D-Day + 2 : Counter Attack!

... so after yesterdays defeat, and along with some intermittent heavy (sssssssssssssssssssssssssss - speak of the devil - he just walked across the keyboard, pausing on the 'S' to get his back scratched - 's' = scratch? - naaa! -  but we'll leave it as is) rainstorms, 'Ig the Cat' been layin' pretty low today - catchin' up on sleep his intention, we guess...

... maybe not...

... so was plannin' to head to the grocery store around 8pm - he's finally up and about, lookin' to get outside... so... "See ya' later"...

... headed straight for the 'Bluejays' heavily defended 'Pine', and up he goes - brilliant tactical move on his part -  it's late and they're in the process of beddin' down for the night -  surprise 'guerilla warfare'...

... so here we go again...

... they quickly drive him out of their tree - he immediately darts over to cover on the porch deck... was near dusk and gettin' dark - I quickly fetched a camera (now keep 'em close on stand-by) - shot over a hundred stills of the action - probably 90% poorly focused or blurred - definitely gotta' practice 'combat photography', especially low light - totally different experience when the "shit hits the fan"... annotated what ya' see here for clarity... dive bomber above...

... the "Jays" are pissed as hell - weren't expecting this attack - and they're throwin' everything at him...

... pinned down again... maybe... maybe not...

... next thing ya' know - Ig's up on the wood railing... "bring it on!!!"...

... "we got 'em now!!"...

... with the cat an "open target", the action escalates quickly to "fast and furious"...

... they're sendin' 'em in one at a time...

... Ig's really holdin' his ground - was even up on hind legs, standing on that railing, swattin' at 'em...

... most of the time two at once - and fast as hell!...

... I'm standin' photographing all this - will have to admit - he's puttin' up a hell of a fight!!...

... so much so that he's got 'em confused an second guessing...

... he even managed to swat this guy who came in too close...

... but they kept commin', and Ig kept givin' it right back...

... he even took a direct hit here - one of three I saw - he immediately swatted the next bird in... never left the railing!... that's one tough f*kn cat!!!...

... after that last hit this guy flew in an just hovered for a few seconds - almost like out of respect - that just gotta' be 'Bruno', Ig's arch nemesis (and vice-versa)...

... didn't matter none, however...

... they even eventually posted a spotter, believe it or not, who just hung out and directed the attack from above...

... who would have expected - here come the owner of the house pullin' up and walkin' some people around to check out the property - Ig and birds go scattering...

... Oh well - live to fight another day... tough to choose sides on this one however - total badasses and built for survival all...

D-Day +1 and Greenlick Lake (Paddling Part 6)

... was out in the backyard early this morning cleanin' up a mess of 'Poison Ivy' that's been gettin' out of control... UH-OH!... what's this!?... a few 'Bluejays' are goin' nuts all the sudden!!...

... it's a "dawn assault" on 'Ig the Cat' - and they're really lettin' him have it... they moved their nest(s) this spring to a very tall nearby 'Pine Tree' - a blank, dead vertical climb for the first twenty feet to reach the first limb, and then about another twenty feet to the first nest - all the while thru relentless "air assault"... the nests are housing some "wee'uns" - hear them chirping up there, especially when "Mom" shows up with some food - making the 'Bluejays even more "meaner as hell" than usual - even dive bomb me if I go near the tree - Ig's aware as well and has been attempting daily raids since last Monday - all repulsed - although, he's been racking up 'Robins' left and right, who keep building their nests in the lower shrubs - have rescued three young ones since Tuesday from his "clutches"... that's two "Jays" dive bombing in the photo above - 'Ig' hunkered down on the neighbors wood deck, which infuriates the the 'Jays' even more - I annotated the photos for clarity - sorry for the poor quality on some, but by the time I returned from running in the house to grab a camera, it was "combat"!! - didn't even have time to change to a longer lens' while dodging all the flying "feathers and fur"!!!...

... this guy was consistently diving really low - must be their "Ace" - Bruno maybe? (see 'Bruno the Ig Slayer') from last year...

... another wave!...

... and another!!...

... they've really got 'em pinned down!!!

... think that they knew it - there was all the sudden a lull in the attack...

... with lots of back and forth communication between the 'Jays' - think that they knew they had him cornered and were planning a "final all-out assault" - think that 'Ig' realized it as well - he took advantage of the situation to get the hell off the deck and retreat!!...

... didn't have to ask him twice to come in the house (although, he was out all night long, hadn't seen him since around 6pm the prior evening) - wolfed down his food and water and went to sleep... FYI -  he drug all that old nylon climbing webbing and rope in the above photo out of the closet a while back and made himself a "nest"...

... later today...

... so, early afternoon headed over to 'Greenlick Lake' to do some paddleboarding - first time on the water this year - the 'Yough', while not high, was still pretty murky from recent rain, obstructing all the shallow rocks from view - with a ten inch fin, didn't feel like takin' an unexpected tumble in cold water first time out - gettin' too old for "that sh*t"!... 

