Saturday... More Wild Things... More Dreary Weather

We've been here only a few days but have seen very little sunshine so far.  It is overcast...  often have a mist that turns into a bit of a drizzle...  no real rain...  just wet and cold.  

Of course "cold" is a relative term...  it's 57 degrees here right now but to me (who spent the last 3 months in Costa Rica where the daily temps were 95+) 50 degrees is cold.  

Despite the cold and drizzly weather, I did clean the windows inside and out on our motorhome today.  This morning when I opened the blinds, this is what I saw across the field on one side...

(before I cleaned the windows)

A Mama Moose and her calf were bedded down between the road and a pond.

Too far away to get a good shot, but we could easily tell what we were looking at.  While we were busy looking at these guys, I happened to turn around and on the other side of the rig...

Yeah...  that's a young moose just on the other side of our car.

A little better shot....

Could be the same one I saw yesterday in another part of the refuge.  But all the moose we've seen so far have had "bad hair days".

Anyone who has read my blogs in the past will know all about the "Bucky Beaver Saga".  To cut right to the chase..  "Bucky" is my name for the beavers that dam the pond up the road.  It's become known as the Bucky Beaver Pond...  Most beaver ponds are just "live and let live" around here, but this particular dam floods the main road when Bucky gets too ambitious..

Bucky's really been busy...  (hey...  you know...  "busy as a beaver"... groan)

Bill and Bucky have had a constant battle since our first time here back in 2003.  Sure, Bucky always wins...  but not without working some...

Kinda hard to compete with Bill and his big ole backhoe!

You can see how close the water is to the road.  Besides this problem, another problem is that waterfowl will set a nest and lay eggs along the sides of the pond.  When the water rises, those nests are destroyed, and this year's duck and geese population suffer.

One scoop is all it takes... 

Just a small bite out of the middle releases enough water to stabilize the level... 

at least until Bucky repairs the "damage".

After Bill finished at the beaver dam I headed back home.  Saw a black "lump" on the road that goes past our rig.  Kinda crept along (in the car)...  and came across this small black bear. 

 He was alone...  not real big.  Bear cubs stay with their moms for 2 years.  I'm guessing this is a 3 year old on his own for the first time.  He was curious when he saw me, but kept on eating.

Looks like I'm mighty close...  but, no....  I'm not only a safe distance away, I'm also in my car.

I had the opportunity to take over 80 photos of him... but the distance and the crappy weather made clear, sharp shots very difficult.

We put out several bird feeders as soon as we got here, but knowing these guys are around, I have to take them all down each evening as they would be destroyed during the night.

I started out saying I cleaned the rig's windows...  I mention that because we have so many opportunities to view wildlife using our motorhome as a photo blind.  Quite a distance to the front and side, there is a nesting platform that Kirk erected many years ago. 

Finally, this year, it looks like the Bald Eagles might be interested in taking up residence.  

We see a pair of them fly over about once a day...  and sometimes they'll stop and check it out.

Here's hoping that it looks like the home they've been looking for.

Only time will tell...

But...  with these great photo opportunities, clean windows are a must!

Internet is still kind of "iffy" here...  I've been able to read other blogs (sometimes the photos don't come through) but too often it times out before I can make a comment.  Just want y'all to know that I'm trying!  

That's All For Today!