Special Animal Sitings

Yesterday one of our camping neighbors took a kayak out on the water near this campground and had the exceptional experience of having three dolphins show up right next to her kayak.  She was concerned that they might tip her, but she said that they just swam with her for a minute, one on either side of the kayak and one underneath, until they surfaced again and took off.  Needless to say, she was thrilled with this unplanned contact.  John and I can't top that experience, but this afternoon while walking on a nature trail we heard rustling in the shrubs next to the path, so stopped to see if we could see the animal making the noises.   It sounded rather large, and was moving with a slow and deliberate gait; we were fascinated to see it emerge from the foliage - a raccoon-sized armadillo, rooting around below the leaf cover for food!  It was not in the least intimidated by us, so by remaining quiet we were able to observe it very closely for several minutes (of course, neither of us had a camera with us, so we cannot post a photo here - darn!)  It was the first armadillo either of us has ever seen in the wild.  John noticed that under that armor, it is hairy - I don't know why that surprised me, but it did.   For more general info, check here: http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/armadillo/