Tough Snowshoeing with a Reward Near the End

Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day and I had the day off of work and was able to get in one more hike. I've not been out snowshoeing in probably 2 years now but today I decided to do just that. I first hiked out to the middle of the park where there is essentially an "island" of overgrown Buckthorn trees. It can be kind of a spooky place actually. When Buckthorn gets this big it becomes kind of twisted and gnarled looking. The tops become so dense and intertwined that they'll catch and hold snow and even create a bit of shade without leaves! Not that sun was a problem today though. It was very overcast when I set out and I even tried taking a photo of the sun itself as it looked more like a pale moon behind the cloudy winter sky. I thought maybe I'd see something interesting out here but every step I took on my snowshoes was loud enough to wake the dead. The snow was just crusty enough on top to be crunchy and loud but not hard enough to support my weight. I broke through on every step, my feet falling nearly up to my knees every single time. Having the snowshoes on made it only slightly more tolerable during an otherwise exhausting hike. I actually had to stop multiple times to catch my breath, it was so much work just to walk. I could hardly wait until I got back to the trail and I removed my snowshoes as soon as I did. The only wildlife I'd seen by this time was a Squirrel who had adopted a Wood Duck house high up in a tree along Shingle Creek. I decided I'd check the spot where I accidentally scared up not one, but two Great Horned Owls yesterday when I hiked in closer to watch a Pileated Woodpecker. Turns out the Pileated was hammering away just mere feet from a GHO who bumped and flew off before I even realized it was there. Then I spotted a second one, only feet from where the other was. I tried to get a photo but it was totally obstructed by branches and dried up Oak Leaves still clinging on from last season. But today my luck was better. I spotted one of the Owls from the path and he looked to be relatively out in the open. I stepped up onto the hard packed snowbank to get a little distance but didn't hike in any further this time. I'm fairly certain there is a mated pair here who are likely nesting now and I don't want to disturb them too much. To my surprise I had to wait quite a while before the Owl even turned around to look at me. When it did I quickly shot my pics and retreated. I've not spotted the nest yet but I'm certain it is close. Shortly after this I spotted a decent flock of Cedar Waxwings –maybe 25 or more. I watched them picking Buckthorn berries and also eating snow from the crook of a tree; a behavior I've witnessed once before. They are quite fun birds to watch and can be quite yellow on the undersides as shown by this pic.

