Matt Matteson

About 30 years old, he wore breathable shorts so clean he could of just purchased from REI this morning, he sat on the side of the single track trail with his fist to his mouth. The sound he made was similar to a sucking noise, a wet sucking noise. I slowed my jog to a walk and looked the direction he had his binoculars pointed.

Two magpies hoped from bush to bush, with long chirps. To my surprise, the birds took turns swooping down to pick on a coyote. The wet sucking noise hiker seemed like more nature than the bully birds.

I resumed running pace as I crested the hill pick-and-sludge trail lead me to. The green valley below looked out of place for the foothills of the Rocky Mountains; it’s never that green. As I ran down into the valley, back into the trees, a loud scream filled the air. It wasn’t a human cry or scream, but something was fearing its life. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a fawn at full speed in the field at the bottom of the valley with two coyotes biting at its legs. The deer was worn from it’s long scream and fleeting. I continued down the hill down the single track with a new energy in hopes to at least find a better perspective. Each step I was sure the scream would turn to a more pulsed final cry. My eye then is pulled from the action in the valley towards the crest of the opposing hill where mama doe enters the valley a pace scooter drivers often hope for. From a better view I watch the fawn get chased into the bushes by the two coyotes with the doe making up ground. The cry ended, now standing on the trail I wait for the resolution. Little fawn then left the bushes to the field, with mom close behind.

Casual Version:

I was running up Apex today and run into this guy making what I can suppose is a bird call. He’s watching two mag pies pick on a coyote across the way. Then, about a mile further in the next valley I hear this scream. It’s a baby deer running across the field with two coyotes chasing it down. Mama deer hears the call and comes running from over a mile away and saves the day.

This entry was posted on Sunday, June 14th, 2009 at Jun 14, 09 | 7:56 pm and is filed under Journal. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.