I dipped into my photo collection of our resident beaver family from last week. With the warming temperatures they came out from their winter home beneath the ice of the Gooseberry River. I stopped to check on them after work one evening. Almost the whole colony was out and about enjoying the spring like weather. One of the larger adults came up the hill to get a birch tree to re-supply the food pile. He didn't care that I was only 15 feet from him with my camera. His goal was food. I suppose after eating soggy bark for five months some new birch bark would be pretty tasty.

It still amazes me how fast the beaver can make chips fly when it cuts down a tree. I would not want to get bit by a beaver, but that is just what the mom is doing to the kits right now. This is the time of year she is ready to give birth. She chases the kits away from home to make room for the new young ones. The ones that don't leave get bit. A friend of mine that traps beaver would catch some that had holes bit right through their feet and pieces missing from their hide. It seems cruel but a lodge can only provide for so many. This week one of last years kits was wandering around the campground appearing kind of lost. I'm sure it was looking for a new stream or pond.

Paul

I got about 50 yards from him and listened for his next call. Behind me a couple of coyotes howled from maybe a half mile away. The neighbor's dogs started to bark in response. It was very quiet and I could hear every sound. I looked at the tree I thought the owl was in and all of a sudden a wolf howled right in front of me!!! He couldn't have been more that a hundred yards away. The hair stood up on the back of my neck. I thought, this guy is right in front of me and I don't even have a flashlight. I decided to head back to the house. Karla asked why I retreated "wolves don't attack people". I said "I know, but I didn't want to be the first".

The next morning I went back to see how close the tracks were to mine. Three sets of coyote tracks were about 100 yards from where I stopped. Two sets of timber wolf tracks came right up to where I stood listening to the owl the night before. They crossed my tracks in two places. The wolf tracks were large enough that I could put my fist within the track. If I would have stood my ground the night before I probably could have seen their shadows moving through the birch.

On Saturday and Sunday both barred owls returned. I followed the sounds and located both owls. It was light enough that I was able to get some photos. Each time the mate would call, the one I was photographing would quickly turn in the direction of the sound. He was much more interested in his mate than he was in me.

Paul & Karla

Some of those aches like the one attached aren't as accessible so not as many people get a chance to see them. I was skiing this week with my niece Lisa Jordan and her husband Pat. We found this arch on the shore of Cascade River State Park. It is one of the more beautiful ice arches that I have encountered. With the warm temperatures it might have already collapsed. Many of the piles of crushed ice at Gooseberry collapsed in the last two days. It was like a miniature Glacial Bay, Alaska. Ice was calving off forming little icebergs that were floating in the bay all weekend.

Paul & Karla

The attached photo shows the size of some of the ice shards. The interesting thing about this particular ice shard is the reflections. If you look closely you can see what appear to be clouds in the bottom of the ice shard. The ice is so smooth that it reflects the snow that is on the lower piece of ice.

Paul & Karla