A perfect end to a surprisingly good year...

On Monday, Linda had to work a little, so I took off by myself to a State Park nearby.
I have loved herps since I was a child, and in all of my 33 years I have never seen
a salamander in the wild....until I started hiking in Russian Gulch State Park.  Within
the first ten minutes, I flipped some rotten bark and found my first sallie.  Wow.  A Coastal
Giant!  I couldn't ask for more...but more I got!

Close up of the Giant






Big.


The park is loaded with loads of different mushrooms of all shapes, colors and sizes.


And the tiny little California Slender Salamanders were everywhere.






This is my favorite photo of the day.










As I was leaving I stopped to flip one more piece of bark right off the trail.  It revealed a gorgeous
little Oregon Ensatina.