Loved your video! Sounds like a great family vacation. :) It was unexpected the time a hummingbird flew into our garage and stunned itself. It needed assistance to get going again but it was amazing to be up close before it flew away. Also watching a fox trot across 4 lanes of traffic right in front of me was a bit unexpected. Maybe not “gasp worthy” in either case but cool nonetheless.
Thanks, Pearl. We have a hummingbird feeder. They are amazing to watch. I saw fox in my backyard recently. That was a new one for me. Squirrels, rabbits, possums, and foxes. What’s next? Hopefully not a bear! 🤣
Hopefully not! 😅We’ve seen coyote, fox, sandhill cranes, and deer with their fawns (super cute) in the field near us. Actually now that I’m thinking of it, the white robin I saw in our neighbor’s yard one year WAS gasp worthy. Its mate was a normal robin which tipped me off, because I couldn’t initially figure out what it was. The photo I managed to take even made it in the newspaper! Lol
Wow, a white robin. Cool. We have deer around. But I have not seen one in my backyard. It is fenced. No coyotes around these parts. Or road runners, either 😉
I walked out onto my back deck a couple weeks ago and stood face to face with a bobcat, maybe 5-10 feet separating us. There are no rails on our deck because it’s close to the ground. It was almost dusk. We both froze and just stared at each other. It felt like forever...maybe thirty seconds? I finally took a small step back, so did he. Eventually he went down the hill and turned to face me again. He then lay down in a pounce/hunting position and continued staring at me. At that point I went back inside. 😅
In 1962 my folks took us on a long trip around the west. En route to the Seattle World's Fair, we stopped for a day in Yellowstone. My Dad hadn't reserved a motel for the six of us. Who expected so many tourists in Yellowstone in June? We ended up driving for hours until we found a vacancy somewhere in Idaho. Exhausted, we all went straight to sleep.
The next morning I stepped onto the little porch of the cabin we were in. There, a few yards away stood a huge elk munching on some grass. It appeared to be much less shocked at my appearance than I was at its. It stared at me for a while and then sauntered off into the forest.
It was huge. Before that, I'd only seen mule deer which at most were half its size.
Elk are big! I have seen one. At a zoo. Or a “deer acres” place. I can’t remember. 🤣 I have seen hundreds of deer. They used to feed by the edge of the freeway when I worked the 5:00am shift. Fortunately, they never jumped out in front of my car.
A few years ago, sitting in our four-season porch in back, Deb and I noticed a couple robins, a jay, and a little bird (sparrow?) being noisy on our backyard hillside. They seemed to be focused on one of the bushes. Or maybe what was under it, because a black snake wriggled out — about six feet long, eventually. The robins and jay swooped over it, and the snake hurried to the next bush. Despite screams and (I assume) dire avian threats, it stayed put. So the little bird landed on the ground about a yard from the snake’s bush, and proceeded to put on the world’s worst imitation of a wounded bird, fluttering with wing held out, occasionally shivering as if struck with fever. Didn’t work. The snake took off on the opposite direction, found cover in heavy shrubbery, and eventually the Neighborhood Watch (as we call them now) gave up and went elsewhere.
I read about it as a kid, in a Kipling story. But that was with a talking mongoose, so seeing something like it in real life (including the bird acting like it was wounded) was somewhat surreal. Also, I think they were trying to kill the snake, just peck it so hard it would clear the neighborhood. Kind of like a bunch of small birds harassing a hawk until it decides to relocate.
I, too, saw a bear. We were in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, for what we thought was the first (and would turn out to be the last) great college friend hangout. Everyone else was upstairs playing pool. I came downstairs and went out on the deck and there was a bear. They were bigger than the car they were sniffing. There was an electric wave of terror that washed over me, so I calmly went back inside and closed the door. There were tons of windows, so I could easily see the bear still, but was safe. I didn't feel safe, but knew I was. Then I got super excited and grabbed the Hi8, tried to get some decent footage of it, while sounding the bear alarm. But by the time everyone came down, the bear was walking back down the mountain. Never felt anything like it before or since.
Seeing a bear is a humbling reminder of how little we are 😳😄 But, yeah, same here. Most of the wildlife I see are squirrels, birds, and bunnies. Thank goodness!
Bears and mountains go together. That’s why I don’t camp in the mountains. 🤣 Seeing a bear at close range has to be scary.
I have seen bears at the garbage dump in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (don’t ask, it’s a Michigan thing), but we were in our car and the bears weren’t interested in us, just the garbage.
Yeah, thankfully we were staying in a big house and the bear wasn't into me. They wanted whatever was in that car, but even that was too much effort, so they just left. Again, thankfully.
I saw a snake in our office at work recently that caught me off guard. It wasn't that big, and didn't really scare me. But surprised me because I almost stepped on it and tit was the exact same color and pattern as the brown carpet so when it started to move I was shocked for sure.
