Strange Sound

I will never forget that sound, I had never heard it before and I have not heard it since. Weird.

One of my favorite things to do at the ranch in the early spring is to head up the road to the ridge with my coffee and dog to watch the sun rise. One morning several years ago, I woke up just before dawn and quietly made the coffee (trying not to wake up the kids). I poured a large amount of aromatic, caffeine infused goodness into an insulated mug, put the harness and leash on my dog and quietly slipped out the front door. The morning was crisp, the pine scented cold air filled our lungs and put a spring into our step. We headed up the barely visible road in the morning twilight quickly making our way up the hill fearing the sun would rise before we got to the ridge. We were happily climbing the hill, enjoying the outdoors when we heard the sound. Several things happened at once. My dog and I both froze, not even breathing. All the birds in the trees all around us 360 degrees as far as we could see took to the skies in fright. It was a few seconds before I consciously drew a breath, my mind was trying to understand what I had just heard and my body was afraid to move. Without moving my head, I looked down at my dog, who's eyes were rolled up looking at me as if she was afraid to move too! I very slowly and quietly stepped backwards, turned around and started creeping back to the cabin, followed closely by my dog who's tale was tucked in tight and her eyes were as wide as they would open. When we were within about 50 feet of the cabin we broke into a run and did not turn around until the door was closed behind us. I had spilled my coffee too, it was disappointing on many levels. The one thing I could not figure out, (have never been able to figure out)is what was the noise, where did it come from and what made it?? I have not described it yet, because that is the most difficult part of this story. It did not sound like an animal, a human or a machine. It was almost musical, but seemed to be coming from everywhere. It only lasted a few seconds before all the birds in what seemed like the world were screaming into the skies. My heart is racing just reliving this story right now, it was startling to say the least. The memory kept me from making another trip up the ridge to see the sunrise for a long time and now the trees have grown so tall that my view is blocked. The pictures in this slideshow were taken just a few weeks before this incident and they are all I have left of my morning coffee regimen.