February Snowstorm & An Unexpected Visitor

Well today was the "big day" for the predicted snow storm. They were saying we were in for anywhere from 4 to 10 inches of snow and I wasn't even sure if I would go out today. The snowfall hadn't really picked up as much steam as predicted overnight and by morning there was maybe only an inch on the ground. As afternoon came though it finally did pick up and started snowing quite hard. I thought it might be fun to actually get out and snowshoe -as it could be one of my last chances! The snow that was coming down was the wet heavy kind and I knew it would be tough to keep my camera dry. Don't laugh, but I fashioned a clear oven-bag around my camera, cut a hole for the lens and taped it up! When I around at the park after noon it was really coming down but I was up for some serious snowshoeing and even wore my new ski goggles for a bit to keep the snow off of my glasses. I was completely decked out and felt like I could just about walk anywhere -which I did! I went right over the cattails and snow on the southwest side, sticking along the edges of the woods in case I might see anything interesting. I hiked almost all the way up to the north corner, then turned inward towards the center of the park, crossing the creek. It was quite a winter-wonder-land with everything coated in thick white, making the woods and trees seem more dense and mysterious. About the only thing I ever did see along the way was a lone wintering Robin standing at the edge of some open water for a drink. It was so peaceful and quite and "wintery" but the Robin reminded me of Spring and all the fantastic birds that it brings back each year. Since first seeing the Long-eared Owls last weekend I've been just fascinated with them. They are just so secretive and stealthy that I longed to see one again. With my big snowshoes crunching away loudly on the wet snow however, I was skeptical that I would see anything. As I neared the area where I thought I might catch a glimpse of one of the elusive LEO's, something else caught my eye rummaging on top of the fresh snow on a little hillside of Buckthorn trees. It had it's back to me but I could tell it was furry and some kind of large rodent. Though the blinding snow and dim light, I could just barely tell that it's fur looked very "hairy" with a lighter color at the tips and my first thought was a Porcupine! Then as it scurried ahead I tried looking through my wet binoculars and I could make out a long rat-like tail. "What the heck is a Muskrat doing out here on top of the snow?" I thought to myself! But then as it finally turned around to face me I was stunned to learn that it was neither of these, but in fact was an Opossum!!! I could not believe it. I've never seen (a live) one in the wild before and I CERTAINLY never expected to see one at PLP, and especially not in the middle of a snowstorm! I have a trustworthy friend who's told me he's seen Opossum tracks at the park before but it being more of a nocturnal mammal, I never expected to get a chance to see one at the park. To my amazement, once it turned around it actually started to slowly walk directly towards me. I was dumbfounded and frozen in my tracks but taking pictures furiously. It walked and moved incredibly slowly -almost like a sloth, not scurrying about quickly like a lot of other small mammals. It's slow movement could have been partly due to the deepening snow but it didn't seem to mind all the white stuff. As I stood there it just kept walking closer and closer and I started to wonder if maybe it couldn't see me that well. As I've never encountered one before I had no idea if they could become aggressive or not, but my instinct told me I better not find out the hard way. When he was only just 6 feet away from me, I decided I'd better do something and made myself look larger and raised my arms. Finally, the furry white faced mammal gave just some indication that it sensed something ahead. It kind of cocked it's head, sniffed the air and slowly came to a stop. I wondered if maybe they have poor eyesight in the daytime because honestly I think he would have walked right up to my feet if I hadn't raised my arms! He decided to slowly head a different way towards some cover of tall weeds and fallen branches and I circled around to find a vantage point for some more photos while he stayed still. His pink nose and naked floppy ears kind of reminded me of a little pig more than anything. Later as I read more about this mammal in my field guide from Stan Tekiela, I learned that it's official name is a Virginia Opossum and is also the ONLY Marsupial found north of Mexico! It's young are only the size of a navy-bean when born and crawl into the mother's fur-lined pouch where the suckle for as long as 2 months. Pretty fascinating creature to see in the wild I thought! The most interesting note however from my field guide stated that though they are nocturnal, they can often be seen in the daytime during the coldest parts of winter. And this may just have something to do with the fact that they breed during January and February. I had a hard time tearing myself away but I'd already taken so many photos of this guy that I figured I'd move on. After searching near and far for the elusive Long-eared Owls I was getting discouraged and decided to just sit on a fallen log for a while. After losing track of how long I was sitting there, I saw something out of the corner of my eye and raise up my camera quickly. The Owl had perched on a fallen limb off to my right but was looking in the opposite direction instead of at me. As I snapped my shutter I think (I know) it heard the sound and immediately took off. Though later I did see one huddled up in the cover of a Buckthorn tree, this moment was the only time I've seen one out in the wide open and in fantastic light too. Still a very neat sighting even though I never saw his face from my vantage point. As expected, it made absolutely no sound whatsoever from landing and then taking off again. It was as if it were a silent movie where you are aware of the movement but there is just no sound to go with it! They are one of the most fascinating birds I've had the good fortune to see in the wild. Definitely click on all of these photos for a better view. Oh, I almost forgot I also saw a Northern Shrike on my way back to the parking lot. He was singing loudly from atop one of his favorite trees.

