A Close Encounter

There's not much to do on a Friday afternoon in a small town in North Florida but travel about twenty miles down the road and across the river to "check on things at the farm".  It has been unusually HOT and dry, so when my husband made the suggestion to do just that today, we all jumped in the truck and took off. We had to make sure there was water for all the animals there.

When we got to the farm things were as usual.  Lazy horses and cows munching on an afternoon snack of tender new green grass along the edges of shrinking ponds.  Refreshing when the temperature is around 100 degrees and there has been little or no rain for weeks.

After a quick check around the lake we were ready to grab a burger at the local cafe.  As my son closed the gate to the main pasture we noticed movement ahead between some rows of young planted pines. For a moment we threw around the idea that it may be a beaver, or otter, or even a raccoon looking for water. However, as we approached the source of movement, we realized it was none of the above. 

 

Our new friend smiled for the camera, but quickly lost patience with us and became eager to be on his way to a new wet home.

 

A hiss and a little wiggle, and ....



Quick! Everyone back to the truck! (I know this one is out of focus, but that is the best we could do as we scurried away.) He didn't chase us, he was just ready to move on.

 

The brown line in the middle is him as he settled into the shallow water. One close encounter was enough for today.