We woke up a golden eagle this morning.

The adult bird was roosting on a short rock, only about six feet from where the road crests a ridge.

The eagle had its back to us as we came barreling out of the rising sun. When we were less than two truck lengths away its wings suddenly jerked down and the head spun around to stare at us.

I'm sure we woke it up.

We were gone before it could react anymore, assuming it was awake enough to do so.

I watched in the mirror. It stayed on its rock.

And there was a buck antelope on top of Bare Ring Butte.

There are no roads up the butte. The heeler sisters and I have made it an annual habit to stop on our route and climb the butte.

Ostensibly we are looking for antelope to classify on the southern side, but in reality it is just an excuse to get out and stretch the legs.

It's not much of a climb. Only about 109'. The top of the butte is rough white rock, presumably compressed ash from one of the Yellowstone caldera eruptions.

We park on the northwest side, and climb up in the shade. The buck was in the rocks at the very top.

I don't know why. Perhaps for the view, same as me.

After strolling the top and finding one other buck on the other side, we returned to the north side and dropped below the cliffs, sitting in the shade.

There was no breeze. When the heelers finally settled down and stopped panting, it was absolutely quiet.

Except for a cow mooing a complaint more than a mile to the north.

Total quiet.

Finally the maskless heeler came over to stare at me, and then the truck below, and then back at me.

"We're not lost, stupid. The truck is right there!"

I swear sometimes they must think me a total idiot.

But I'm not totally useless. Up until today, I'm sure the sisters just considered me good for opening doors and driving their truck around.

But today they discovered that, when you find the only flowing stream in the desert and all the places you can drink along the shoreline are filled with scummy algae, the human guy is pretty handy for cupping his hands and getting clean water from the middle of the stream.

Over and over and over again.