The Flush from a different viewpoint.

"To be alive, is that not to be again and again surprised?" ~ Poul Anderson, Satan's World

Gentle Readers and Loved Ones,

I captured a set of 5 videos that I think are remarkable and I have to share them with you.  Your mileage may vary on this.

Yesterday, we left the cabin to drive home.  On the way out, I drove back onto the property across the road to recover my game cam that I had left on the drumming log.  We parked the truck roughly 200 yards away from the cam and walked back to get it.   As we neared the log, I heeled Rowdy up, asked Ann to stay back behind me and got out my cellphone hoping to get a video of the grouse if it was on the log. 

In fact the grouse was on the log and the game cam captured him as we approached.  Here he is getting one last drum in roughly about the same time we were parking the truck. 

As we get closer, he starts to hear us and gets more agitated.  

As we get close and Rowdy and I start walking off the ATV trail to go to the log, he realizes he's in danger, sucks his feathers in to get small and jumps down to hide behind the log. 

Right about that same time, I was taking this short video with my cell phone.  I release Rowdy when I don't see a bird on the log, not knowing he's hidden behind the log.  Rowdy smells him, but doesn't see him and starts hunting.

Thinking the bird is not there, I blithely walk up to pick up the game cam and turn it off.  The game cam captures me getting suddenly startled when the grouse flushes up from behind the log as I appear over the log.

On that happy note, I remain,

Dad/ Geoff