Good Newts

At work, we've designated Thursday as Critter Counting Day. The idea is to create a database of animals seen on our so-called Epic Journey hikes (about 5 hours of trail time). This week, we had nine field classes, so lots of of different trails were taken.

We combined two field classes for a hike out to the reservoir because the route allowed van access, which was important because we had a boy on crutches, a girl with a mildly twisted ankle, and a girl with vision impairment. The boy was dropped off and picked up .6 miles from the reservoir, but made it up the hill on crutches and down it in our ATV pushcart (actually a jogging stroller, but we don't call it that because nobody ever wants to ride in a stroller), the girl with the injured ankle walked all the way there but accepted a ride back, and the girl with vision impairment did the whole walk.

At the reservoir, we counted 303 newts in the water, where they were mating and laying eggs. That's a record, although truth be told, I haven't counted every time I've gone on a hike.

There were some cute newt tracks along the trail too.

Here's the total count for the day:

Manure

We have a big pile of manure outside of the garden gates at work, used to make our composting efforts more effective. This week, while the campers were literally shoveling shit, I walked around the pile and encountered a couple of photographic opportunities.





Life in waste reminds us not to waste our lives. You're welcome.

Happy New Year

It's too early to tell if this Winter will be as rainy as the last one, but we're off to a good start, with a little rain falling during the week, and more rain falling as I type.

The road leading to camp is still being repaired from the damage sustained last Winter, with the new completion estimate being mid-February. Of course, the work didn't begin until the rainy season began, so there is a big possibility of weather-related delays complicating matters.

The first week of the year went well, with the all-day hike finding us in a drizzly, foggy wonderland of mist-obscured trees and marching newts (we counted 71 of them on that one hike). The newts were out in force for the night hike as well. We actually got back a little late because of all of the newts (and millipedes) I had to move out of the trail. We found a lone female Western Toad too.

The coolest find of the week was a small adult Pacific Giant Salamander sitting on the walkway near the parking lot.



This week also marked the debut of the Flat Rock Scorpion I bought over the break. A couple of the classroom teachers actually held it (but not the kids, because I never let them hold anything with a stinger). Here she is in her UV drenched glory:



The forest is beautiful this time of year. It always is, but the rain and fog paint such mysterious pictures.





Someday soon, we'll have a new Hognose Snake at camp. I bought a new one this weekend. The one at camp is around 25 years old (I bought it in the early nineties, but I can't remember the year), which is well beyond the life expectancy for the species, so I think it's time to bring it home and let it retire in peace. I've already successfully fed the new one a thawed pinkie too.