Yeah. I work in an area dubbed "The Livable Forest" so there are plenty of trees and brush around outside the office. I still wonder when/how it got in though.
Yes, I was out for a morning run near my home, but on a gravel back road that went through some woods. Through the underbrush I saw what I thought was a cow on the loose coming from a side road. It was actually a bear. I stopped on a dime as the bear crossed the road at a distance that was way too close for comfort (probably embarrassingly far away if anyone had measured 😂). He or she briefly turned to look in my direction and then disappeared into the trees on the other side. Glad I wasn’t wearing a heart monitor during THAT run!
Yikes! A bear is probably the scariest animal in my state. Although I live in a suburb of Raleigh, so I am not likely to see one. If I lived in the mountains on the west side of the state they would be around. 🐻
Oh, sorry, Richmond, Virginia—which in our case isn't actually our airport code (that's RIC), but it's this open source branding that the city embraced about 10-15 years ago.
When I lived in Washington, DC, I saw a fox outside our house. It was beautiful.
I saw one earlier this year in my backyard. First time for me. It was surprising.
Loved your video! Sounds like a great family vacation. :) It was unexpected the time a hummingbird flew into our garage and stunned itself. It needed assistance to get going again but it was amazing to be up close before it flew away. Also watching a fox trot across 4 lanes of traffic right in front of me was a bit unexpected. Maybe not “gasp worthy” in either case but cool nonetheless.
Thanks, Pearl. We have a hummingbird feeder. They are amazing to watch. I saw fox in my backyard recently. That was a new one for me. Squirrels, rabbits, possums, and foxes. What’s next? Hopefully not a bear! 🤣
Hopefully not! 😅We’ve seen coyote, fox, sandhill cranes, and deer with their fawns (super cute) in the field near us. Actually now that I’m thinking of it, the white robin I saw in our neighbor’s yard one year WAS gasp worthy. Its mate was a normal robin which tipped me off, because I couldn’t initially figure out what it was. The photo I managed to take even made it in the newspaper! Lol
Wow, a white robin. Cool. We have deer around. But I have not seen one in my backyard. It is fenced. No coyotes around these parts. Or road runners, either 😉
(Apparently the robin was a partial albino. Who knew!) You’re probably safe from TNT making a guest appearance then. 🧨 😅
🤣 I think so.
I walked out onto my back deck a couple weeks ago and stood face to face with a bobcat, maybe 5-10 feet separating us. There are no rails on our deck because it’s close to the ground. It was almost dusk. We both froze and just stared at each other. It felt like forever...maybe thirty seconds? I finally took a small step back, so did he. Eventually he went down the hill and turned to face me again. He then lay down in a pounce/hunting position and continued staring at me. At that point I went back inside. 😅
Good strategy. Don’t make the big kitty mad. 🤣 That would be freaky, though. What could you do if he pounced?!
Haha! I don’t really know. Fend it off with my grill brush? 🤣 I could have maybe written a halfway decent story.
Bobcat vs Grill Brush. I think the cat has better odds. 🤣
Hahaha! Don’t underestimate the grill brush! 🤣 I like your Thursday thread, Mark - fun idea.
Thanks Justin. It seems to be popular. 🤓
In 1962 my folks took us on a long trip around the west. En route to the Seattle World's Fair, we stopped for a day in Yellowstone. My Dad hadn't reserved a motel for the six of us. Who expected so many tourists in Yellowstone in June? We ended up driving for hours until we found a vacancy somewhere in Idaho. Exhausted, we all went straight to sleep.
The next morning I stepped onto the little porch of the cabin we were in. There, a few yards away stood a huge elk munching on some grass. It appeared to be much less shocked at my appearance than I was at its. It stared at me for a while and then sauntered off into the forest.
It was huge. Before that, I'd only seen mule deer which at most were half its size.
Never forgot it.
Elk are big! I have seen one. At a zoo. Or a “deer acres” place. I can’t remember. 🤣 I have seen hundreds of deer. They used to feed by the edge of the freeway when I worked the 5:00am shift. Fortunately, they never jumped out in front of my car.
A friend of mine almost got killed when an elk rammed his car. He said it came out of nowhere and smashed in the driver's side window.
I can imagine. I am sure they could do some major damage.
A few years ago, sitting in our four-season porch in back, Deb and I noticed a couple robins, a jay, and a little bird (sparrow?) being noisy on our backyard hillside. They seemed to be focused on one of the bushes. Or maybe what was under it, because a black snake wriggled out — about six feet long, eventually. The robins and jay swooped over it, and the snake hurried to the next bush. Despite screams and (I assume) dire avian threats, it stayed put. So the little bird landed on the ground about a yard from the snake’s bush, and proceeded to put on the world’s worst imitation of a wounded bird, fluttering with wing held out, occasionally shivering as if struck with fever. Didn’t work. The snake took off on the opposite direction, found cover in heavy shrubbery, and eventually the Neighborhood Watch (as we call them now) gave up and went elsewhere.
