Yesterday we opened the door and walked outside. And we just kept walking. Ended up going about 2 miles down the Rock Creek canyon. One slow car passed us as we walked along the narrow creek-side country road. There we found an old homestead originally settled by an African american woman in 1894! It has recently been restored by the forest service.
While wandering around the 300+ acres of the old homestead we experienced a Trifecta of Wildlife Viewing…
1. A fox came trotting toward us casually headed to the creek. Once we were seen, the casual pace changed to a swift dash in the other direction.
2. About 20 minutes later, walking along the creek, we spotted a black bear grazing on the other side. We watched it bumble along for a time, before we were spotted. The bear became very alert and scampered straight up the slope away from the creek and the unexpected humans.
It was a delightful day in the sun.
On the walk back we looked up at the cliffs and noticed the bighorn sheep were watching us. I didn’t count them in the Trifecta since we see them all the time. (and I didn’t know what to call a 4 x viewing. Quadra-fecta sounds a little forced.)
It was quite a rich wildlife day, even by Montana standards. I returned later in the day to do some fly fishing. After all, it is Rock Creek.
Hi Carol,
Loved the wildlife! It reminds me of time I spent in Jackson WY. The rehabilitation wing of their small hospital has binoculars mounted on a stand at the end of the hallway for viewing elk! It’s a great motivator to get people standing after a stroke!
Kay and I spend a lot of our free time here snorkeling and looking at the fantastic fish, turtles, rays, occasional sharks and whales when they are here Dec-March.Pretty fun! Marilyn
Great to hear from you Marilyn! It’s nice to think of you two frolicking in the warm waters of the big island. rock on!
Yeah, quadra-fecta does sound odd. And quinta-fecta or sexta-fecta are beyond the pale. Great photos!
“Quadra-fecta sounds a little forced” made me giggle! Not sure why, but it struck me as funny. Lovely photos 🙂 We see a lot of sheep too, and bears, but foxes aren’t all that common. Always nice to see animals that you don’t commonly spot. Last summer we saw a marten for the first time. I wasn’t quick enough to get a photo, but it was a neat experience anyway 🙂
Just ran across your blog and this story today. Sounds like an awesome day!