On my mom's birthday we went for a walk to the bay. All was normal till we got charged at by a pair of red foxes. Foxes so close you could have reached out and touched them. On the beach. It was amazing. My camera was put away and I barely had time to pull it out and take the lens cap off, turns out it was on manual. National Geographic, here I don't come.
We were glowing with adrenaline after. It is, without a doubt, in my top 5 favorite wild animal encounters. (Others involve carrying a wounded fawn and having a bullfrog jump into my kayak.) My mom immediately asked me if I was going to blog about it. The Merricks operate on the birthday month principle, so whatever mamma merrick wants, mamma merrick gets. Til jan. 31st.
WOW!!! That has to be a good omen.
ReplyDeleteWOW! I think your photos captured the moment perfectly! How lucky for you...sort of...good thing you didn't get jumped by the foxes. I live where we don't have foxes but would love to see one someday...it will have to be cougars and black bears for this girl for now...
ReplyDeleteYou captured their thick winter coats perfectly. I love foxes and have only seen one once in the wild.
ReplyDeleteYou lucky, lucky girl! I bet it was magical!
ReplyDeleteoh, that is very special indeed! fast foxes!
ReplyDeleteThat's amazing. What a special moment...and what a great birthday gift!
ReplyDelete-maria
amy - n. is demanding to know what beach this is. i think he's planning a stake-out. ;)
ReplyDeleteA little blurry or not - great photos! Wow what an experience!
ReplyDeleteSandy Point on the Chesapeake Bay. Home in MD. My parents will feed and water you if y'all go!
ReplyDeleteAre you JOKING ME??? These are amazing. Something in focus would not have captured the surprise and strangeness of this.
ReplyDeleteLove those heart pounding moments! How exciting! Never seen a fox. Mostly coyotes, skunks and racoons in my neck of the woods. L.A. isn't known for wildlife, at least not that kind!
ReplyDeleteI'm jealous! ;)
Amazing photo of the fox! I too love these moments and always think there is some special meaning behind these encounters....when I was living in Santa Fe a bobcat once walked right up to my window and looked me right in the eye!
ReplyDeletei love looking through all of your pictures. they tell beautiful stories. x
ReplyDeleteWell I think those photos are still pretty cool! And I do like the birthday month principle. My family and I call it "the birthday festival" and string it out for two weeks or so- but a month is certainly better!
ReplyDeletethat is so neat! how appropriate! between you, your mom, and mischa and the pair, that makes for a whole lotta foxes on one beach!
ReplyDeletehope your mom has a fantastic birthday month and feels super loved!
Wow, foxes on the beach?! I never thought of such a thing although we have dingos on the beach in Australia! They may not be the pictures you would have chosen to take, but I really like them, very arty with a fun story. :)
ReplyDeletehow incredible!
ReplyDeletelike the pics ofit even though there blurry
ReplyDeletemagical!
ReplyDeleteSomehow the fact that the photos aren't perfectly centered and focused really conveys the feeling of excitement and what it must have been like to be "out-foxed"! 8-)
ReplyDeleteFoxy!
ReplyDeleteIn ancient Rome, foxes were considered fire demons because of their red coats. You managed to capture that fiery spirit very well.
ReplyDeletei'm a nature nut! one afternoon we had a robin, a chipmunk, a rat, and a butterfly on our patio in a one-hour span and i was captivated. thanks for sharing this fun animal encounter!
ReplyDeletePerhaps of all our untamed quadrupeds, the fox has obtained the widest and most familiar reputation.... His recent tracks still give variety to a winter's walk. I tread in the steps of the fox that has gone before me by some hours, or which perhaps I have started, with such a tip-toe of expectation as if I were on the trail of the Spirit itself which resides in the wood, and expected soon to catch it in its lair.
ReplyDeleteHenry David Thoreau - 1842
No way, I bet they were just way excited to see you! They're probably Design*Sponge readers and wanted to compliment you on your "Fantastic Mr. Fox" post.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it funny? I saw them on the same day that post went up.
ReplyDeleteAnd also- Elliot reads my blog! Boys read my blog! I'm so cooooool!!!!
ReplyDeleteWow that flash of burnt umber fur!
ReplyDeleteYour post reminds me of the poet Ted Hughes and his relationship with foxes - how the fox actually became a representation of his creative spirit.
One night, while he was in college studying English lit, he dreamed vividly of a severely burned fox saying, " Stop this - you are destroying us". He was so shaken by this dream - it was what made him become a poet. He wrote a fox poem shortly after called The Thought Fox: http://www.richardwebster.net/tedhughes.html
Anyway - longwinded way of saying - I think spotting a fox is always a good sign.
I actually think these would be super-cool printed on canvas as a tryptic. The blurriness looks artsy!
ReplyDeleteMy only fox sighting was on a work trip to London. I was alone and staying in an unfamiliar area, and there were very few restaurants around. I had a really surreal time getting some take-away for dinner, and when I finally left, headed out into the rain, I turned a corner and a dog outside a shop starting freaking out. There was a fox just standing there, staring at us. After 30 seconds or so it darted down an alley and disappeared. It was just the weirdest night, no doubt because I was massively jet-lagged!
how exciting! and they seem like they are playing with you!
ReplyDeleteCharged? Wow. Playfully charged, I hope. What an amazing experience.
ReplyDeleteI love foxes! one of my favorite animals... nice pics even with the blurrines... ;)
ReplyDeleteI love these photos! I was once at work and hiding down in the corner of the garden to take a break from pruning and sitting so still. Next thing I knew a red fox ran into my leg as it was being chased by a blue bird. Total fairy tale moment.
ReplyDeleteI had to comment on the birthday month principle (although I do think the fleeting fox photos are fantastic too).
ReplyDeleteI too, operate under the birthday month principle. Anything that happens for two weeks before my birthday, and two weeks after, is FOR my birthday. What can I say? I really like to celebrate!
So envious - the foxes are just beautiful. And on the beach?! I think the 'action' shots rock - really capture their energy and general madness! Jen x
ReplyDeleteI agree! I think the photos are perfect this way!
ReplyDelete