What a show! I didn’t know birds went after snakes. Except predators, like Hawks.
I read about it as a kid, in a Kipling story. But that was with a talking mongoose, so seeing something like it in real life (including the bird acting like it was wounded) was somewhat surreal. Also, I think they were trying to kill the snake, just peck it so hard it would clear the neighborhood. Kind of like a bunch of small birds harassing a hawk until it decides to relocate.
I guess it worked. 🤓
I, too, saw a bear. We were in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, for what we thought was the first (and would turn out to be the last) great college friend hangout. Everyone else was upstairs playing pool. I came downstairs and went out on the deck and there was a bear. They were bigger than the car they were sniffing. There was an electric wave of terror that washed over me, so I calmly went back inside and closed the door. There were tons of windows, so I could easily see the bear still, but was safe. I didn't feel safe, but knew I was. Then I got super excited and grabbed the Hi8, tried to get some decent footage of it, while sounding the bear alarm. But by the time everyone came down, the bear was walking back down the mountain. Never felt anything like it before or since.
I think I would die, if I saw a bear in real life. Our wildlife is pretty tame - apart from the devilish smelling goats. 😉
Seeing a bear is a humbling reminder of how little we are 😳😄 But, yeah, same here. Most of the wildlife I see are squirrels, birds, and bunnies. Thank goodness!
Bears and mountains go together. That’s why I don’t camp in the mountains. 🤣 Seeing a bear at close range has to be scary.
I have seen bears at the garbage dump in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (don’t ask, it’s a Michigan thing), but we were in our car and the bears weren’t interested in us, just the garbage.
Yeah, thankfully we were staying in a big house and the bear wasn't into me. They wanted whatever was in that car, but even that was too much effort, so they just left. Again, thankfully.
I would have stayed inside for a while. 🤣
I JUST saw a giant moose while hiking yesterday. It was 10 feet away (a litttttle too close of you ask me, but very majestic!)
That is close! They are huge. I would have gasped and then been mesmerized by being so close.
Whoops. This was the moose thread. Sorry 😨😅
That's kind of what it was like for me. They climbed up on the car at one point, which was frightening and cool.
Was it by the Roslyn Cafe? I'm dating myself with that joke.
I had to Google it soooo yes? 🤣🤣
Yeah. Old 😏🧝♀️😄
I saw a snake in our office at work recently that caught me off guard. It wasn't that big, and didn't really scare me. But surprised me because I almost stepped on it and tit was the exact same color and pattern as the brown carpet so when it started to move I was shocked for sure.
I see snakes regularly in the wooded areas near our house, but never in an office building! That would make me gasp!
Yeah. I work in an area dubbed "The Livable Forest" so there are plenty of trees and brush around outside the office. I still wonder when/how it got in though.
Sneaky snake.
That's, like, a nightmare.
It was definitely surreal to see the carpet move hahahaha
A “jump back” moment, for sure.
Not a wild animal in particular, but a goat that smelled like the devil himself.
That is enough to make you gasp. In disgust. 🤣
A handsome bearded devil? 😂
Yes. And it was huge. Maybe Mr. Devil paid a visit to earth. 😂
Yes, I was out for a morning run near my home, but on a gravel back road that went through some woods. Through the underbrush I saw what I thought was a cow on the loose coming from a side road. It was actually a bear. I stopped on a dime as the bear crossed the road at a distance that was way too close for comfort (probably embarrassingly far away if anyone had measured 😂). He or she briefly turned to look in my direction and then disappeared into the trees on the other side. Glad I wasn’t wearing a heart monitor during THAT run!
Yikes! A bear is probably the scariest animal in my state. Although I live in a suburb of Raleigh, so I am not likely to see one. If I lived in the mountains on the west side of the state they would be around. 🐻
I'm in RVA, so we're not super far away. That's neat!
What’s RVA? I am not up on my acronyms. I used to know every airport code in the US and most of Europe when I worked for the airlines.
Oh, sorry, Richmond, Virginia—which in our case isn't actually our airport code (that's RIC), but it's this open source branding that the city embraced about 10-15 years ago.
I thought it might be Virginia or a typo of West Virginia. 🤓
How long did you work for the airlines?
The bear I saw also disappeared into the woods. Thank goodness.
Too close for comfort!
All cats are stealthy. I wouldn’t want to feel those Bobcat-sized claws!
It’s a freaky feeling. I just had a recent bobcat encounter and wrote about it below!
We have coyotes in our neighborhood, but I've never seen one.
I have heard them when I visited out west, but never saw one. I did find an anvil on the freeway, though. 😉🤣
Was he chasing a road runner? 😉