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I was still in view of the Rock Spring parking lot when a coyote surprised me as I headed down Cataract Trail this morning. She was on the edge of the meadow to my left and quickly turned around to head back into the woods as I passed, looking over her shoulder at me a couple of times before she disappeared.
Checking up on the trail camera, I found (after viewing the images back home) that I'd only captured one animal all week, back on Thursday morning. But the animal was a bobcat, and he scent-marked a spot, so maybe I'll see more of him.
There was a hint of rain, just barely enough to warrant opening the big golf umbrella I use when hiking with camera gear. I wasn't looking for anything in particular to photograph, so I picked a small area I liked the feel of and just poked around looking for inspiration in the patterns and textures of my immediate surroundings.
As I quietly moved through the woods, a half-dozen wild turkeys crossed my trail. There were lots of acorns on the ground, but I couldn't see for sure what the turkeys were pecking at. Mostly they stopped to preen, then one of them chortled a few little companion calls to a pair of turkeys farther down the hill before they all moved on.
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