A Walk on the Wild Side
Posted: Sun Jun 05, 2011 3:33 pmA couple days ago I walked a mile, or so, up the "closed to vehicles" road here on the ranch just behind my RV. It's a 7.5 mile road temporarily closed due to mud and a washout up ahead. It was in good shape for the duration of my walk so I asked the park manager if I could drive it and she said I could go as far as the bad washout. This road goes through a high-desert terrain of mostly juniper trees and ponderosa pine surrounded by silvery-green sage brush. It follows the base of snowcapped mountains which create marshes in low spots, perfect for cattle ranching. It's a private ranch with many thousands of acres of open country, just the way I like it. One of my favorite things is the calming sound of crickets and the breeze gently rustling the pine trees while wafting that pleasant scent of sage....and no one else would be up there..just me.
Since today was sunny and nice I drove probably three miles to the washout then parked and walked another three miles. As I walked down the hill from where I left the truck I came to a small marsh, lush and green with a crystal-clear creek running through it.... As I came down to the marsh and around a curve I could not believe what I saw, there stood two gigantic birds...I immediately compared the size of them to emu's and even ostrich's, they were the largest birds I had seen in my life; huge...of course at the same time I knew they were Sandhill cranes. I have only seen sandhill cranes flying at about 3000 feet I had never seen them on the ground. I had no idea they were this big, they were as tall or taller than me.They were mocha/tan colored just like a deer can be. I stopped dead in my tracks and silently started taking pictures...they had to be about 200 yards from me...they were annoyed at my presence and slowly walked away. I watched them for a long time untill they walked out of my sight...I proceeded on, gently and quietly. I wanted to see them again and didn't want to disturb their feeding by making them fly..but eventually I got past where I last saw them and I preceeded to pick up my pace. It was so pretty up there, the crickets were loud and the day was quite warm. the sky was blue for the first time in days. I looked up and saw prism colors weaving through the high wispy clouds, very bright red green and blue. I took photos of it, having never seen ribbons of color going from cloud to cloud, it wasn't a rainbow or a ball of color like often seen it was the prism caught in the moisture of each individual cloud..it was a checker-board effect, I had the camera on the wrong setting and they were no good, I was so disappointed.
I continued up the hill and it leveled off to the site of an old pioneer homestead log-cabin that had crumbled to the ground many decades ago. Just then I scared up the same two cranes, they flew like dinosaurs while squawking at the intrusion. They had walked quite a way...straight through the woods while I had to circle around and follow the road..... They continued to squawk while they flew..apparently they didn't want to leave the area, I heard them circling over the marsh, finally choosing a spot to land; after they landed they still squawked.
Leaving the cranes behind I walked about another mile where I crossed a cattle guard at the fenceline. I knew that likely meant there were going to be cattle on the other side and that can be a dangerous situation; you don't want to surprise these open range cattle. When the cattle are on their own, enduring nights among cougars and coyotes they become more agreesive, the cows are fairly docile but a young male could be a problem. Years ago I had been "charged" at by free-range cattle when hiking in a remote area along the Columbia River.. So, that experience was on my mind. I walked another 75 yards from the cattle guard and turned to look behind me, just in case, cougars, cattle or whatever may be behind me and there standing in the road looking at me was a pronghorned sheep. Obviously I had walked by it just seconds before and it was curious, so it came out for a look...I lifted the camera to take a shot but it took too long to "motor up" and the sheep went back in the woods, these digital cameras drive me nuts because of that. As I continued walking the area opened into acre upon acre of sprawling natural fields of sage and grasses...in the distance I could see deer running this way and that way. I am serious as a heart attack when I tell you that every single place I walk around here there are deer tracks. Since I've been here I have driven off for miles and hiked in different places and still there are deer tracks on every foot of gound. Mule deer, my favorite, are the only kind you see; they are everywhere.
I looked for cattle out in the clearings and didn't see any...I spotted a ridge to my right that I wanted to climb to see the mountains and the valley below. So, I looked for cattle again and saw just the butt of a lone black angus behind a tall bush up on the ridge, the only cow up here that I could see. It had to know I was there and didn't seem too bothered. I have been hanging with these black angus for weeks now and they just look at me hoping I might feed them....so I didn't worry, it stood half-hidden behind a large bush about 75 yards from me. Finally I got to the top of the ridge and one doe took off through the sage brush to the left and another one to the right. The view of the mountains and valley was fabulous. I sat my weary, out-of-shape body down on a stump and took my hat off and placed my camera on it. Just going to relax for a bit and scan with my binoculars to see if any pronghorn sheep or more deer came out in these clearings. Then I saw the nose and some of the face of the black angus looking at me through another thick bush, this time it was closer to me..I thought she was being oddly stealthy for a dumb cow.............THEN IT WALKED CLEAR OF THE BUSH AND I REALIZED SHE WAS A HE; IT WAS THE MOST GIGANTIC BULL, THE MOST TREMENDOUS, BUFFALO-SHAPED BULL I HAD EVER SEEN, it had the same fur on its shoulders and withers like a buffalo..testicles the size of two shopping bags (plastic not paper), a mean and nasty bellowing bull only 30 yrds from me AND LOOKING RIGHT AT ME!. I am telling you I IMMEDIATELY grabbed my hat and camera and got up and ran down the ridge, I was praying like a wild woman, "Please Jesus, make him stay calm"!
