![\"California](\"http:\/\/invertedsky.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/tr-8797.jpg\")
<\/a>California Zephyr near Pinecliffe, Dec. 7, 2013 (click for larger)<\/p><\/div>\n
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It hasn’t been above freezing for a while now.\u00a0 To make matters worse, on one of the coldest nights when temperatures were below zero on the Fahrenheit scale, the power went out for about 7 hours.\u00a0 No heat during that time.<\/p>\n
I’m still very busy with work and haven’t had much time for hiking or photos.<\/p>\n
I was able to grab a short hike one afternoon this past week.\u00a0 The temperature was 8, but I was dressed fairly warm.\u00a0 No one had been on the trail so mine were the only human footprints.\u00a0 I did note there were quite a few deer tracks and was glad they weren’t all hunted.<\/p>\n
After about 30 minutes, I was walking along, lost in my thoughts, as I often am on solo hikes, when I suddenly became aware that I was following the tracks, not of a deer, but of a mountain lion who was going in the same direction I was.<\/p>\n
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<\/a>Mountain lion paw print in the snow. This print was about 3.5 to 4 inches wide.<\/p><\/div>\n
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When a mountain lion leaves tracks, the front paw leaves a print and then the back paw steps almost exactly in the same spot, over-printing the front paw print.\u00a0 So much of the time it’s hard to get a good print because its been stepped on twice.\u00a0\u00a0 Because it’s a cat with retractable claws, there is rarely a claw mark, unlike canines and bears.<\/p>\n
After studying the track for a few minutes, I opted not to continue following it.\u00a0 I felt a bit chilled after seeing the size of the paw prints, especially the distance from one print to the next.\u00a0 That was one big kitty.<\/p>\n
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The shortest and coldest days are upon us in the northern hemisphere. It hasn’t been above freezing for a while now.\u00a0 To make matters worse, on one of the coldest nights when temperatures were below zero on the … Continue reading