WILDLIFE AND A WILD DOG

I haven't taken the dog to the Vermilion River Metropark since it was hot out. We used to go most days during the summer so she could swim in the river. Labs love water and this one is crazy about it. Black Labs don't much care for summer sunshine--they heat up real quickly.

But I got bored with taking her to the bike trail in Kipton, so yesterday and today we went to the park and walked the Bacon Woods Trail, which winds through the woods for about a mile.

Yesterday we saw a Barred Owl, tons of fox squirrels, two deer and a mess of small woodpeckers. I think it's the first time I've seen a Barred Owl. Wow, it's a big bird. I thought they were just little things, but it's nearly as big as a Great Horned.

It's kinda spooky when they sit there looking at you with that owl face. When I first saw him he was only about 20 feet away in a small tree. He stayed there maybe 30 seconds before flying deeper into the woods and perching higher up in a big tree. Very cool.

There are some very hefty fox squirrels in the park. One of those suckers would almost feed a small family. I don't think I've ever seen fox squirrels that big and fat. The dog sure loves to chase them, but she hasn't quite figured out where they go, although today she did tree one and jump up against the tree and watch it run up the trunk. Then she started yelping a high-pitched yelp I've never heard before. It was pretty funny.

She never did see the two deer yesterday. When I saw them they were already on the move and I didn't see much more than white flags bouncing through the woods. I told her to go, and she did, but she never saw them. She ran around a bit smelling something, but they were long gone.

No owls or deer today, but we did see two Pileated Woodpeckers. They are impressive birds, especially when they attack a tree. You can find them pretty easily when you hear that loud, slow thwack, thwack. The sound carries quite a distance on a clam day. They're also large birds that are easy to spot. The big crest on the back of their heads makes you think of a pterodactyl.

On the way home a Great Blue Heron flew over the truck just as we got to the north end of Kipton.

All in all a pretty good two days. Colder than a bitch, but nice days for walking in the winter woods. I had a good time spotting wildlife and the dog had a good time chasing it.