Originally posted by Skipjack Joe
Since we're on the subject of creatures that make your flesh crawl I would like to talk about the tarantula.
I had seen about 2 of them up until that early october day in 1983. We were driving through the portion of the desert around Catavina when we first
noticed the first one lumbering across the highway. We pulled over, got down on our bellies, and watched it's slow robotic movements as it crossed the
road. Back in those days, a tarantula could cross the road before another car even appeared on the horizon.
We eventually moved on and started to see them everywhere. They became so familiar that we could spot a dark shape from a distance and recognize it as
a tarantula. Each sighting was of a solitary individual. They were never in a group. Altogether, we must have seen about 25-30 tarantulas over an area
of maybe 100 miles of road.
Since that peculiar day I have seen 3 tarantulas in the last 32 years. One in Milpitas, CA, one in Loreto, and one in Guatemala.
I know they're fairly common, but to us this was a special day. That's what's great about the peninsula - it seems that every day has something
special to offer. |