But things are happening:  The fox remains active at the den.  He (I’m pretty sure it’s a male) continues to come through ever other evening, checking out the environs and making sure things are ok.  I think he’s just keeping it in ready reserve for the chance that soon he’ll have a mate to bring into the place.  There is a skunk that also comes by pretty regularly but it doesn’t get much of a foothold before the fox is back. 

Just above the den a few days ago, Denine and I spotted a one-eyed great horned owl sitting in a tree watching us walk below.  He seemed more interested in Molly as she chased sticks than he did of us.

The next night the woods were alive with the hooting of great horned owls and the screechy calls of barn owls.  I put a barn owl call on my cell phone and sat just outside the barn after dark.  I played the barn owl call and within thirty seconds saw an owl drop out of one of the trees above me – I could see was a silhouette against the night sky and heard a faint wing flap.  A minute later another owl flew in between the trees and veered off with a pale flash of white under it’s wings.  I was seriously excited at that point and a little freaked out.  A couple of minutes later I replayed the owl call and saw another flash of white pull up into the tree next to me.  Another owl.  After settling a bit, it hopped to a lower branch and again jumped to a closer branch not long afterwards.  It seemed curious and unconcerned as I shifted around trying to stay warm. 

The picture below was taken with my cell phone as I was getting up to leave.  As far as I could tell the owl just hung out as I was heading back inside.

Barn Owl

These days are short.  It’s dark when I walk out to the office to start the day.  It’s twilight when the day is done.  The sun arcs low across the sky and sinks behind Elk Ridge just to the west of us at 3:15pm.  Down in town they get an extra thirty minutes of daylight since they’re further from the height of the mountains, but even still it’s the season of short light.  Or is it?

In the house on days when the sun is shining from a brilliant blue sky, the low angle means that we have luxuriously long rays of sunlight across the floor.  This time of year they stretch halfway through the house bouncing sunlight against the walls and up to the ceilings.  For an hour at noon the whole house lights up with a beautiful honey colored glow.   So, is it a season of ‘short and dark’ or ‘long and light’?  Neither.  Both.  Caught at the moment I talk to myself about it, it becomes whatever I say…

Winter Light Rays

Christmas:

We had a nice time during a long Christmas break.  Denine and I gifted each other and Molly, laughing at all the fun.  We cried when we buried one of the black cats but then I enjoyed time with the other two cats lounging on my chest as I lay on the couch reading a couple of good books.   A nice break, another week-long slice of life. 

Creatures:

The foxes continue to work out at the den – things appear to be proceeding normally out there.  Still haven’t had any daylight sightings of the foxes which is unusual.  I think it’s because we’re dealing with new, cautious adults.  We also have lots of raptors hanging out in the woods.  These birds are very wary.  They’ll drop out of trees that are a hundred yards away when I walk out of the office or house.  Seems a bit overly cautious to me, but they do what they have to do.  This one decided differently:  Just behind the barn, he (she?) just sat and watched until I got tired of taking pictures and walked away:

Northern Harrier

Finally:

Last night as I was leaving the wood shop to return to the house, I sat in the chair just outside the door to let my eyes adjust to the evening light.  The moon was bright, the sky clear and it was warm enough to just sit and enjoy the stillness of the woods.  A barn owl was screeching in the trees somewhere close.  I heard a noise in a tree above me and while I craned my head upwards to peer into the dark above, it became clear an owl had just landed in the branches above.  While I watched, it hopped down the limbs until it was just about 20 feet above me.  We shared the space for about fifteen minutes before he flew off towards the house, around the driveway and off into the evening.  A pale while barn owl, silent and unperturbed by my presence.  I appreciated its nonchalance:  An honor, Mr. Owl…

It’s very typical that early in the fall that the local skunks start coming by the den area, lining the den with old pine needles and scratching around the base of the trees near the den.  However, at some point the character of the den itself changes.  The actual den holes – filled with pine needles and having a very small opening for the skunks – suddenly widens out, the needles are pulled away and fresh dirt from the inside is mounded up in a big heap just outside the holes.

That’s what we’ve seen over the last couple of weeks.  The dirt mound is getting new dirt added to it every few days – over the past several years of use the mound has piled up least two feet tall.

So we replaced the batteries, put the camera out and were happy to see that, yes, the foxes are back. 

And, because it’s a good reminder that Spring will inevitably follow the darkness of Winter (today!), here’s last Spring’s litter:

Spring 2011

Another set of things I never put my mother through – you’re welcome, Mom…