Sitting out on the rock face and heating up in the morning sun, this young owl pants to keep cool.

Its sibling remained in the nest. But that was to have other advantages.

Being less adventurous means you can go into the shadows to pull out that half-rabbit (?) you were saving for later. Whatever the prey was, the owl chick worked at it leisurely in the comfort and privacy of the overhanging grass.

Sneaking one footfall at a time through the poison oak, I reached the crest of the rock face and slowly made my presence known to what I assumed was the mother. She took sharp notice but remained relaxed.

In the distance I picked out a dark shape that switched locations every so often. The distant dad? An interloper kept at bay?

Up above, a Bewick's Wren called relentlessly.

And a Spotted Towhee flew in right next to me and burst into full song as well.

Returning in the afternoon and determined to stay until after dark, I found the mother sheltering the exuberant youngster.

The chick stayed calm for about an hour until the light started to wane. All of a sudden it reared up, stretched its wings and started venturing out again.

My stakeout drew the attention of a passing group who then excitedly located the owls, lingered for a few minutes, and continued down the path.

Looking like a character from "The Dark Crystal," the young owl ambled down the cliff looking for trouble under the watchful eye of its parent.

Suddenly it leapt onto the rock face and tried to scramble up it.

Only to fall back down to its starting point and wander back to the adult.

As darkness settles in, the adult owl finally breaks into a long stretch and prepares for the night to come.

As darkness became nearly complete the owls became much more active. The youngster leapt past its mother and decided to try scaling the cliff face again.

I was on the edge of my seat watching the little owl scampering over the wall and causing little rock slides, barely attached and often slipping, with a 40 foot drop below. Here it hangs on for dear life.

All the while the mother flew to different vantage points to monitor the progress and coo softly, as if encouraging the chick. The little owl eventually scaled the entire wall and sat near the very top, 30 feet above the nest, before it got too dark to keep track of it.

I took a handheld two-second exposure to get this moody rendition of the mother when she flew through the moonlight and landed on an outcropping near me..

She then flew to a pine near the lagoon to start hunting. The lagoon was glass calm and the moonlight traced the contours of the hills into the water's surface.