Have you ever heard that witty comment, “It’s hard to soar with the eagles when you’re surrounded by turkeys”?

I guess you could say I felt a little bit like that on my hike the other day; everywhere I went I seemed to run into mobs of wild turkeys — and they weren’t too thrilled to see me, either.

And then, after I was finally back on the pavement near my house and felt certain there were no more large birds to be seen, I spotted this guy, hanging out at the very back of the school yard:

Not exactly an eagle, but I’ve always had a great fondness for egrets.  Even ones that seem to be a little bit lost.

I know there are at least a couple of bald eagles nesting at Lake Natoma.  I’ve even caught sight of them once or twice, too far away to capture with my camera.  It’s a rare pleasure to be able to spot them.  So, no eagles for me today.

But hey, it could have been a lot worse…