Another great campsite

©2014 Lydia Hinshaw

A beautiful afternoon by the river

Five raccoons foraging on the far shore

A red fox visited our site

Chipmunks stalked us

 ASHTON, ID -- Riverside Campground in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest was our Saturday night stop.
 Our site was on a small bluff above Henry's Fork of the Snake River, prime trout-fishing territory.  All of our neighbors sported waders, fly rods and all the required gear.  We did not see any of them catch a fish, however.
 As we sat in the sun by the river, one of the fishermen pointed out a family of five raccoons on the opposite shore.
  After firing off a number of frames of these guys, we were startled to see a slinky dark animal barely six feet from our feet. He darted under a rock before either of us could get a camera up and the rock had an escape hatch on the other side.  We never saw him again.  Further research convinced us this animal was a mink, as that is the description that most closely fits.
 Later we adjourned uphill to our campsite to enjoy a fire.  We soon had to close all the doors to the Magic Bus because a couple of chipmunks were threatening to move in.  They provided some more exercise for my camera.
 Finally, as we relaxed by the fire, Prince Charming whispered to me to look behind me, slowly.  Barely six feet away was a red fox.  I tried to lift my camera as slowly as possible, but he turned and trotted off.  I did catch a few frames as he headed up the road.
 That was about enough wildlife excitement for one evening.  Once again, the day was lovely until the sun went down, and then the temperature dropped.  It was 26 degrees when we woke up, so we did the increasingly familiar drill:  Break camp quickly and head to someplace warm for breakfast.