Founder's Blog – 1 September 2024

This mountain lion prowled his way across WLP's First Preserve on July 28, 2024, exactly three days before I arrived to pick up the trail camera that took this picture.

We'd set it up a month prior, on a lightly trodden trail on the forested side of the Preserve.  Since it was the most obvious trail I've found, I figured it must have the most traffic, so the trail cam was our sneak peek into whatever might frequent the area.  So, with the biggest spoiler and twist already revealed, let's take a tour of WLP's First Preserve, through the month of July, on the shady side of the canyon.

To begin, I was fully expecting and prepared to see pictures of nothing but the wind.  Wildlife is extremely rare to find there, probably because they are extra skittish around humans.  And, at least in the first few days, my expectations were confirmed: no large wildlife.  There were as many pictures of rustling leaves as there were of chipmunks, robins, and woodpeckers.

First animal that caught my attention was a grouse one day.  Then two the next day.  Then a male in full display came waddling through.  Over the month we determined that this trail must be a major interstate for the grouse, always passing through in the same general direction, either coming or going.

Then about a week in, a deer popped his head into the frame.  And then a fawn!  D'awwww!  The mom and her kid paused to look around and then hopped their way up the trail.  We saw them plenty of times going forward.  Every couple days, a deer, sometimes with a fawn, would stop by, cutely look around, then continue trotting on their way to wherever.  At first we thought it was just one pair, but at closer look we discovered it was multiple deer.  Multiple!  Big wildlife confirmed!  What a success!

Just before the camera reached the end of its tenure, when I was already happy and satisfied with the sights, this creature appeared.  Broad, thick, muscular, menacing, this mountain lion stalked his way across the same trail the mom and fawn loved to cross.  While impressive (and a bit pettable), it was a sobering reminder of the danger and ever-present food chain of nature.

The camera was a great success, offering us all a glimpse into the Preserve's ecosystem, without my muddy snake boots trampling all over the place.  Our half-overgrown trail was a chipmunk playground, a major grouse interstate, the local street for three deer, and a hunting lane for a mountain lion.

But while the big critters get most of the attention, I think a lot of the magic comes from the small things.  Like how the blue delphiniums in the background bloomed over the month.  How a juvenile robin liked to come by and forage, sometimes closely accompanied by an adult.  How, at about 3pm every day, the wind would pick up and the camera would shoot many pictures of the rustling leaves.  Each sight by itself is cool, but everything together, big and small, helps you see the whole life of the land, and that's so much more inspiring than anything by itself.

So I appreciate you reading the whole of this report, and joining me in discovering a little more about the whole of our land.  While I am tragically whisked away to New York for another school year, I am comforted to remember that on a quiet trail on the other end of the country, the deer still pass through, the grouse still waddle by, and the wind still blows at about 3pm every day.

The afternoon wind!

– Steven Whitney

Okay, a couple more . . .

Fawn being a bit brave.

Fawn and Mom.

Western Lands Preservation and the East 4 January 2024

Annual Christmas Dinner 3 December 2024

 
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