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| | | Green's Peak via Candy Mountain Trail, AZ | | | |
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Green's Peak via Candy Mountain Trail, AZ
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| Hiking | 2.30 Miles |
850 AEG |
| | Hiking | 2.30 Miles | | | |
| 850 ft AEG | | | | |
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| Partners |
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[ show ]
| partners | | Day 4 of my Trip - Memorial Day....
Everyone in Camp was packing up to head back to the Heat, but Scott and Rincon wanted to go for a quick Hike since Scott had just gotten there late the Afternoon before...It was finally going to be a gorgeous Day with great Clouds, Blue Sky and Sun! Green's Peak sounded like it would Perfect, so the 3 of us took off...
Thanks to Todd's Instructions, after passing some Folks on the South Slope waving Butterfly Nets, we found the start of the Candy Mountain Trail without any Trouble and were soon Hoofing it up the fairly Steep old Road...Of course, Scott pulled ahead fairly quickly, but as usual, he was Scott, and would wait for me at various Points...  We actually made pretty good time to the Top and with the Fire Tower Lookout being there, we took turns going up to say Hello and check out the Views...The Gal manning the Tower and her Companion were both extremely Nice and we had a Nice Chat...She's been manning this Tower for awhile, from the Conversation we had...Took some Photos, wandered around the Peak a little with Rincon, while Scott went up into the Tower...In Spite of all of the other Towers up there, it was a nice little Peak with some great Views...Headed back down after a bit and chilled for awhile next to the Vehicles before we said our Farewells. Scott and Rincon headed to the Valley, with me going back to Camp. I would be spending one more Night at our Camp before embarking on the Rest of my Trip.
A little Story you can Skip if you want, but it will explain some of the Photos...
On the Drive over to the "TH", I spotted some figures in a fairly large Meadow...I didn't want to stop, as I knew Scott was on a Timeline per se, so I made a Mental Note to check out the Meadow on the way back.
I get back to the Meadow and I can still make out 1 figure towards the Back of the Meadow...I took a small Road as far as the Corral, exited and walked in about 30 Yards and sat down in the Road...What happened for the next 20 or so minutes after that was extremely interesting and completely Out of Character for a Pronghorn. She appeared to be by herself and when she saw me, she actually didn't react much. So after a few Photos, I got up and moved about another 20 Yards and sat down again. That got her moving, but not quite like I expected...She started walking towards me! And the Curiosity Peaked between her and I...I didn't understand it at the Time, but I was happy to get more than a few Photos...She would walk towards me and then I would Zoom in or out and either the Noise or the Movement would scare her and she would bound away, but never really away from me. More, parallel to me across the Meadow. Then she would stop, stare at me some more and then start Walking towards me again...This went on for at least 20 minutes...At one time, she actually got so close, that I realized she was vocalizing and I could hear her and see it. I can actually say that this is the first Time when Photographing Pronghorn where I have ended the Shoot, by finally walking away and leaving her be to her Meadow... On the Drive back to Camp, I kept mulling over her Curious Behavior and wondering if it was sheer Curiosity or something else that made her behave that way...And then, it dawned on me...I've seen this Behavior before in a Long-eared Owl in Hess Canyon...It would fly away, but never far, and would not leave the Area. I suspected, that at that time of Year, it must have had a Nest nearby...That's when I realized, that the Multiple Pronghorn that I'd seen earlier, may have been this Doe and at least 1 Fawn, maybe 2...They had probably laid down somewhere in the immediate Vicinity and she didn't want to leave them. As far as her actually Walking towards me? I don't know, combination of Curiosity and maybe flat out not knowing what I was, since I didn't move much and was sitting down at Grass Level...My Suspicions about possible Fawns may have been confirmed when I went through the Photos today...She was lactating...If I had known then, would I have gone off in Search of them? No...If they had been out and about, I may have attempted a few long Shots, or if I had just stumbled on them while I was Hiking or Wandering, I probably would have taken a Shot or two...But they were Hiding at this Point and to seek them out with an already nervous Parent is uncalled for and unnecessary...Better to walk away and leave them be to their nice little Meadow...That's just how I roll these days I guess...In certain circumstances, I'm not about doing whatever it takes to get a Shot...The Wildlife come first...
I got back to Camp and everyone else was gone...It was almost as though they had never been...I think we're all pretty good at LNT even when Camping...It was eerily quiet with just the gusty Winds blowing through the Pines and the Scolding of an occasional Squirrel...
It was a great, fun Weekend with good Friends and although most of the Rest of my Trip would be Solo, I would meet a few more nice people along the Way...Just another good Day in the Outdoors... |
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Wildflowers Observation Isolated
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| Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty & well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, totally worn out & proclaiming, "Wow What a Ride!" |
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