Close encounters on a cold day

It was exactly zero degrees when I arrived at the park this morning and I really wasn't expecting to see much. I'd brought my snowshoes with and planned to just carry them with me until I reached the north east side and look for antler sheds. I'd only walked about 500 feet down the paved trail when a jogger tipped me off to a Coyote that was just inside the trail. I chatted with him for mere seconds before parting ways in hopes of spotting him. I decided to keep going until I hit the next wood chip trail where you can see out a bit further. There I spotted him moving off in the distance and immediately got out my camera. He was quite far away and moving, and suddenly I lost him. I began taking long distance pics right where I'd last seen him and upon looking at the preview on my camera screen, realized he was still there -just sitting motionless on his hind legs. After a minute or so he trotted out into the field, presenting a few more good photo opportunities whenever he wasn't blocked by Cattails. He made his way into the next section of woods on the south west side, so figured I'd cut through there on the next wood chip trail. I was still carrying my snowshoes when all of sudden he darted right out in front of me across the trail! He circled half way around me in the thick brush, then stopped abruptly and went back the same way. By this time I'd chucked my snowshoes on the ground and had my camera ready and waiting. I was focusing on the trail about 50 some feet ahead of me, and luckily he popped out again, crossing in nearly the same spot heading the other way. It was quite exciting, being one of the closest -and definitely the longest- encounter I've had with a Coyote! When I finally got to the opposite side of the park, I strapped on my snowshoes and walked up the drainage ditch where I've seen so many Deer this season. The furthest side of the ditch has these enormous trees that had been toppled by strong winds years ago and pulled up huge chunks of earth in their roots. It's kind a sheltered, low place which is probably the Deer are attracted to it. It wasn't long until I spotted a couple of Deer, then more, then more and more. Before even getting to the end, I'd seen 12 of them! Most had white faces from searching for food under the snow. The snow flurries in the air were also picking up and coating their backs as I was taking photos. As I hiked back on the frozen ditch itself, there were groups of deer up on either side of the bank staring down at me. I felt like I really invaded their territory as probably not too many people venture into this area -except for maybe in the winter. Of the 12 deer I saw, not one of them had antlers -and some of them really looked like they might be a Buck. In this last photo, see if you can spot the fourth Deer!

Making my own path

I've been in a bit of a slump lately in getting outside. Probably due to our low temps lately. So this Saturday I was eager to get some park time in -and indeed I did. I spent a total of 4 hours at the park and never once used the trails! With snowshoes I was able to make my way around the inner part of the park and took some quite unusual routes through places you'd never be able to get to in other seasons. Not too long after heading west I noticed an uncommon shape and movement toward the center of the park. It was a Coyote! As I watched him through my binoculars I thought he might have been injured as he appeared to drag his hind legs behind him. However, I think that he was simply falling through the deep snow and pulling his hind end up and out with every step. Later I made my way to the middle and found his fresh tracks. It's unbelievably hard to get close to Coyotes at the park so I've been kind of obsessed with them lately. There was very little wildlife out today though I did spot lots and lots of signs. Almost everywhere were Vole tracks in the snow. You could see exactly where they popped out from a thicket of Cattails or even just a straight hole in the snow. The tiny footprints would sometimes go for hundreds of feet, but twice I saw evidence of capture by an Owl or Hawk. It was pretty obvious because you could exactly where the bird landed and pressed it's wings and tail feathers into the snow, and leaving just a trace of blood and sometimes lots of fur. I enhanced the contrast of this photo so you can see what I saw. Otherwise the photo just looks like plain white snow. With the lack of activity today I settled for less animate objects such as these Shelf Mushrooms. I've never seen so many growing on one log before -and this was just a small section of them.

Sunset Snowshoeing

It was nearly 4 o'clock by the time I arrived at the park this Saturday. It was intentional though as I was hoping to spot another Coyote near dusk. Once again I snowshoed across the lake, meandering around through the middle and stopping near the spot of my close Coyote encounter last weekend. After waiting a bit without seeing anything I traveled further north and crossed the creek near the footbridge. I found myself in a few places I'd never ventured before and it was exciting to see a new perspective. I wandered to the east of these large trees and noticed a big Owl up in trees to my right. As I walked closer for a better photo, I noticed a second Owl much closer to me. This one was facing more into the sun and had better light on him so I inched closer and closer as quietly as I could on my loud snowshoes. I watched him for a while and he seemed perfectly content in the sun, periodically closing his large yellow eyes. I started to head back as the sun was really getting low now and possibly increasing my chances of seeing a Coyote. On the way back I paused to snap this picture as the winter sun was creating some interesting color and light against the sky and snow covered ground. Eventually I made it back "my spot" where I actually sat and waited to see a Coyote until I got so cold I could barely move. It was getting seriously dark now -too dark for my camera to catch a decent picture anyway. So I headed back to the parking lot, toes too numb to feel with a bright winter moon rising above me. I think I want to come back again sometime this winter and set out under a full moon. I don't think I'd get any pictures but it would definitely be bright enough to see where you're going.

