Its been a while since I took the short hike to Willow lake in Big Cottonwood Canyon. Its actually become a favorite place of mine because of all the animal activity around the lake. The trail winds through some very thick aspen forests filled with all kinds of
Flower on the way to Willow Lake.
colorful wild flowers and varieties of shrubs. On a normal day the climb up starts out quiet, with the sound of birds singing and squirls chattering getting louder with every increase in elevation. By the time you reach the lake its pretty noisy.
Todays journey was quiet all the way up to the lake. I didnt hear a sound all the way up. Before you reach the lake there is large open area where a small pond resides in the early spring. By now the only sign of the pond is
The open area where the first two coyotes were spotted.
some vegitation that enjoys a wetter environment. As I came upon this open area I soon understood why things were so quite. About 150 yards away from me I could see a coyote who was very actively hunting for food. Most people dont get to excited about coyotes,
A coyote hunting in the snow. Yellowstone National Park
but I do. If you have been fortunate enough to watch them hunt you will know why I enjoy them so much. They have very keen hearing and can hear the rodents running in their tunnels under the ground or under the snow. Their heads move from side to side as they listen. Then at just the precise time they jump in the air and dive nose first into the soil or snow, often surfacing with the rodent in their mouth. They are also very beautiful!
I watched him hunt until he was out of site, then started back up the trail. Within a couple seconds I saw another coyote, only this one wasnt so sure about me being there. He was out of sight within a matter of seconds. Within a minute I was on the bank of Willow Lake. Would you believe I saw another coyote on the other side of the lake. This one didnt stick around either.
As I stood on the shore, looking at all the beauty of the area, I experienced something that was a little surprising and also a little upsetting. There were several Mallard ducks living in the lake who had many young this spring. One of the yearlings swam over to the spot where I was standing, got out of the water and walked right up to me and stood next
Yearling mallard duck that approached me on the shoreline.
to my boot. My thought was there is no way this duck doesn’t know I’m here, but I remained motionless as to let this play out. On the lake I noticed another duck swimming over to me, then another and another. All got out of the water and walked up to me. Keep in mind these are wild ducks… I knelt down to see what would happen. They stayed right with me. One started nipping at my hand, then another one nipped at my lens hood. Another tried to eat my boot laces. I soon learned that these ducks were being hand fed! People, please dont feed the wild animals.
With coyotes away the sounds of the forest started to appear. A family of hawks began
Large Hawk that was flying over the lake.
flying over the lake, landing in trees that surrounded the water. The light became a bit challenging as the early morning light changed to the harsher light of afternoon. It turned out to be a uniqe hike to Willow Lake.
Adventures of a Photographer 