The gray fox sounds were amazing- and unexpected. We have a friend who lives several blocks away (but well within city limits) who has foxes living in her wooded yard.
I have loved and observed birds since I was a little girl. However, even into my 50's, I never saw an owl. Spotting (and photographing) one became my amateur birding mission! I did everything wrong at first, and learned slowly. However, even though I have spotted many now, each sighting is awesome and thrilling! One note, even though owls are nocturnal, they don't "disappear" in the daytime. They are still around, just hiding well- mostly. This young Barred owl hopped up onto a branch in front of me at 10 in the morning!