Tahoe Country - Wildlife Encounters

Wildlife Encounters

Drive Home The snow was gently falling. The road had just a light dusting of white upon it. It was dark, yet the flakes reflected the light of my headlights, so that tiny glowing spheres hit my windshield. I became entranced with the rythym of the windshield wiper and the tiny spheres. A figure stood in the road before me, small, doglike. I brought the car to a stop. Before me stood a coyote. He turned his head and faced me. Standing his ground he leaned back on his haunches and howled. It touched me deep within the pit of my stomach. The sound resonating throughout my soul.Glancing at me one last time he disappeared into the darkness. I drove on. (Story by Jennifer Quint)

Expecting an attack Legendary postman and father of California skiing, Snowshoe Thompson, set out on his 10 foot long, 25 pound oak skis to deliver mail to the isolated regions of the Sierra - regardless of weather. His mail run took 3 days from Placerville to Mormon Station, Utah (Nevada's first town,later called Genoa when Nevada became a state), and two days on the return trip. Grizzly bears, mountain lions and wolves roamed his path, but he carried no gun, not wanting to limit the weight of mail and much needed supplies. On one trip he came upon a pack of wolves feeding on a deer carcass. When they noticed him, they sat on their haunches and howled. Expecting them to attack at any moment, Snowshoe kept his pace and flew right past them. When he looked back, they had returned to their meal. (More about Snowshoe Thompson)