…and on the 25th day he rested. Howdy everyone, this has been one hell of a month. Just looking at the production on the Wildlife side of Intrigued may appear we have been slacking off, but nothing of the sort. Dog shows, running, more dog shows, more running, hand sledging concrete, more running, haunters convention, more running, Halloween prop building…and yes, even more running. Actually, that seems more like a regular month around here, but what has been gobbling up time is getting the Average Year progress updated (link here) and 3 massive posts on the mothership. With the extra time during the last dog show, decided to bite the bullet and finish the recap of our annual Haunted Trail event – nothing like being 9 months behind…well, being 3 years behind, my photo queue would have some snarky comments about that. If you are interested in what we do around here all year or if you happen to really be into Halloween, you might be interested in those posts:
Haunted Trail 2022 – Prep and Build (link here)
Haunted Trial 2022 – Day Walker (link here)
Haunted Trail 2022 – Night Terrors (link here)
Warning, your browser’s image cache will likely be smoking by the time you make it through all three of those posts. Funny how it doesn’t seem like that much work to put the event on until I go and make the recap posts.
Tomorrow I am planning to run the final simulation run for the upcoming 50K. This would be the one that is a total elevation nightmare and put me in the hospital on my first attempt (link here). That blemish was addressed the following year (link here) and then I took my wife’s advice and said “Nevermore”. That lasted a couple of years…and, well, let’s just say I like a good challenge,. Not sure I am going to luck out like the last time and have cooler temps (thanks to 6 hrs of nonstop rain). Thinking this one is going to have conditions more like the first attempt. The first simulation went okay last week (only 16 miles of it) with no support team or refueling. The support team with be in play tomorrow (aka Linda), which will test the hydration/fueling plan and will cover all the major elevation traversals…Brad might have to take the helm while I recover for the real thing in less than two weeks.
While I rest up for the test, thought I’d feature something else that has “Nevermore” connotations.
Hit the jump to read more about this traditional haunt inspiring creature!
Even though I do not get to encounter this particular species very often, I feel I have a long kindred spirit with them. In my early years I was completely consumed by Edgar Allen Poe’s writings. Horror was my thing, even in grade school, reading nightmare inducing novels well beyond my grade – I wasn’t allowed to see ‘R’ rated movies, but I could read all the books I could get my hands on they were based from. Note, Ron can confirm, this did result in my parents getting contacted by my 7th grade teacher who felt compelled to inform them my book reports were …”concerning”. To my parents credit, they asked why a teacher wanted to suppress a kids desire to read. I had my share of issues (clowns for a start), understanding written horror from reality wasn’t one of them nor “right” from “wrong” which was a staple of our upbringing.
Did all that reading about the dark side manifest in my fascination with Halloween or was the interest always there which drove me to the books and I just continued to grow into the subject as the years went on. Answer that and you can probably lay to rest the chicken quandary. Regardless, whenever I see a Raven I think back to those early years with fondness. My days of reading large novels are probably behind me, but there is always at least one Raven on all our haunted trails.
On a side note, you may recall my dog (who just turned 9 yesterday!) is named Raven as well. Our two previous dogs Osiris (Rizzi) and Kerberos (Kerby) were named after gods of the dead (I took a lot of elective Ancient Civilizations courses in college). I wanted to name my new dog Anubis to carry the theme, but Linda put her foot down – she would not be calling out “Noob” in front of agility ring spectators. As a result, Raven’s full name is Anubis Nevermore Now Raven. An Ode to Poe and to Linda’s foot.
As mentioned earlier, I really do not get to visit with the Raven very often. Sure, “Common” may be in the name, but compared to its smaller kin, the American Crow, its region is pretty restrictive from a US perspective. Typically these large bodied birds are found on the western third of the country, but more ranged to the north in Canada and down into Central America.
The specimen you are looking at here comes from a quick trip to Las Vegas last March. I have to admit, one of the primary reasons for going to Vegas was to get the Raven checked off my list for the current “Average Year”. Desperation attempts to get one in the closing moments of last year came up empty. There were sightings reported in Austin where we stayed for New Year’s Eve. I had visions of snapping this bird in the final minutes before the fireworks went off (like Bostick and the Snowy Owl in The Big Year) – It was to happen Nevermore in 2022 and the 300 species quest fell just short.
My distaste for failing doesn’t just apply to my running affliction, that miss was resonating when we set out to plan our vacations this year. Vegas has Ravens, I’ve photographed Ravens there and from the eBird reports, they are still there. “Linda, can we go to Vegas?” That was a trick question, of course, as Linda has never turned down a trip to Sin City.
Somewhat surprising, we didn’t spot a Raven at our usual spot – the Red Rock Canyon Conservation Area. No worries though as they were abundant in other sites we explored. This series comes from our first encounter at Desert NWR, or more specifically the Corn Creek Field Station near the entrance (link here). We were checking out the Railroad Tie Cabin (link here) when a large shadow passed over us. Quite ominous ha. Quickly spotted the large object causing the rush of darkness and watched it land in a nearby tree – interestingly, the same tree in the cabin picture on that reference website (straight up from the back right corner of the building).
Linda continued reading the background on the cabin, I was a on a mission. By the time I got in position to get some shots I realized I was shooting into direct light – not the best when it comes to this jet black bird. I think it heard me cussing under my breadth because it launched over my head and landed in a much better tree.
Even then, still a bit hard to pull out the details I wanted. It graciously posed for me while I desperately changed settings to capture the moment. “And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting.. and his eyes have all the seeming of a demon’s that is dreaming”
Now my hand…
Once its patience ended
The foreboding message duly noted
To the sky it ascended
My lips now quoted
“Nevermore”.
Just a few interesting tidbits from Cornell before I let you go. Beyond the famous association with Edgar Allen Poe’s immersion into insanity, the Raven is considered “among the smartest of all birds”. With intelligence, comes deviousness. These pranksters like to annoy local golfers by stealing their golf balls. For those who want a tip in the field, their inflight tails will give them away if there is no reference for their larger frame. Unlike the American Crow, the Raven’s tail feathers will form a diamond where the Crow’s will have a more squared off appearance. This is extremely helpful at distance.
Hope you enjoyed seeing a few shots of a rather famous species of bird. I’m sure Eric Draven would approve (link here). For those not familiar with the reference one of my favorites (link here).
Life Intrigued 