Another Coyote Sighting

Apparently this is the time of year to see Coyotes at the park. This makes two sightings in two days -an extremely rare occurrence for me, despite my frequent visits. I decided to snowshoe yet again today and cut across the frozen lake and up to the middle of the park. All along the way I was spotting Coyote tracks and taking note of how they walked and where. In most places they were able to stay on top of the deep snow but every now and again, one paw would crash through and drop about a foot or more. I myself was running into the same problems even on snowshoes. Anytime I was near lots of Cattails I would crash right through the snow, sinking up to my knees. The worst part about when this happens is that it's really hard to get out without crashing through again. After trekking through the middle and not seeing any wildlife, I decided to stop and just stand still for a while near a group of wild trees. I stood there until I got bored and turned around to my right to head in another direction. It was right then I spotted a Coyote at fairly close range. He had been walking straight towards me! He spotted me immediately and took a hard right, then took off running. I figured because he was running I'd never get a photo, so I flipped my camera to video instead.

Coyote Sighting First Visit of 2011

I guess I kind of wore myself out last month so today, January 8th was my first visit of 2011. It was the coldest day of the year so far with the morning staring out well below zero, so I waited until after noon for the temps to warm up a bit. Instead of my normal walk around the park I was joined by my wife on a snowshoeing trek. It was a beautifully bright sunny day but we were both cold as we headed up the frozen creek. When we were closest to the middle we cut over and explored some big trees and some groves of Buckthorn. Our snowshoes made an awful racket on top of the crusty snow due to the rain in late December. Thus there was not much wildlife to photograph. After crossing the middle of the park we ran into another guy on snowshoes who said that he saw a Coyote earlier that appeared to have been scared up by us walking up the creek. I was really disappointed that we hadn't noticed it. Eventually we turned around and ended up coming back almost the same way we came in, heading back down the frozen creek. Shortly after pausing to look at a Hawk through my binoculars, I caught a glimpse of something running off to the east. Sure enough it was a Coyote and I tore my camera out of the case just in time to catch a LONG distance shot. I cropped the photo here really far in so you can see him better and notice that both hind legs are off the ground at the same time. After seeing and photographing a Coyote on my very first visit of the year, I can't wait to see what the rest of 2011 will bring!

