adventures of the wooly marmot

Yesterday, Jodie (a rhino rookie) and I went hiking in Tumbler Ridge. It was a great day, although we were both soaked and freezing when we got back to the car because of both the hail and the fact that we couldn't resist playing in the snow on the ridge-top.

It's a three-hour drive back to Fort St. John from Tumbler. We got home around 9pm.

This morning, I went out and started my car and it was making an awful screeching noise so I figured it needed some oil. I drove down to the gas station and bought some, then popped the hood. Turns out it wasn't my engine screaming at all - it was a MARMOT! A big marmot! Under my hood!

As soon as it saw me open the hood, it scrambled way down into the middle of my car so that you could only see it's tail. I just stood there dumbly for a few minutes wondering how on earth I was going to get this marmot out of there. A few men that were filling their trucks noticed my confused look and came over to offer help. They thought I just didn't know where the oil went. They thought it was hilarious that there was a marmot under there and all wanted to help get it out so we spend 1/2 an hour in the shell parking lot, poking my marmot with a stick trying to scare it away. No luck. And I was going to be late for work.

So I closed the hood and drove out to base. It sounds cruel, I know, but the furry little guy survived a 3-hour drive in there yesterday.

When I got out to base, a few guys from the crew came out to help with the poking and the stupid thing still wouldn't leave.

So, I got in and drove away again - this time to park in some long grass hoping that he might feel more comfortable getting out into the grass than onto pavement. I left the hood open and scattered some crumbs around. By noon, he'd made his escape - probably into another car that was parked nearby :)

A marmot in his natural habitat:


And the marmot in his not-so-natural habit: