I arrived back in Aspen after a long drive through Wyoming and Colorado yesterday. I was sad to leave but am happy to back with at least part of the family. I'll go pick up Abe and Jamuna tomorrow at DIA.
Two days ago I took a hike to Cascade Lake in the Canyon area. After about three miles on the trail John S. and I arrived at the lake and found a nice place to sit and have lunch. Within a few minutes of sitting down I spotted a bird with a white head and wondered if it was a Bald Eagle. John commented that it looked too small for an eagle, and he was right. I located the bird with my binoculars and saw that it was an Osprey, a fish-eating bird. As I was saying the words, "Wouldn't it be cool if it would dive into the water and catch a fish?", it did just that. I was able to follow the whole process and watch the bird fly the length of the lake and then skillfully land in a tree, never letting go of it's catch.
John did not have binocs with him on this hike but thankfully the great bird reappeared for an encore about five minutes later. John was able to watch the entire performance while I tried to snap a photo. Here is a cropped and enlarged shot just to give the idea of what it was like.
After lunch we experimented with an expired can of bear spray. It expired in 2008 but still had quite a bit of pressure. The wind shifted while I was trying it out and some of the spray came back on me. I never really doubted it but now I know why this stuff is so effective. It was a good experience for us to know how it would feel to use the spray and to see first-hand how far and long it will shoot.
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