I've just returned from an exploratory hike. I walked down the road about half a kilometre from my house then turned into woods and walked along the power lines and gas pipeline in search of short cliffs. I forgot my camera.
I followed human (boots), dog and crow tracks through the snow, and our collective path was occasionally crossed by deer tracks.
About half a kilometre in, a couple of deer came into the clearing and stared at me until I got within 60m of them. I forgot my camera.
A short distance later I came to the first promising looking rock. Sharp conglomerate slab about 15' high. I followed this feature into the woods and came across more outcroppings, some steeper and 30' high. I forgot my camera. The sandstone matrix seemed to be solidly binding limestone cobbles. This time of year it's too hard to tell if it is in fact solid –the frost could be reinforcing it.
The next two changes in topography were limestone. Most was rubble covered with soil and vegetation.
I returned to the pipeline and headed up a 40 m, 50º slope. When I was about a quarter of the way up, a large coyote sprinted across the top of the hill. I forgot my camera. With nothing but blue sky behind him (I think it was a him) I had no reference scale, but I would guess it was as big as a German shepherd. I continued up the hill to size up the tracks. They'd broken through the crusty layer so were too poorly formed to get a good idea.
Midway along it's path were three small fresh turds with deer hair. I could see the dent and roll one of them made as it popped out mid-stride. I forgot my camera. I must have disturbed this guy mid-shit on the edge of the woods.
On my return trip, at the bottom of the hill and around the corner, in the middle of my tracks was a fresh yellow mark in the snow and the smell of urine. Fresh tracks, the same as those atop the hill, but in the opposite direction led across my path. I forgot my camera. This must have been the alpha-male and he was not happy with my trespassing.
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