| 10th October 2004 |
 |
Low pressure lies to the
south with a front pushing slowly northwards over
France. A Scandinavian High brings gusty
easterlies across the UK, with some low dewpoints
indicating dry air - exactly the thing that we've
not seen much of in Winter of late! Conditions at 12z (1PM BST): |
I awoke early again today, thoughts of the wolves stopping me from dozing back to sleep. So, in the morning twilight I ventured out on deserted roads and headed west, with temperatures around 11C. There was a gusty easterly wind blowing and a distinct "whooshing" noise as I headed westwards along the M20.
By the time I reached the M25 things were starting to get busier, although it was still before 8 o'clock (looks like I wasn't the only earlybird today!). Along the M3, through Bracknell and onto the M4, then a trip along some country roads to Beenham - where I was greeted by a locked gate. So, that gave me time to head out on the footpath and admire the countryside....
View to the SE,
0850z (Beenham)
Around ten past nine the church bells rang and true to form there were some faint howls from the direction of the Trust, although the rustling of the trees almost drowned it out.
After a while John (a senior) arrived and unlocked things - and I soon found out that the wolves were still in their kennels; due to it being a handler's day things would be a little different from normal! After a few more people arrived we split up and went into the enclosures to scatter bits of hotdogs and raw eggs around, to give the wolves some fun! After we were all safely out of the enclosure the gates were opened and the wolves had their fun, starting with Kodiak and Kenai. Both wolves were far more active than normal, hunting out the small treats....
Kodiak
Duma and Dakota seemed less efficient at hunting out their sausages, but they got there in the end. It didn't help that they'd been put under piles of grass, in small holes etc!
Dakota sniffing out
a hotdog chunk
The Euros were the most interesting, though. Unusually, Lunca seemed skittish, although the other two were fine. As there are some sturdy saplings in their enclosure, it was decided to put some bits of food in the branches. Can wolves climb trees? Find out later!
After we'd all admired the wolves, it was back to the nitty gritty of the day. Unexpectedly for me there was to be a written test for all trainee handlers, as well as volunteers wishing to become trainees. It's all part of the Trust's attempts to become more organised, and as I don't mind exams I was intrigued as to see what the questions would be like. Before that it was time to clean the wolves' kennels, and this time I headed into the Euro kennels. As they'd not made any mess it didn't take long at all and it was back to the Obs Room for the next stage....
I know
there's a hotdog up there!
We had a talk by John and others, going into great detail about all sorts of things, from the progression system to how to put a collar on a wolf (and how to use a clip to keep it on, as Kenai had become expert at slipping out of hers!) We also heard about various anecdotes such as how Kodiak can be exceptionally fast if he wants to be, plus what to do in the case of emergencies (such as a wolf in imminent danger) - it was a very thorough chat.
Then it was time for the test - in my case, 10 questions about the Trust and wolves in general, ranging from easy to quite tricky! After completing the paper I headed outside and somehow found my way into Duma and Dakota's enclosure with the handlers (who didn't have a test today). The two wolves were frisky today, and pretty much everyone was pushed, nuzzled and nudged by them. As usual they seemed to enjoy themselves, and it was only after a quarter of an hour that I noticed none of the other test candidates had appeared - oops! So, I said my goodbyes to wolves and handlers then headed back to the Obs Room, where preperations were being made for the next event - going on a walk with the wolves around the nearby fields. Incidentally the sun felt pretty warm out of the wind, despite temperatures peaking at 14C today (which is dead on average for the time of year).
If in doubt, jump
at the tree and knock the hotdog out!
It was similar to usual, although we went into a field beyond the one that's normally used - and a good time was had by all. The only noteable thing was when Duma heard something in the bushes and tried hauling me over there to have a look!
With the sun sinking ever lower in the sky it was time to head for home - and by the time I'd crawled around the choked M25 and pulled up it was dusk. Another great day with the wolves and completely different to usual!
View to the NW,
1815z (Leysdown-on-Sea)
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