Work for Greg, Wildlife for Me

Greg and I both had the Friday before the Fourth of July off, so naturally we spent it at Thorn Creek.

Greg had gone up Thursday evening after work, and I met him there Friday morning.

When I arrived, he was in the middle of moving one of our wood piles, so I jumped in and helped unload the trailer.

Speaking of the trailer…it’s our newest addition.

Greg somehow managed to get it for free, and it’s the perfect size to pull behind the side-by-side or mule. It holds a surprising amount, and I have a feeling it’s going to get a lot of use as we continue building the cabin.

Once we had everything unloaded, Greg went back to reinforcing the shed. He had already started adding extra support to help it handle our heavy winter snow loads, and there was still more to do.

Unfortunately for me…

…there wasn’t much I could help with.

So I did what I usually do.

I grabbed my camera.

Before long I was completely entertained photographing the little ground squirrels and chipmunks that live around the property. They are surprisingly curious, incredibly playful, and honestly pretty adorable. I ended up taking far more pictures than I expected.

After Greg ran out of screws for the shed project, he shifted his attention to modifying the trailer. He built extra supports so we can haul even more wood in each trip.

While he built things…

…I kept wandering around looking for things to photograph.

I found lizards sunning on the wood pile, insects I’d never seen before, and several giant bugs that looked like something out of a nature documentary. I like to take pictures of them and then use the picture to search google and identify them.

It’s amazing how much wildlife you notice when you slow down and really start looking.

Later that afternoon we wandered down to the creek to cool off for a while.

Besides being several degrees cooler, it always seems like there’s something interesting to discover along the water.

This time it was caterpillars.

Not just one kind either.

I found several different species crawling around, and of course I had to photograph every one of them.

I never know what I’m going to find out there, and I think that’s part of what I love so much about this property.

That evening we decided to make homemade pizzas for dinner.

Before leaving home, I had made pizza dough and packed all of our favorite toppings. We baked them in the little oven in the camper, and after a full day of working outside, they tasted amazing.

One thing we’ve really come to appreciate is having our shower.

After spending the day sweating, getting dusty, and cooling off in the creek, a hot shower before heading home feels like a luxury.

Once I was cleaned up, I headed back to town while Greg stayed another night. His plan was to spend the Fourth of July morning working before coming home later that afternoon.

On my drive home, I came across a wildfire burning right alongside the highway.

Thankfully, firefighters were already on scene, and it looked like they were getting it under control quickly. It was a good reminder of how quickly things can change this time of year and how grateful we are for the crews who respond so quickly.

It was another simple day at Thorn Creek.

Greg built things.

I chased squirrels, lizards, bugs, and caterpillars with my camera.

We cooled off in the creek, ate homemade pizza, and ended another day feeling grateful for this little piece of Idaho.

Honestly, I can’t think of a much better way to spend a Friday.

This might be my favorite thing about these little guys, they eat those big ole bugs. Especially the bugs that are in the wood and laying larva that will bore into it.