Winslow Hill Bed and Breakfast

We stayed at Winslow Hill Bed and Breakfast. The bed was comfy and the breakfasts yummy.

And there were Elk right outside our room.

Literally right outside the room.

We had enjoyed an early dinner at the Benezette Hotel and were relaxing on the deck outside our room when mama elk and her yearling calf seemingly just appeared in the yard. The young lad just starting to get his antlers.

A third one would appear out by the barn. Once they had wandered off we headed down the road to the Winslow Hill Viewing Area

The best time to see Elk is early morning and in the evening, Alas we awoke the next morning to pouring rain. It would clear later in the day, but prime elk viewing time was washed away.

But on the second morning I woke to see fourteen Elk from our bed. I quick woke Patty and we gazed, amazed at the spectacle.

There are eleven in the image above, including two calves only several weeks old. Note the Elk just off the deck at the lower left. Yep, that close.

An amazing morning. And we hadn't even left our room yet.

Elk Country

Offered some very nice views.

This one reminded me of home. Very ferny.

An old strip mine. Looking good these days.

Foggy Winslow Hill.

Sunset before the rains came.

Downed wires after the rains came (not a view we wanted to see).

Hiking trail, one of many.

And while we were hiking and driving about we saw ...

Chipmunks.

White-tailed Deer.

Whistlepigs.

Barn Swallows, begging for food (I didn't have any).

Roughed Grouse ...

... with (hard to see) chicks, at least three.

Eastern Towhee.

Butterflies.

Dragonfly.

Red-headed Rehn.

A very nice place to visit.

One Room, Solar Power, Ready to Move In ...

Why would birds need solar power?

Room With A View

So one can survey one's domain while sitting on the throne ...

... or look in to see if it is occupied.

It Seems to be Woking

These signs were ubiquitous throughout Elk Country. So much so we both thought there must be a significant problem.

But the opposite is the case. Human related gunshot injuries in Pennsylvania have been falling for years.

Not so for the game methinks.

Yard Critter of the Week - Red Jungle Fowl

Red Jungle Fowl

Domestic variety, Rhode Island Red (the state bird of, you guessed it, Rhode Island*).

We have a small farm to the west of us and our neighbor to the east keeps chickens. And one recent Saturday morning, while enjoying my morning coffee on the deck, I heard a rooster cock-a-doddle-doing out in the woods behind our place. I know what you're thinking, photo op! Me too.

So I got the camera and set out toward the wildlife walk. As I did, the bird came running up to me, albeit in the undergrowth.

So I did my best to get a shot, before it scurried off.

I needn't have worried.

The thing wandered into the yard like it owned the place.

He was back Sunday morning, letting us know it was time to get up.

First by the fish pond.

Then in the back garden.

We're not sure which from which neighbor our visitor hailed, we suspect it is the one from the east, as the western rooster was heard crowing while this one was visiting.

Alas, it was just a weekend getaway and we've not seen him since. I hope he enjoyed his visits.

🐓  🐓  🐓  🐓  🐓

You can find all of the Yard Critter posts listed here.

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* An evil place.

Foxen

On our way to our friend's Pat and Eleni's place in Maryland, we stopped at Bombay Hook NWR for a bit of birding.

There were very few birds. Very disappointing.

But we did see three young red fox.

I was looking at what turned out to be just another Red-winged Blackbird, when Patty spotted the Fox in the road. The only camera I had available was my iPhone (the other camera was in the back, we hadn't any reason to get it out).

This one walked right up to the car, perhaps expecting a handout? But never looked up. And when we didn't feed it it had no further interest in us.

Never looking up at me, it just wandered down the road. We continued on when Patty said, "look, two more!".

These two were far enough away that I was able to get out and get a proper camera. While doing so another car came up behind us. I clued the driver in that the Fox were there, and she proceed to pass and park directly in front of us, blocking our view. Grrrrr.

So I walked around.

These two were also habituated to cars, although they did not approach as close as the first.

And they both looked at us.

The highlight of an otherwise somewhat lackluster visit.