Re: [RC] [Merri Travels] Sterile Desert - Barbara McCrary
Loved this story, because we have similar experiences
here at home. We have an osprey nest on top of a redwood snag (it's been
dead for at least 100 years, I think), and in the nesting season, mama osprey
scolds loudly as I ride by. This is next to one of our trails, several
miles from our house and at higher elevation. We have bobcats that hunt in
the pastures next to the county road. Last evening, coming home from a
dinner out, we saw a big fat coyote running up our drive ahead of us. One
evening, Lud went outside in our yard and encountered a doe and buck right on
the paved driveway about 50 feet from our house. They took off and scared
away a fox. This fall, we are seeing foxes in our yard, and we hadn't seen
any for many years. The foxes are eating the figs that fall from our tree,
which is about 25 feet from the house.
While out walking one late afternoon, I saw a Western
Screech Owl, dead beside the county road. It had a broken wing and it may
have run into a power line. The next day, I found a gorgeous bobcat, dead
beside the county road...someone had obviously hit it. I took both the owl
and the bobcat to our local park supervisor and they will be used in displays in
the visitor centers of the park. I could have wept when I saw the
bobcat.
Question: what is the interesting looking object
handing over the river and what is its use?
While we live in and love redwood country, I absolutely love riding in the
desert. There is abundance of wildlife and interesting things to see, if
one takes the time to look. Best seen from the back of a good horse.
I can
just hear them, city people driving through the deserts of southern
Idaho, Nevada, southern California, rushing to Las Vegas or LA or Salt
Lake City. "Ugh, it's so ugly! There's nothing out there." Nothing but
dry, dry land, rocks and sand, brown scrub or cactus or sage. No life.
Barren. Depressing.
But the secret is, you go up into those hot
dry bare hills or mountains, find a rich canyon, or just walk over one
of those little hills, and you might see all of this in a week without
trying:
A long-eared owl that flew RIGHT OVER ME in a canyon in
the daylight. Right after which a Raven was heard to be badgering him. I
yelled down the canyon, "Hey Raven! Stop pestering that owl!" At which
point the Raven flew out of the canyon, alighted in a tree and regarded
me for a time. Had to have been Hoss the Raven.
Along the Snake
river (while riding through 3 separate eagle territories): 2 Northern
Harriers, a blue heron, many coots (how can you not like a bird with
that name), a Cormorant Convention (a row of cormorants sitting on a
cable across the river), an osprey nest on a pole (unoccupied, it's not
nesting season) - they like to decorate their nests with
twine.
Cooper's Hawk (twice) in a golden tree in a golden canyon,
being haughtily ignored by 2 Ravens.
Numerous kestrels,
red-tailed hawks.
Many does; one lone big buck with a BIG
rack.
A golden eagle! Sitting on the top of a hill below where we
rode, she took off as we approached, and flew away. But then she worked
her way back towards us, (with a Raven circling over her for a time),
spiraling closer and closer, doing wing-hang time over us, taking a good
look at us. "Give me a feather!" I yelled at her. Today she didn't.
Tomorrow she might.
City folks driving by fast: "(Shudder) I hope
we don't break down here! Must be awful to live out here."
Well,
somebody's gotta do it. But we who do'll just keep our desert secrets.
-- Posted By Merri to Merri
Travels at 11/05/2007 01:54:00 PM