I expected it to head after me but it stood there and bellowed unlike anything I had ever heard before. This had to be a prize breed bull and it was apparently put in the area ALONE away from the other cattle for obvious reasons, such as, DOESN'T PLAY WELL WITH OTHERS... I couldn't believe how lucky I was that I made it out of there. Thank you Lord, my prayer was answered. It's one thing to cross a cattle guard in a vehicle but I will never do it on foot as long as I live. I couldn't get back to that cattle guard fast enough.
Since today was sunny and nice I drove probably three miles to the washout then parked and walked another three miles. As I walked down the hill from where I left the truck I came to a small marsh, lush and green with a crystal-clear creek running through it.... As I came down to the marsh and around a curve I could not believe what I saw, there stood two gigantic birds...I immediately compared the size of them to emu's and even ostrich's, they were the largest birds I had seen in my life; huge...of course at the same time I knew they were Sandhill cranes. I have only seen sandhill cranes flying at about 3000 feet I had never seen them on the ground. I had no idea they were this big, they were as tall or taller than me.They were mocha/tan colored just like a deer can be. I stopped dead in my tracks and silently started taking pictures...they had to be about 200 yards from me...they were annoyed at my presence and slowly walked away. I watched them for a long time untill they walked out of my sight...I proceeded on, gently and quietly. I wanted to see them again and didn't want to disturb their feeding by making them fly..but eventually I got past where I last saw them and I preceeded to pick up my pace. It was so pretty up there, the crickets were loud and the day was quite warm. the sky was blue for the first time in days. I looked up and saw prism colors weaving through the high wispy clouds, very bright red green and blue. I took photos of it, having never seen ribbons of color going from cloud to cloud, it wasn't a rainbow or a ball of color like often seen it was the prism caught in the moisture of each individual cloud..it was a checker-board effect, I had the camera on the wrong setting and they were no good, I was so disappointed.
I continued up the hill and it leveled off to the site of an old pioneer homestead log-cabin that had crumbled to the ground many decades ago. Just then I scared up the same two cranes, they flew like dinosaurs while squawking at the intrusion. They had walked quite a way...straight through the woods while I had to circle around and follow the road..... They continued to squawk while they flew..apparently they didn't want to leave the area, I heard them circling over the marsh, finally choosing a spot to land; after they landed they still squawked.
Leaving the cranes behind I walked about another mile where I crossed a cattle guard at the fenceline. I knew that likely meant there were going to be cattle on the other side and that can be a dangerous situation; you don't want to surprise these open range cattle. When the cattle are on their own, enduring nights among cougars and coyotes they become more agreesive, the cows are fairly docile but a young male could be a problem. Years ago I had been "charged" at by free-range cattle when hiking in a remote area along the Columbia River.. So, that experience was on my mind. I walked another 75 yards from the cattle guard and turned to look behind me, just in case, cougars, cattle or whatever may be behind me and there standing in the road looking at me was a pronghorned sheep. Obviously I had walked by it just seconds before and it was curious, so it came out for a look...I lifted the camera to take a shot but it took too long to "motor up" and the sheep went back in the woods, these digital cameras drive me nuts because of that. As I continued walking the area opened into acre upon acre of sprawling natural fields of sage and grasses...in the distance I could see deer running this way and that way. I am serious as a heart attack when I tell you that every single place I walk around here there are deer tracks. Since I've been here I have driven off for miles and hiked in different places and still there are deer tracks on every foot of gound. Mule deer, my favorite, are the only kind you see; they are everywhere.
I looked for cattle out in the clearings and didn't see any...I spotted a ridge to my right that I wanted to climb to see the mountains and the valley below. So, I looked for cattle again and saw just the butt of a lone black angus behind a tall bush up on the ridge, the only cow up here that I could see. It had to know I was there and didn't seem too bothered. I have been hanging with these black angus for weeks now and they just look at me hoping I might feed them....so I didn't worry, it stood half-hidden behind a large bush about 75 yards from me. Finally I got to the top of the ridge and one doe took off through the sage brush to the left and another one to the right. The view of the mountains and valley was fabulous. I sat my weary, out-of-shape body down on a stump and took my hat off and placed my camera on it. Just going to relax for a bit and scan with my binoculars to see if any pronghorn sheep or more deer came out in these clearings. Then I saw the nose and some of the face of the black angus looking at me through another thick bush, this time it was closer to me..I thought she was being oddly stealthy for a dumb cow.............THEN IT WALKED CLEAR OF THE BUSH AND I REALIZED SHE WAS A HE; IT WAS THE MOST GIGANTIC BULL, THE MOST TREMENDOUS, BUFFALO-SHAPED BULL I HAD EVER SEEN, it had the same fur on its shoulders and withers like a buffalo..testicles the size of two shopping bags (plastic not paper), a mean and nasty bellowing bull only 30 yrds from me AND LOOKING RIGHT AT ME!. I am telling you I IMMEDIATELY grabbed my hat and camera and got up and ran down the ridge, I was praying like a wild woman, "Please Jesus, make him stay calm"!
I expected it to head after me but it stood there and bellowed unlike anything I had ever heard before. This had to be a prize breed bull and it was apparently put in the area ALONE away from the other cattle for obvious reasons, such as, DOESN'T PLAY WELL WITH OTHERS... I couldn't believe how lucky I was that I made it out of there. Thank you Lord, my prayer was answered. It's one thing to cross a cattle guard in a vehicle but I will never do it on foot as long as I live. I couldn't get back to that cattle guard fast enough.
