end of fall

I waited at the top of the mountain side as the herd of mothers and their lambs easily manoeuvred their way along. Soon a few crested the edge following the last of the fall leaves. They seemed not startled by me hunched down and one began to make her way straight over. I was crouched beside the truck so it wasn’t me she was headed for. With winter approaching fast here, the first pass of a salt truck that morning now sprinkled the wheel wells. Many creatures have come to utilise this mineral deposit along roadways as a means of nourishment during the harsh winter months and when a vehicle slows or stops, it’s almost as if a dinner bell has rung out. I climb back into the truck as she reaches the side and more stop atop the cliff edge, look and then follow her lead and make their way to taste the small sign of a winter feed.