Series of Strange Events

On my way to the park today, only blocks from my house I stopped to pull a car out of the snowbank. The brand new hybrid car was completely cemented into the deep and hard packed snowbank and I couldn't begin to comprehend how in the heck the driver managed this feat with the roads as clear as they are. Regardless, my tow strap did the trick and delayed my arrival to the park by only about 20 minutes. I'd brought my snowshoes today and was excited to go off my normal path. Shortly after crossing the creek tributary on the west side I headed out towards the middle of the park, planning to cut all the way across. To my surprise my snowshoes became more and more useless the further out I got. They worked OK while in the cover of the woods, but out in the open I was sinking abruptly into 3 foot snowdrifts. The snow was just too light and fluffy to support any weight. As an added bonus to my struggling, the deep snow easily concealed all kinds of logs and branches underneath that I was tripping on left and right. More than once, I fell full-bodied, limbs flailing wildly into the deep snow. I didn't know whether to laugh or swear but I eventually opted for the latter. There was no way in hell I was gonna make it across the entire park this way so I headed back to the paved trail, frustrated and sweaty. As I'm sure I scared away every living thing in the park, I figured I'd better settle for a photo of this Nuthatch near the northwest side. Despite seeing a good variation of birds, including an Owl, Hawks, Cardinals and Blue Jays, I was always too far away and too late for any photos. My mood became increasingly more grumpy as my cell phone was chiming in with both emails and phone calls the whole way. Eventually I was summoned back home by a work related circumstance. Fortunately I'd stowed my laptop in my back seat this morning -something I only do when my backup person is not available. Just as I was setting up and logging in, I noticed a man standing right behind my truck, looking out over the middle of the park. I figured maybe he was looking at a Deer or something and turned my attention back to my laptop. From my rear view mirror I saw him shift closer and thought I'd better see what was going on. As I opened my door, the man said "you see that Fox out there?" Out loud I screamed "Shit!" and scrambled back in my truck for my camera. I knew even before he got the words out of his mouth that a Coyote was out there somewhere and I caught a quick glance of him through my windshield about the same time I'd finally located my camera. I bolted out of my truck and in a fervor uttered just one word "Coyote!" back to the man behind me. I snapped a first photo much too quickly before the camera had even focused as I thought I'd never get the chance again. Luckily the Coyote was going the full distance across the frozen water, giving me multiple chances for a photo. He was a long ways out but I didn't care in the least as he was clearly visible and was going to be for at least another 30 seconds. As far out as he was, he was keenly aware of myself and the other guy watching stupidly from the parking lot. He paused only a couple of times before coming all the way over to the southeast side and back into the woods on the southeast side. The same area I've spotted them in -only twice in 5 years. Later, I'd realized that if I hadn't hurried back to the truck and decided to flip open my stupid laptop, I would have missed him by just minutes! For me, it was an early Christmas present!

Winter with an orange glow

I had the day off from work Monday but was not all that excited about getting out for a walk until later in the afternoon. When I finally arrived at the park around 4pm I decided to throw on my snowshoes and wander around some lesser traveled areas. After taking a slight detour into the middle I headed north east into the most wooded area of the park. The sun was making for some great lighting by the time I found myself in an unfamiliar area full of huge trees. My snowshoes were making quite a racket on the refrozen snow and at some point I scared up another Owl. I took note of his new perch and attempted to walk a little quieter. After a while I spotted him again directly in front of me, basking in the sun. It was difficult to find an angle without branches in the way but at least I could clearly see his bright yellow eyes. I sat and watched him for a long time and he was quite entertaining. As some ducks flew high overhead he tilted his already completely rotated head straight upwards into an angle I cant imagine any other animal could possibly do. He also periodically blinked his huge eyes independently and even yawned once or twice showing me his pink mouth. Now if I could just get a picture of him snatching up a mouse or something...ha! After realizing I didn't have much daylight left, I made my own path through some thick woods and deep snow that took much longer than expected to get me back onto the paved trail. I hurried back to the east side just in time to watch the sun go down and add a few more minutes of orange to the sky.

First time snowshoeing!

There's more pictures than usual on this post but not because of all the wildlife I saw. Rather, it was the first time I've ever tried snowshoeing. With temps near zero for nearly two weeks straight I figured it was pretty safe to travel across the water and up the creek. The first thing I noticed upon walking onto the lake were "snow dunes" carved by the wind. It was very cool walking up the creek as I was really in the middle of the park with scenery I just don't ever see. In places you could look a long way without seeing anything man-made. After coming up to a sharp bend in the creek I could see how close I was to the small section of woods that sit smack dab in the middle of the park. I hiked up the embankment, backtracked a little and I was there. This was only the second time I'd ever made it out to the middle and right away I noticed the huge wild trees that have grown undisturbed for decades. After exploring for a bit and kicking up a deer here and there I headed back north. This would be a good point to show the path I took -snowshoe in blue and regular path in pink. About the time I finally made it back to the path is when I saw this large hawk and was the only wildlife that sat still for any time while my snowshoes crunched along loudly. I figured I'd even take a picture of them to mark the occasion. After being on them for a while it felt weird to walk normally again on the path. On the east side where the path comes close to the lake again, I decided to give it another go. It was fun to take a shortcut that won't even exist in another few months. As I was getting closer to the parking lot I began to notice how the snow drifts up towards -but not touch- the peninsulas of cattails. It was very weird as every outcropping had the same effect with close to a 3 foot drop in snow depth.