Lions and Tigers and Birds, Oh My!

We had an excellent president's day weekend. 

We started off Saturday morning with a trip up to the Animal Ark for their Wild Winter Weekend.  The bears and tortoises were hibernating, but we were able to see everyone else, mountain lions, bobcats, tigers, coyotes, a gray wolf, foxes, cheetahs, raccoons, badgers, owls and falcons.   Most of the animals are lifetime residents of Animal Ark and can not be returned to the wild. However, they do have a bear rehabilitation program and release bears back into the wild once they are ready.  One of my favorite things about the Animal Ark is that all the animals have unique stories posted detailing the circumstances that brought them to the Animal Ark.  The stories are fascinating and really help visitors understand what the Animal Ark is all about. 

Rayna, the gray wolf

Meeting Whoopi the Peregrine Falcon

 

Cheetahs don't like the snow, this is either Moyo or Jamar, not sure which

After our trip to the Animal Ark, we headed to our usual game of afternoon pick-up frisbee.  The wind was really roaring and the game was somewhat ridiculous due to the high winds, so we ended up not staying terribly long.  

On both Sunday and Monday we went for hikes with the entire family, goats and all.  On Sunday, we hiked up behind our house, where we threw the disc around and hiked slow, letting the kids graze, sniff and pretty much do whatever they wanted.  On Monday, we all went for a 4 mile hike up past Verdi to Old Quilici Ranch road.  We hiked along the southeast bank of the Truckee along the water access road, which is a great place to hike with the family.  It has rolling terrain, with a nice, wide trail and is quite picturesque.

 View of the Truckee River

 Dan and the kids

 The Truckee

 Goats playing near the water

Throughout the weekend we participated in the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC).  Some of the birds we counted were, brewer blackbirds, mourning doves, red tail hawks, mallards, coots, and a pied-billed grebe, just to name a few. 

What a great weekend spent outdoors with amazing animals and my awesome family!