... besides, 'Greenlick' was built for 'SUP' - very warm water - great workout - probably about a mile lap around the lake - usually do it in under twenty minutes, then do some intermittent cross lake "sprints" between 'PBR's'... 

... plus, you can back right up and park right along the shoreline in many areas - great for bringin' along an "older than dirt" dog...

... meaning a seventeen year old (estimated) 'Belgian Shepherd' who still loves the water - doesn't swim anymore (arthritis) but loves to stand there and float - would damn near swim across the lake "back in the day"...

... settin' there rethinking some old memories we'll bet...

... by the way... man - saw tons of perch, bluegill and crappie while paddling over there today... a giant fish, at least 24 inches in length, dove deep when I startled him while paddling past the rock dam near the outfall - didn't get a long enough view to identify him... spoke to a few fisherman in boats, but all said that "nuthin' was biting"... no lie - had very many of the aforementioned "panfish" following me the whole way around the lake - don't know if they're attracted to the large white bottom of the paddleboard or what - that's my guess...

This Weekend Sucked

... big time!... spent the past day and night dealing with a sick cat...

... don't know what he ate - but considering everything that he "murders", figure that he will eventually sh*t nothin' smaller than a groundhog*... the "Dark Cat"...

... and a "geriatric" seventeen-year old dog (typical) who now'days, considering his weak hind legs, is "magnetized" to a slippery hardwood floor without help gettin' up...

... however... wouldn't have it any other way...

... besides - could always be worse!...

*... "buddy Matt" once had a young 'German Sheperd' puppy ('Bear' - probably six months old at the time) - he went fishing along the 'Yough' with us once - returned home and the poor pup was sick as hell for almost a day - wouldn't get up and would just lay outside in the grass - finally sh*t the largest, fully intact (at least four inches long) 'Crayfish' I'd ever seen in my life...

Petrified Wood

... mentioned it in the previous post - following is a photo of a pretty cool chunk of 'Petrified Wood' we found while paddling the 'Lower Yough' a few years back...

... probably around 8x16 inches in dimension and around 6 inches thick (didn't measure it) - no idea what it once was - that large dark hole in the upper right contains some quartz crystals ... those small bright orange "dots" are small 'Chigger' mites that were living under the the thing when we flipped it over yesterday to photograph it... is a permanent landscape adornment now...

... a science lesson (from 'Wikipedia')...

... quite a bit of this stuff throughout 'Chestnut Ridge' if you're observant - best places to look are any of the drainages (creeks/runs) feeding the 'Yough'... 

Lepidodendron and Sigillaria

... while copying some mapping from the 'Laurel Highlands Trail' hikers guide a few posts ago, was lookin' at the guide section on 'Plant Fossils' - have a few good ones, actually...

... that's a 'Lepidodendron' - forgot to include a scale on these photos - for reference, that concrete wall the sandstone rock is settin' on is seven inches thick...

(Internet Image)

... here's what it looked like around 300 million years ago...

(Internet Image)

... a science lesson...

... this is a 'Sigillaria' - same seven inch wall...

(Internet Image)

... 300 million years ago...

(Internet Image)

... Sigillaria science - looks like the 'photo'd fossil' is part of the root system - never knew that until now - was no internet when I first found these years back and never looked 'em up - we've come along way in 300 million years (just ta' turn around and f*k it all up)...

... 'Chestnut Ridge' is loaded with this stuff (take a hike along 'Laurel Run') - a bit of 'Petrified Wood' as well - know a large boulder along the west flank of the 'Yough River' just south of 'Connellsville' that has an entire fossilized tree trunk running the length of it (about fifteen feet long as I recall) - have a photo of it somewhere, couldn't find it to include here - I'll hike back up and get another ... the 'Casparis Cliff' also has a pretty nice large 'Lepidodendrum' - everyone always thinks that it is a tire track from a dirt bike...

... tons of cool stuff on-line - this guy 'Walt Myers' is the best in our opinion (the following are copyright images from his website):

... Check out his stuff:

http://www.arcadiastreet.com/cgvistas/index.html 

... the first time I checked it out it seemed like I was viewing for maybe twenty minutes - checked the clock - was almost two hours later...

... HA!... that last image could almost be a modern day 'Dunbar Creek' - minus the 'Eogyrinus' as well as the giant 'millipede' and flying "roachoid" - think 'muscle girl Sarah' (pictured above) would need to be packin' some "double-aught" bug spray if that were the case...

Rocket

... man, left the homestead early this morning to drop off a vehicle for some routine maintenance - round the bend - UH OH! - what's that in layin' in the two lane hardtop??!!...

... sad to report - it's 'Rocket J. Squirrel'!! (see 'It's a Zoo Out There') - laid flat!!!...

... he's been a real source of joy and entertainment around here since early last summer - especially early  sunrise when he was most active - grab a hot brew - set out on the porch and observe - high definition for sure... 

... in his tree - high and free... was funny - noticed a somber mood in all the birds today... 'Ig the Cat' was even low key...

... was pretty busy today - drove past him numerous times - was bugged more each time - ain't no way he's gonna' rot in the street as long as I'm around - finally went and scooped 'em up him late this evening...

... RIP our friend...