Coming off a natural high after spending a week at Camp Quest Arizona. Spiritually, I’m doing great. Physically, not so much. Every year recovery takes a wee bit longer. I missed a 4^th of July party and opted to spend time with Nancy in front of the TV. We enjoyed a dinner of hot dogs, pork and beans, and potato salad. I could hear the fireworks, but the Lazy Boy was so comfortable…After a bit, I had to get up and walk. I like to walk four miles every day, and this time of year it’s best to walk after dark. I usually start at 9 P.M. and it takes a bit less than 90 minutes. This time, I took my Panasonic Camera. Normally, I only have my phone camera, but the last couple of days my headlamp was illuminating Wolf spiders that were carrying their babies on their back. I really needed the camera that has an optical zoom so I could hopefully capture momma spider and her babies. I’ve included one of the best pictures, but it really doesn’t do it justice. When wearing a headset, the Wolf spider eyes reflect very brightly. The momma spiders have a few dozen extra eyes and the effect is awesome when I’m wearing a headset. I’ve been trying to capture the image on the iPhone camera, but the effect was disappointing. Also, the momma spider would jump into her hole while I was setting up the shot.

On the fourth, I took my Panasonic Lumix camera with me and captured a few photos using the optical zoom capability and the built-in flash. It made the walk take a bit longer but now I get a chance to share a great picture of a momma Wolf spider. I saw at least 5 momma spiders with babies.

Today, the 6^th, I didn’t see any piggy backing baby spiders, but I did see a lot of little spiders on the trail. Perhaps the babies are now on their own.