Michael H. Thornton

For the last 15 years, I always try to go to Yosemite National Park at least once a year. On this April, 2008 trip with my daughter and girlfriend, we hiked to Vernal Falls. While the rest of the hiking party was traversing the mist trail alongside Vernal, I decided to sit out on a huge boulder which was surrounded by the fast moving Merced River fueled by snowmelt from higher elevations.

As a small number of people hanging out on the boulder dispersed, I became the center of interest of both a squirrel and this stellar jay. I’m sure that it was the hope of food tidbits and not my wonderful personality that was in their minds.

I started photographing both animals as they moved and hopped around the boulder, sometimes within a few feet of me and my camera. I caught this one portrait of the stellar jay as he paused briefly between his hurried movements.