One of the volunteers saw me trying to photograph Mason from a distance, so she brought him over so I could get a closer look. After telling the crowd that he could be very temperamental with the staff (actually once ripped a hole in her leg) – but adored his hens – she asked if I wanted to try holding him, but warned me he might object. I took him, and he was fine with it and both the volunteers there were amazed, saying I was the first outsider who had ever been able to hold Mason.

I hate to post this picture, one, because I can’t stand pictures of me, and two, because Mason isn’t very sharp in it. I don’t know what was going on with the D850 and Tim that day (although in this one the shutter speed is far too slow), but he tried so hard to get a picture of the two of us, I felt I had to include it (plus I like the story ;-)). And thanks to Isabel for the idea of the title!

*****

Mason, a buff laced Polish chicken, was found on the Appalachian Trail near the Mason-Dixon Line by a hiker named Heather Bolint, who carried and camped with Mason through three states and over 42 miles, then brought him to safety at Poplar Spring. He was found in an area with no farms or houses nearby, and it's a mystery how he got there.

Pondering Mason, posted earlier: