rather started walking right toward me. I’m starting to wonder if the hen is suicidal. After the turkeys passed I proceeded down the trail and found five or six mule deer grazing near the western edge of the Valco Ponds. They too were not real concerned with my presence. I did manage to come up on a fawn grazing happily who did not even notice me at first. So I got some pretty good shots. On my way back to the car I had the third and (I think) best sighting of the day. I just happened to spot a Great Horned Owl pretty far off the trail in a wooded area who was kind of basking in a ray of sunshine that was cutting through the trees. For this one I branched off the trail and worked my way through the foliage to get as close as I could. I think I cam up with a pretty nice mid-summer portrait.