Two Hawks

Was crossing the Creek Footbridge, and Hawk flew over, and then under the Creek Bridge...really cool!....got one farfar away clip, then Hawk, Cooper, the Cooper's Hawk, flew further down Creek...crossed the Road, got another far away clip, after putting in fresh batteries in the 20x!...Coop was perched on the Twin Fallen Cedars...veryVERY cool...Cooper flew further along the Creek out of sight, and I followed until I got to the Deer House....work in progress thereabout to clear the fallen Black Oaks at Duck Harbor...thought Cooper would avoid all this commotion and be gone....took some pics of the Oaks, and was startled to see Cooper fly up from the Creek to a fallen Oak branch....another clip!....Cooper flew up high to perch in a Cedar above the RipRap at the Swath...worked around over fallen Oaks..hoping not to alarm the workmen...and sighted in on Cooper with digi...but was too slow....Ranger was behind me, overseeing things I guess, and related that they'd just seen Cooper taking a bath in the Creek, until I came along and startled Cooper!...would very much like to have added Cooper to the Birds Taking Birdbaths in the Creek Collection!.....do have the clip of Cooper drying off though...lost sight, picked up, and continued out through Bobcat Meadow, and to the Post Office....dvd of Pale Male came...picked up tuna, hershey's, chips and cran grape at the Village...thought to have lunch out at the Backpacker's Camp, and headed to the A Rooms...friend was ahead, and diverted for a sitawhile at Church Bowl...not a long while, but I drank the crangrape, and was still thirsty, so headed to the A Rooms...was on the Meadow side Path, and a bicycler came from behind, past, and then hopped off his bike looking into the Trees...he'd seen Hawk catch a Grey Squirrel..."What color?" I asked, and he wasn't sure....took a couple quick pics of Hawk at the base of a Cedar, thanked the bicycler for their sighting!, and backtracked and worked around, thinking with the digi I didn't need to be very close for clips....and once positioned with the Sun behind, I found I'd lost sight of Hawk!...and no wonder...Hawk was mantling over the Squirrel while two Ravens were trying to steal Hawk's catch...I managed to get a clip of Hawk hunched down, and then dragging the Squirrel out of sight behind a Cedar...I had to move around some more, and lost sight again!!...finally, I just left the digi on the tripod, and walked over to where I'd last seen Hawk...soft snow crunching, I got to the location, and looklooked, and was surprised to see Hawk, Zeke!, standing still by a Cedar, hidden in the Brush, just a few feet away!....the Ravens and the Squirrel had all Zeke's attention, and I took some pics with the new camera...but way too many branches in between...a bit flustered, I finally just went back to the digi, hoping Zeke would stay put....I retrieved the digi, and worked around, back almost to the angle I'd started with!...I set the tripod down, and used some Cedars for cover, and found a kinda slot between the Trees, and could see Zeke now and then raising up from feeding...I must have taken twenty or thirty pics with the timer, as I do, trying to time Zeke with head upraised....and managed to get a few pics...the clips I had better luck with, and the one up is when Zeke was watching the annoying Ravens....I stayed perfectly still for longest time...long enough for Zeke to nearly finish the Squirrel!...and I finallyfinally took a chance, and worked all the way around again to where the Sun was at my back...and took some more clips and pics with Zeke, and the unfortunate Squirrel, in full view, for sometime....Zeke finallyfinallyfinally picked up, literally!, with the remains of the Squirrel, and flew over towards the Dorm....I lost sight, which was just as well, as the concentration doing the clips and pics of the Hawks was exhausting!....I continued to the A Rooms and purchased a bottle of water from Last Chance friend manning the Snacks who switched jobs....dont know but if the A Rooms had a slot I could fit in, I'd switch my own self!...it's very nice thereabout...I paddled out to Sugar Pine Bridge, and instead of going to the Backpacker's Camp, I turned off onto the Trail to the Stables...which took me right to the Backpacker's Camp!...but I wasnt hungry, and kept going, with the Pony Path in mind...at the Stables, pic of the Tent Cabin crushed by the Ponderosa... for sometime...it is really smashed!...the Snow was lightly traveled along the Pony Path, and it was a slog, boots sinking with every step...I sat awhile to rest at Ouzel's Boulder...and at Happy Isles, caught the Shuttle....with daylight left, hopped off at Lower Falls, and made the Outside Loop...a quiet walk...in fact, the whole day was quiet except for the Hawks....oh...and Mama Doe and Two Fawns at the Village...clip...and maybe the second Last Chance Fawn in the last bit of the walk by the Deer House...pic and clip....sunny hazy clouds warmcool...just the right temp for a long walk!!...report of Two Coyotes by Two Top Pine...doing the hop and successful in catching whatever dark little critters they catch!....workmen took the fallen Oak off the Bus...after I get the things stored in it stored in the Cabin, it will be time for the towaway truck....I'll miss just seeing it parked in the Backyard!!...along with the daydreams of getting it restored....oh!...saw the Blue Bird flock fly high over Chapel Bridge...talking...