Tracks

“Be careful and let me know when you get out.” ~ I recall the words from my telephone conversation with Hawk that morning as I parked the truck and stepped out onto the snow covered hillside. I am here looking for tracks but expecting nothing more than a nice, refreshing walk on the mountain. I carefully tucked my pistol into my waistband, grabbed my camera from the passenger seat, and slipped my warm felt hat on my head as I turned to walk away..
Stepping into the thick timber I am greeted with the musky scent of decaying cotton wood being warmed by the sunlight filtering down through the canopy over head.

Last time I was here the snow was much deeper and the small creek that I hear trickling off to my left was completely frozen over. I wander around for a while with no real destination in mind, just savoring the day and looking for sign. I hear the gentle sounds of the forest around me and though I don’t see any, I know I am watched by the small creatures that reside here.

The North side of the creek has collected snow in deep drifts making travel difficult. After breaking through the crust in several different places and filling my right boot with the powdery snow beneath, I decide to find a safe crossing and check for sign on the opposite bank. I laugh at my self for the unsettled feeling I get when I identify a pile of moose scat. I came here to search for mountain lion sign, but I know moose, and I am more concerned with encountering one of these short tempered, long legged, Bow winkles in the dense brush than I am a fellow predator. I shake it off and head up stream. Coming to an opening in the trees I am once again struck with the beauty of this country. I reach inside the chest pocket on my Prois coat and pull out my cell phone…4 bars… I snap a quick photo of the scenery to email to a few of my friends, sharing my “office”  with them today before continue on my way.

(Nope. Not sharing that photo, as this is one of my secret spots )

There are plenty of tracks. Squirrel, rabbit and what I assume to be Kangaroo rat tracks dot the snow in all directions. If I had been paying closer attention to my surroundings rather than allowing myself to be side tracked by the criss-crossed paths in the snow, I would have realized that the small forest creatures I had heard earlier had gone quiet.  At the edge of a clearing I located one set of what could potentially be cat tracks.  They were too old and filled with new snow to be sure.

 A few yards inside the timber I knelt down and marveled at the detail of one particular set of tiny tracks. It was obvious that this creature had stopped in this spot, rising to stand on it’s hind legs to get a better view of … something.. and I smiled, knowing that the something was most likely “me”.

  I stood and looked around the woods hoping to get a glimpse of the squirrel who’s tracks continued over to the base of a nearby tree. That is when I noticed the larger set of tracks that came down the valley in my direction and then abruptly turned and retraced the same path. I walked over to the tracks and as recognition dawned I instinctively reached up, removing my hat so I could clearly see the trees above and scanned the branches for any sign of life. Once I was sure that danger was no were over head I took a little time to inspect the tracks a bit closer. Not large, but fresh, very fresh..

As I looked through the view finder on my camera, trying to find a good angle to photograph from,  my ears strained for any sound of movement. You know, when you are alone in the dark timber and know that only moments before you stood within yards of a predator, it is amazing what you will hear. Things that a few moments before had been natural forest sounds. The rush of a birds wings as it darts from branch to branch can be almost explosive, and the sound of wind whispering  through the tree tops can resemble nearly silent foot steps. Once again I pulled my cell phone out.  This time to send a photo to Hawk.  I cautiously followed the retreating tracks to see if I could tell where it had gone.  I saw where they had come down the creek bottom, stopped, turned, and retreated in the opposite direction. And up ahead I could see where the tracks “appeared” to end at the base of a large, thickly branched fir tree. I stopped at a distance and decided that the area around the tree was just too thick for me to continue into since I was alone.  I backed out and retraced my steps to the clearing, thinking I would feel a little more at ease once I reached the opening at the edge of the trees where I could see a bit farther around me.  I stepped out into the bright snow and turned to check my back trail. By now the forest sounds had returned to normal and I stood there a moment contemplating the situation and trying to determine if what I was feeling was excitement or fear.  Deciding on a combination of both, I figure a little fear in a situation like this is probably a good thing to  keep me from putting myself in unnecessary danger.
With one last look back at the timber I turned and continued to retrace my tracks through the snow along the edge of the trees. I hadn’t gone far when I noticed an extra set of tracks that were also following mine back down the valley. I made a quick scan of the tree line ahead and spoke a few words out loud.

“Cleaver!” I said in admiration…

I was not at all surprised .. It was in this same draw, only a few years ago that Hawk and I had wondered across a fresh set of tracks while out searching for snow shoe hare one sunny winter day.

Fresh tracks.  With even fresher ones, discovered later, walking on top of my own boot print in the snow.
That day was a little different. That day, I took photos of a cat in a tree. But that day I wasn’t alone.. Rather I was here with Hawk, someone to watch my back and encourage me to press on.

It wasn’t until I was back down off the mountain and nearly home that I heard my phone chime and I realized that not one single message I sent from the mountain, had gone. I pushed resend on all the images and stuffed the phone back in my pocket, next to my mountain lion tag.  My day outside is not over..

I return my attention to the sky in front of me and  brace my camera  to take another photo~ Have I mentioned lately that I love where I live !

Not sure how to identify tracks? Check out these handy nature apps for your smart phone created by a friend of mine~ and you just might recognize a few of the photos as well

MYNATUREAPPS.COM