More Driving Trip

Stopped at a little retail establishment in a tiny desert town on the edge of cattle country. Bought a $2 Coke in a plastic bottle and talked with an older woman of of older days. We remembered ten-cent cokes. The Coke is the only soft-drink I've had this year except for an occasional tamarindo drink from a glass bottle with an old fashion cap from my local supermarket. The Coke was not good, but the talk was. I told of my encounter with the fox and she began to tell me of the problem they had been having with feral dogs. They were especially bothered by one exceptionally large pack. They had a county animal control officer in town, but had not been able to get help from the county or the State in controlling those particular wild dogs. It seems that they had killed nearly all local range born calves this spring, had damaged horses, and killed pet dogs and cats in town. There was concern for the few toddlers in town. I told her a bit of the story of 'the mad Russian' and the Russian wolf hounds.

Walked down to Walker Lake and watched and listened to the seagulls a bit. On the way back I saw a particularly handsome pack-rat lodge. It was a bit unusual to me in that  it was topped with a liberal sprinkling of fairly fresh burro droppings. The lodge was also protected by a large number of of nicely laid out  throwing stones. They were large for a pack-rat to be carrying around so very many of them. I noticed that the nest had been built around a largish ephedra plant. We used to call that plant Mormon Tea or Indian Tea. I also noted that something had been eating the ephedra. Burros will eat it, but the ones closest to the nest seemed to be subject to a more delicate eater. Perhaps the pack-rats were on the local natural 'speed.'

Pulled off the road in another spot and came to an open gate with a sign that read "No entrance, Laser Range in use." Seem to remember seeing such signs years ago. I didn't go in.

Lizard Tails: Burros

There were once more Burros on the desert then there are now. There may be someone in your family who has fed part of one of them to her cat.

Some said that the wildest thing in the Wild West was a mother burro, if her baby's safety was at stake.