Create Our World

 

Standing in front of one of the wolf cages at the California Wolf Center.

“The California Wolf Center is a 501(c)(3) non-profit education center committed to increasing public awareness and understanding of the importance of all wildlife by focusing on the history, biology, behavior, and ecology of the gray wolf.”

California Wolf Center.

My new friend, Nicole volunteers at the nearby California Wolf Center near Julian, California.  She says I could feed live wolves and they always need help, so we take a visit for the day.

Wolf Facts (from the California Wolf Center Website):

*Wolves are much shyer than imagined and will avoid humans as much as possible.

*Wolves live about 7 years in the wild and 12 years in captivity.

*Wolves trot at about 5 miles per hour and can run up to 35 miles per hour for short periods of time.

*Wolves mainly die because of human activity.  Starvation & wounds from territorial aggression cause some deaths.  Parvo and mange also kill a significant number of wolves.

*Wolves are pack animals.  Usually there is an alpha male and alpha female that lead the pack.  They are the most likely to breed.  There is a ranking system on down from the beta wolf to omega wolf.

*Packs can range from 2 to 36 wolves.

Helen chops up the frozen chicken.

Feeding the Wolves.

Nicole and I show up with about 5 or 6 other volunteers.  I stick my hand up to volunteer for feeding the wolves and I am paired with Helen.  Helen has volunteered at the Center for a few years and knows what she is doing.  She shows me the ropes as we get out 80lbs of frozen chicken and 60lbs of frozen bison.  We have to chop up the meat so that we can spread it around the large cages.  This helps avoid any fighting over the food.  

Wolves want nothing to do with humans and avoid me when I am in the cages.

Swinging the axe brings me back to my days of living outdoors, except this time frozen bison meat or chicken legs are flying as opposed to wood chips.  

In the cages the wolves, keep their distance from Helen and I and there is no danger of us being harmed.  The Center has never had a wolf injure a human nor a wolf escape in what I believe is 20 years that the Center has existed.

Nicole scrubs a wheelbarrow.

Scrubbing Cages.

After we are finished feeding the wolves, we have other less interesting tasks like scrubbing out some cages that were used to house some wolves temporarily, scrubbing wheelbarrows, and washing some tarps.  

All in all it was an interesting day.  It was enjoyable to learn about the wolves and be as close to them as I was.  There are also caring volunteers and workers at the Center that were very welcoming.  

If you live in the San Diego area and would like to volunteer, click here to contact the Center for details.

After the Wolf Center, Nicole and I stop by the scenic town of Julian, famous for their pies.  This post is coming soon, after my HOW TO post tomorrow.  How to be the best House guest ever.

Create Our World.

Ben

“It is not the years in your life that count but the life in your years.” – Adlai Stevenson

My new friend, Nicole in Temecula.

“If you do nothing unexpected, nothing unexpected happens.” – Fay Weldon

Meet Nicole.

I met Nicole through Couchsurfing.org.  She lives in Temecula, California and is housesitting at a very large house for a few days.  Some might call it a mansion.  It has a mechanical gate, pool, hot tub, guest house, and an extra water faucet over the stove.  Nicole is a traveler and fellow artist herself.  

She thinks that this would be a great place for me to stay for a few days.  

Gimme Nicole: The name of Nicole’s Etsy Shop.

Nicole is very into clothing.  She makes clothing.  She also buys vintage clothing and sells it on the website, Etsy.  Below is a short video about Nicole.  If you are into fashion, vintage clothing, cool photography, or want to watch a short video, you should check it out!

Nicole and I take lots of photographs together and the next few days will be about our other adventures.  We volunteer at a Wolf Center, visit touristy Julian, take Walmart photographs, and try to fix a washing machine.  Stay tuned!

Create Our World.

Ben

“That whisper you keep hearing is the universe trying to get your attention.” – Oprah Winfrey

Heading to meet a new friend in Temecula, CA.

“There is the risk you cannot afford to take and there is the risk you cannot afford not to take.” – Peter Drucker

Heading to Wine Country.

Not Napa Valley, but Temecula, of course.  I met Nicole through Couchsurfing and she will be housesitting a huge house that she thinks would be perfect for me to rest my bones.  Temecula is about 56 miles away.  Matt helps me get a sign going and drops me off at the nearby Route 15 north.

Chad with his newly washed truck.

Meet Chad.

After 45 minutes or so, a large shiny truck pulls up.  Chad steers this chariot.  Chad has thick black sunglasses and spiderweb tattoos on his muscled arms.  He is heading a little north of San Diego.  

Chad is Marine whom is stationed at Camp Pendleton nearby.  Today is his day off, but as we ride his sergeant calls and tells Chad to report to base.  He is going to have to put up huge tents.  “They take a few days to put up with 50 or 60 Marines.”

Chad wants to leave me at a good hitching exit which isn’t where he is going.  He had planned to get his truck washed, so he does and we wait together.  The sun is shining as usual here.  Chad takes me up to the next exit, which has an exit with a wide shoulder.  

Meet Tim.

After another 45 minutes of cars zipping past, Tim picks me up.  Tim is quiet and thoughtful.  Tim’s hair is salt and pepper gray with curls.  He takes an interest in me and my trip.  Tim isn’t going more than 20 miles either.

Meet Ben.

“Great name, dude!”  Ben likes my name.  I like his too.  Ben is a surfer with thick black sunglasses on and bleached blond hair.  Ben cleans pools for a living and is about to start his route.  He is trying to finish quickly so he can take his girlfriend to the San Diego Chargers store downtown before they close.  They have a playoff game soon.

Ben drives me to Fallbrook, which is as far as he can go and stay on his route.  Fallbrook is the Avocado Capitol of the World.  Ben tells me about the different types of avocados.  ”Avocados are one of the only foods that you can live on by itself.”  If you ever are on a desert island and have an avocado tree, you are set.  Avocados have good fat.

Ben gives me 3 avocados that he just picked from a tree this morning.  He gives me two oranges that he picked as well.  And his organic hummus, seeweed, lettuce, and cheese sandwich.  “What goes around comes around.”

Ben drops me off about 10 miles south of Temecula.  I am making good time today.  We say goodbye and I wolf the sandwich.  It is good.  The seeweed is very chewy.

Meet Josh.

Josh drives a huge black pick up truck.  A diesel.  Josh is wearing a black cowboy hat and talking on his cellphone.  He just nods when I say, “Temecula!”  I have to jump to hop in.

Josh is a Marine too.  He is headed to the mall in Temecula to get a summer cowboy hat.  His black hat is a winter hat.  ”Summer hats are made out of straw…”

Josh is from Arkansas and is stationed at Camp Pendleton.  He tells me that the base is one of the largest in the USA.  Josh also tells me about Temecula.  That is has really blown up since a casino came to town.

Josh drops me off at Carl’s Jr. a local fast food restaurant to wait for Nicole to come pick me up.  I am surrounded by mountains and can see vineyards in the distance.

Create Our World.

Ben

“Don’t be afraid your life will end; be afraid that it will never begin.” – Grace Hansen