Wolf Howling and Moving On

Saturday May 13-Monday May 15, 2018                                                    Most Recent Posts:
Oregon Inlet to Lewis Mountain                                                         Before and After Currituck Light                   
Cape Hatteras NS to Shenandoah NP                                              Currituck Beach Lighthouse in Corolla              

SATURDAY

Saturday is really our last day at Oregon Inlet.  Tomorrow we’ll be packing up to move.  So today I’m up at dawn, spend the day on the beach and we visit Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge for a special after dark program.

It’s dawn when I see the moon setting.  It’s only a sliver of a moon but it looks beautiful in the sky and I of course take too many pictures.  But it’s my last dawn and sunrise over the ocean for quite a while and I just can’t help myself.

Consider it the anatomy of a sunrise.

So quiet, only the ocean waves rolling and the grasses blowing.

I can tell pretty soon exactly where the sun will come up.  Of course I know by now but you can tell too by the slight change in the color at that spot.

With dark clouds lining the horizon, soon the color shows higher in the sky.

Here it is just peeking out and burning the dark away.

Blazing its path across the water.

Couldn’t choose, included them both.

Turning everything on the shore golden for just a moment.

I love walking on the beach in the early morning when the colors are soft and most of the car tracks are gone at least from right near the water line.  The shells are exposed again.

Not another soul as far as I can see.  Truck marks, but no trucks – yet.

Just these guys in great numbers.

Good thing they have wings.

Wings make a quick escape possible.

They also make scanning the waves for breakfast possible. 
This may be my favorite shot today.

Calm before the waves.   Better grab a bite while you can.   I wonder why it took me so long to realize that life is all about eating?

Or maybe this is my favorite

One last look before heading back for breakfast.

I took no pictures of  our afternoon on the beach.  This one of my favorite view with no trucks and no people in it for the moment will do.

In the evening we drive over to Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge on Manteo Island for their wolf howl.   They don’t promise a wolf howl, they just promise the opportunity.

And boy did a LOT of people show up including two bus loads of kids.  I guess we all love wolves unless we’re farmers or careless pet owners.   Hope you can get a feel for the numbers if not from the people then the cars in the background.  We counted 40 and quit.  Oh and 2 buses.

The ranger tells us about the sad story of the deminishing populations of the native Red Wolf and shows this map of their original territory.

I cropped it so you can see clearly that their range was all over New England, out to the Great Lakes and down to Texas.   The area marked as “final range” is where they were found naturally and from where species were captured for breeding and reintroduction.

At its height in 2005-07 130 Red Wolves roamed the area..  They are now down to about 40 and their future is pretty dim.  The ranger shows us that their competition the coyote looks so much like them that wolves are often killed by farmers who mistake them for coyotes.  They also are now interbreeding with coyotes.    There just isn’t enough room with all the development for these predetors to thrive.   Two volunteers show us the difference between the fur of the two animals. Wish she’d put the smaller pelt on the smaller girl.  Which one is which?  I “think” the coyote is the larger one. 

The refuge has a captive group of wolves who have been hurt or are in need of attention.  These are the ones we are going to howl to.  

The other packs that roam free could be anywhere.  The ranger and wolf specialist know where this group is.   They bring us to this location up the road from the wolves.  They walk down closer and howl and the wolves howl back.  We can hear them.  What a wonderful eerie sound. 

Then the two come back up to us and we all howl too.   So loud, so many of us, I’m not surprised the wolves do not howl back.  We try 3 times with no luck.   Frankly, I think the wolves are smarter than this.  But it is the sad state of affairs on the east coast.  It does provide education and hopefully concern for the wolves that will translate into letters, phone calls, emails to those responsible for continuing and funding this program.  I lightened the picture considerably so it could be seen, that’s why the sky looks so odd.  It was pitch black and we could hardly see our hands in front of our faces.  Most of the pack of people is behind me.

Here are links to two very informative stories about the wolves’ fate.  One from 2016 and one from earlier this year.   After reading these, you can see the wolves need our help.

SUNDAY

On Sunday we’re in a race with the rain to get things packed up and under cover for our move north tomorrow.   We manage but the drive on Monday is rainy.

MONDAY

We leave early for our uncharacteristically long drive of 300 miles today.

We have to make stops for propane where they can’t get their credit card machine to work and we spend an hour while they try in vain and tell us they’ll call us when the charge goes through.  I don’t like leaving my credit card number but what’s the choice?  We don’t have enough cash.  

Then we have to stop for gas.  We pull into a Pilot to fill up the vehicles which also turns into a fiasco when you can’t pay at the pump which means you have to go inside, stand in line, estimate how much you’ll want then go out and pump it and come back inside with the real amount and get a promise of a refund.  OR do it all over again in the case of a $100 limit on a single pump or if you underestimated as I did.   So 5 trips back and forth and we’re back on the road.

I drive up the mountain to Shenandoah National Park ahead of Winnona to see what sort of walk in site we can get.  We’re aiming for Lewis Mountain Campground but if that’s not available then I’ll have to go further north to Big Meadows.

On the way up the mountain I am pummelled by hail which fortunately does not damage the car as far as I can see.   David arrives with the rig in time for a downpour.  Our first luck of the day, there are sites in Lewis Mountain.

I’ve picked two.  Both are paved.   One is double wide the other is more level.  He  likes the double wide but by the time we get in and level the tires are a foot off the ground so in mid storm he backs out and somehow manages to get us into the other site in what is now dark even though it’s not even 5:00. 

By the time it’s over,  I’m soaked and freezing from being outside directing the back in. But it is a level site thankfully.  It’s been a long day and  so much trouble with the site is really not what we needed at the end of it.

Of course if we’d been an hour later than we were we’d have missed it all since just after we get into the site  and leveled the rain stops

But it’s a portent of things to come.  The rain has followed us here.   The sunset and colors revive our spirits. 

It’s what Will said. . . . “alls well that ends well”. 

We’re safely on top of the mountain.
Tomorrow will be a better day.