Deckster

When we arrived at Orca View Cottage about a week ago, the owner warned us there had been an otter living under the deck, but that she may have been successful in encouraging it to move on.

However, since, we've often seen otters swimming by, and one day we had one right up on the deck at our patio door. It surprised us so we didn't manage to get a picture, but he did catch our interest, and we named him Deckster.

An investigation revealed where he was able to get in under the deck, and that when inside, we wouldn't be able to see him. He had found the perfect den.

One morning about 8AM, a couple of days later, we saw him heading for the water. Marlene managed a picture, but only of his hind end. Once again he peaked our interest, so it was time to lay in wait and get a good picture.

Last evening, we waited until dark, but didn't see him come in. We turned on the outside light with the hopes of extending our surveillance period, but to no avail.

Each time we had seen him, it was the morning, so we hatched a plan to wake early, shortly after dawn. Then quietly get into position with cameras in hand, flush the toilet and make other noise to flush him out. It seemed like a pretty good plan to us, but Deckster didn't buy in. So needless to say, it didn't work. On top of that, there was a power outage and after 10 minutes or so, we were running out across the deck to the barbeque to heat some old coffee. On route while going in and out, I even did a little jig on the deck as a last resort. At that point, we were convinced he hadn't stayed under the deck overnight, and that we'd need to try another day.

When the power came back on, we made some fresh coffee, and settled down to read and have a quiet and relaxing morning. About 8AM, we heard some noise outside, got our cameras ready just in case, and sure enough, a minute later, Deckster stuck his nose out. He checked around to be sure it was safe, then popped out from underneath looking and sniffing around.

He made his way across the grass yard, onto the stone beach, and into the water while being photographed and videoed. Here's our star in action:

So far, Deckster has been alone at each sighting, leaving us hoping he will bring a partner home and make things even more interesting.

Click here for the next story in this series:
http://travellingwithsteveandmarlene.blogspot.ca/2018/04/the-sweet-and-sorrow.html