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Tuesday, August 3, 2010

The mighty lion

Yesterday evening, the Duo and I hiked out into a light rain and magical clouds drifting around us. We explored, searching for a site where I could see the berry slope with binoculars, hoping to spy on the bears. Alas, no such vantage point existed. On one boulder pile that I climbed to peer at the slope, the pups stood next to me.
Then, we hiked through the meadow's waist high grass, completely soaking my canvas pants. The Mariposa Lilies that still bloomed looked delicate while covered in raindrops.
Last evening, we gave R some special new kibble, and he ate with a vestige of enthusiasm. By no means was he as voracious as usual but at least he ate. Thanks so much for the insights from those of you with dogs who don't always eat their food. I wish that I could say that I'd seen this behavior from a Lab before but I haven't (and we've had six). In any case, the vet will give him a close checkup tomorrow so that we can (hopefully) rule out anything serious. He's looking skinny, with his spine and hip bones jutting out, so we need to get him eating normally again.

This morning, K and I mountain biked together, and her energy could have fueled the entire world. She sizzled with high voltage power. I tried to keep her in a heel in the rain soaked and still dusky world.
But, a scent in the air obsessed her. In the photo below, I'd demanded that she hold eye contact with me to try to calm her down and get her to focus on me. See how different her face is compared to when she initiates eye contact? In this photo, she looks intense rather than soft.
Later, with K a bit calmer, we found a stone arch when we scrambled among boulders.
And, in a meadow, I enjoyed delicate flowers still dripping raindrops from last night's drenching.
Later, after leaving K at home, I went for an intense bike ride, designed to burn off all my anger and angst over events of the past couple of days. By the end, I relaxed and feasted on raspberries. That's a great transformation!

Cumulonimbus clouds ballooned up from the mountains, signaling more thunderstorms for this afternoon.
By the end of my ride, the clouds began to envelope the mountains. I love the sky show over the mountains!
At the end of my ride, I visited two wildlife cameras and I hit paydirt! Look who is standing exactly where the doe and fawn as well as the sow have been photographed in the past week.
When I saw the lion's visage on the viewfinder of my motion-triggered remote camera, I felt my stomach do a flip. The mighty mountain lion had stood exactly where I was standing less than 24 hours earlier. A chill darted up my spine.

The lion triggered multiple cameras so I put together a video of his travel along this wildlife corridor. I also carefully compared his gait to the stiff walk used by the other big mountain lion who I've recorded in this area. I think that this is a new lion who is younger, leaner, and longer legged. I wonder if it's a male or female? Enjoy the video.

17 comments:

  1. Great flower photos, KB! I'm drooling over the Mariposa, and I have those Bell flowers growing in my gardens right now. The pic of K on the arch is wonderful. I had a little adrenalin rush just seeing the footage of the mountain lion! Be careful!

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  2. That still that you caught of the lion is gorgeous. For some reason, he doesn't look nearly as menacing as the original LEO. He does seem quiet a bit smaller...

    Water-brushed flowers are one of my favorite things! Love all the flower pictures today. Makes me miss winter.

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  3. Well, everybody has a weakness, even K, it appears! Some things are just irresistable. She's as beautiful as ever, though.

    I have to admit, I hope the lion is a female. I sort of feel sad thinking about that grand old giant being dethroned!

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  4. Oh, and I think you were wise to avoid your crazy neighbor after her reaction to your dogs! What a nutjob!

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  5. Wow! Mountain lion, soo beautiful! Me fav pic is the stone arch pose, very regal! Great pics and adventure!
    Thanks for sharing!

    Cheers,
    Maxx

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  6. Wow, that mountain lion just exudes strength and power. He would send shivers up my spine too.

    Glad you found a kibble to entice R. Hope the checkup reveals some minor explanation with an easy fix.

    Great photos again - the skies are awesome. And we love the great shot of K on the stone arch.

    Thanks again for all your support for Phantom

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  7. The scenics, K, the flowers all wonderful. The Mountain Lions, are just dazzling to me!

    Cheers,
    Jo and Stella

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  8. Two chills today ... first K on the rock bridge. Eek!

    And, then mr/ms lion. Wild. Just wild.

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  9. Wow. A real mountain lion. What an amazing shot.

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  10. Sorry, sometimes a pic of yours will just grab me, and today it was that arch shot. I would kill to get a week of pictures there!

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  11. Can't think how nature could have sculpted a stone arch like that. The lion is truly awesome!

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  12. At least one of you expressed fear of seeing K on the arch. No worries. I went up and stood on it first to make sure it was safe for her. There was almost no exposure, and it was strong enough for her. I'd never put her in jeopardy - she loves clambering on boulder piles but I supervise very closely.

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  13. Fabulous footage of the lion! It was fun to compare the two you've captured, too, and see the differences.

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  14. Khyra says HI KHYTTY!

    I'm thinking khytty is a she khat - just seems slightly more petite/etc -

    Glad R is eating something -

    AND of course, the pics: WOW!

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  15. Not sure which was more stunning - the majesty of the mountain lion or the beautiful picture of K and the arch.

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  16. Woah! That is one mighty mountain cat! Goodness. We were a bit worried about these lions on a few of the rides we did in Sequoia. Always wore neck skarves, and could never be certain of the scat were were seeing, but there was a lot of it!!! Rattle snakes seemed to be more prominent, but definitely other mountain dwellers in the area.

    Hugs and snaggle-tooth kisses,
    Sierra Rose

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  17. One more comment....2:24pm! New mtn. lion recorded... Thought they were typically bunkered down at that time??

    Hugs and snaggle-tooth kisses,
    Sierra Rose

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