05/23/2020
Doe.
This was a fun day. I went up to Drippings Springs Natural Area for a short walk and to capture photos of the hummingbirds. (I have an uncountable number of photo of those little guys.) One of the on duty rangers noticed me capturing photos and offered to give me a tour of the area behind the visitor’s center where they lived. This area is fenced off and usually off-limits to the public, so I happily accepted the opportunity. The ranger took me down a path leading to an open, uncovered concrete pad with two tables. She stated that it was an area they occasionally used for gatherings. A little further down was an old cellar, dug into the mountain side back during the prohibition. It was used to hide alcohol from the man. Going some distance more, we came across an old home that had been gutted and abandoned. At the time, there were still construction items left inside. We spent some time around this building talking before she had to get back to her ranger duties and so left me to explore to my hearts content. I spent a few hours in the area wandering around snapping pictures before finally deciding to leave...That’s when I came across this female deer foraging behind the abandoned home. I instantly froze in place fearing I’d scare her away like all the other women in my life. I held up my camera, attached was the heavy Nikkor 200-500mm f/5.6 which quickly made its presence known. Snap! Snap snap snap!!! I managed to grab a handful of shots before she sauntered away and disappeared into the brush. On the way out, I snapped a few more pics of random critters that I encountered. On the way out, I ran into a gentleman and talked for quite awhile. I’d say around an hour. The Spring sun at this point had started burning my skin. (Yes. Black people burn.) We finished our chat and went our separate ways. @ Dripping Springs Natural Area, Organ Mountains
