First Sighting of the Year

Yesterday Amy and I went for our weekly trail run. About a half mile into it we came across a Western Diamond Back Rattlesnake. That is the first one of the year. I don't know if I have ever seen one this early in the year, and I know I have never seen one this active this early. It was 91 degrees here yesterday. It was strange to see my wife's foot about 6" from a rattle snake. He made plenty of noise and headed the other direction. I stopped and got him headed away from the trail. He wasn't very happy, but I was grateful to get to see him. About two feet from where the snake was I found a baby Desert Tortoise that I could have covered with a fifty cent piece. It was tiny. I generally don't like to handle them, but I wanted to get him away from the trail. I was afraid he would get smashed because he was almost impossible to see. Sorry no pictures. I was traveling light, and am a little concerned about ruining my new camera after my last fall.