On 17 August 2016, I drove my painfully noisy vehicle for just a very short distance, as far as a local park. Each year, I tend to visit the area to look for any mushrooms, and I knew that I just couldn't miss a quick visit. Found a few fungi to photograph, including this little cluster, so I was happy. August is reckoned to be the peak of the fungi season here..

Later, I remembered that I had found mushrooms in a different part of the park in other years, so two days later, I risked an even shorter drive to see what I could find. Everywhere was very dry and I saw quite a few shrivelled fungi. Luckily, I came across a few that were fresher and worth photographing.

At the end of this second walk, I sat at a picnic table near the parking lot and kept an eye on all the large holes in the ground, made by Richardson's Ground Squirrels. I was just about ready to give up, when I happened to look down close to my feet and there was one solitary 'Gopher' three or four feet away from me. They are such fun to watch.