Felberpalooza, Day 2 part 1: Grouseland

After the end of the festivities for Day 1 of the Felberpalooza Adam headed off to the airport to fly back to fabled Hollywood and the rest of us returned to fabled Grouseland, where we had a great time looking through Murray's 6" Skyquest Dobsonian. But soon weariness overcame us, and the Day's Inn crew (me, Ann, Dee, Cooper, George, George's Sister, and George's Sister's Husband) retired to our hotel. We sought out what passed for a hotel bar - a disco of sorts, probably 10'x30', with bad, blaring music and a group of what we eventually determined were women dancing with each other on the dance floor. (Conversation: "I think those are nuns." "No, I'm pretty sure they're not nuns.")

We survived the disco relatively intact and turned in for the night, vowing to meet at the hotel restaurant at 9:00 (or was it 9:30?) for breakfast. And we were as good as our word, which is more than we could say for the breakfast buffet. But food was not our primary concern on this day. Our plan was to return to Grouseland for healthful outdoor activities.

By the time we got to Grouseland, having first bade Cooper goodbye and safe travel,the race scheduled for the morning had already begun. We hung out, waiting for the race to wrap up, reading Adam's book and eating Dee's Moravian cookies and admiring Thicket the Owl in his coop in the back.

My camera can see through a wire enclosure with ease. Thicket had been slightly spooked by Taylor, a visiting dog who is also apparently a bird enthusiast.
A portrait of the photographer as prey.

George. This is a man who knows the meaning of the word "littoral". Note the Kevin Kline-esque physique.
George's Sister's Husband and George's Sister.

Eventually the women-folk (Ann, Dee, George's Sister) along with me* and George's Sister's Dog Cody went on a brief hike, during which I managed to take no pictures whatsoever. But it was beautiful. Don't take my word for it - head on out to Grouseland and see for yourself!
I think more pictures were taken of Cody, George's Sister's Dog, than of anyone else that weekend, including the guest of honor. Notice the intense, focused look on Cody's face. This was shortly before Cody propped himself up on his front paws, still staring intensely at the sky, and began to growl. But what was he growling at?
Oh, it was a hawk. In the sky. Very, very far away. I took this photo mainly on faith - I saw the hawk briefly, lost it, and took a high-resolution photo so I could scrutinize it later. Do you see the hawk? Cody did. Look, I've circled it for you.

Not good enough? OK, here's a closeup of the circled area, with a treetop included for reference. See it now?

Eventually the race wrapped up, the racers cooled down, and Murray fitted me* and Ann with helmets and mountain bikes in preparation for the major event of the afternoon...the Pike 2 Bike ride with future congressman Tony Barr! But that is a story for a future post.

*This is gramatically correct. Look it up.