Jazda s Rangerom Tomášom

Polly sa zobudila v autobuse pri východe slnka. Ranger v hnedej uniforme otváral svoju kanceláriu. Volal sa Tomáš. Usmial sa na ňu. "Poď sa so mnou povoziť."

Polly woke up on the bus at sunrise. A ranger in brown was opening his office. His name was Tomas. He smiled at her. "Come ride with me."

Polly sa viezla v jeho aute. Tomáš bol rangerom už štrnásť rokov. Šoféroval pomaly. Často zastavoval.

Polly rode in his truck. Tomas had been a ranger for fourteen years. He drove slowly. He stopped often.

Prvá zastávka bola na mokrej lúke. Tomáš hľadal stopy po medveďoch. "V júni tu rastú kornútovky. Medvede ich jedia."

The first stop was a wet meadow. Tomas looked for bear signs. "In June, corn lilies grow here. Bears eat them."

Polly sa naklonila k oknu. Kornútovky boli malé zelené výhonky.

Polly hopped to the window. The corn lilies were small green spears.

Auto stúpalo. Vzduch sa ochladzoval. Na zákrute cesty Tomáš ukázal. Na skale sedel sokol sťahovavý. Polly sa naňho pozrela. Sokol sa zrazu zrútil zo skaly a zmizol.

The truck climbed. The air got cooler. At a turn in the road, Tomas pointed. A peregrine falcon sat on a rock. Polly looked at it. The falcon dropped off the rock and was gone.

"Sokoly hniezdia na útesoch," povedal Tomáš. "Tento rok máme šesť párov."

"Falcons nest on the cliffs," Tomas said. "We have six pairs this year."

Polly sledovala, ako sokol zložil krídla, aby sa vrhol dolu. Chcela si to vyskúšať.

Polly watched how the falcon folded its wings to dive. She wanted to try it.

Neskôr Tomáš vošiel do lesa. Vrátil sa s kovovou nádobou. "Niekto sa pokúsil zakopať túto medveďu odolnú krabicu."

Later, Tomas walked into the woods. He came back with a metal can. "Someone tried to bury this bear-proof box."

Na poludnie dorazili na Olmsted Point. Polly videla veľký výhľad. Tenaya Lake ďaleko dole. Half Dome zozadu. Sivé hory v diaľke.

At noon they reached Olmsted Point. Polly saw a big view. Tenaya Lake far below. Half Dome from behind. Grey mountains in the distance.

"Väčšina ľudí to prejde," povedal Tomáš. Nalial si trochu kávy do šálky. Položil šálku na palubnú dosku. "Zostaň chvíľu."

"Most people drive past this," Tomas said. He poured a little coffee in his cup. He set the cup on the dashboard. "Stay a while."