Tom the Turkey looks pretty grumpy today. Not entirely sure why. 😉 From my family to yours, we wish you a very happy Thanksgiving! Thank you for following me. I truly appreciate you taking the time to look at my photos and hope you enjoy them.
Fall foliage at Leavenworth Creek
For some reason I didn’t do a very good job of sharing the fall foliage pics I captured a couple of months ago. Here is one to catch up a bit. Taken the third week of September on Guanella Pass in Colorado. It was rainy and overcast but that allowed for some soft, even light. As my son and I descended the pass, we stopped at this popular spot. I setup my tripod, put on a neutral density filter and slowed my shutter speed way down. This allowed the waters of the creek to blur and give them a smooth appearance.
The Gray Ghost on the hunt
During the winter we see more and more of these on the Great Plains. Northern Harriers are lots of fun to watch as they skim the surface of fields, hunting for a meal. They are tough to capture pictures of as they are so fast and fly very low to the ground.
This particular male, a Gray Ghost, gave me a couple nice passes recently. I was shooting into the sun so that made for a tough exposure but the images came out pretty good. Taken at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge near Denver, Colorado.
Pronghorn buck slows down to have its picture taken
One of my favorite creatures of the plains. They usually aren’t particularly cooperative, preferring to keep their distance from humans (probably wisely so). They have extraordinary eyesight allowing them to spot you long before you see them and of course they are lightning fast. Thankfully, this handsome fellow was less intimidated by me than most and gave me a nice pose before running off.
Sometimes mistakenly called antelope, their closest relatives are actually giraffes and okapi. It is believed Pronghorn developed their extraordinary speed when the now extinct American Cheetah was a threat. They are in fact the fastest land animal in the Western Hemisphere and second in the world only to the Cheetah.
They can sprint at speeds up to 60mph and run for extraordinarily long distances at slower speeds. That speed and endurance continues to come in handy for escaping the threats of today – coyotes, wolves and of course man.
Return of the Snowy Owl?
It was almost exactly two years ago that my son and I were on a photo drive and we spotted this odd, white clump of “snow” on a piece of oil equipment. As we went by, I realized what it was and became absolutely giddy. That day and then again a week later I was able to get some images of it. None of the pictures were extraordinary but the encounter itself was amazing as they rarely make it this far south to Colorado.
I was just reading an article that says that indications are that they may once again come a good ways south this winter. I can only hope! I’ll definitely be looking. For those interested, see here.
Battling Bison bulls
Kind of a fun scene to come across at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge near Denver, Colorado recently. Two American Bison bulls were having a bit of a disagreement and got into a tussle. Given that each of these guys weighs more than 1,000 pounds, it probably would not be wise to get between them and try to break it up. 😉
These massive animals were hunted to the brink of extinction in the 1700s and 1800s with as few as 750 reported by 1890. Their numbers have since rebounded with about 500,000 now living on public and private lands.
Great Horned Owl stays focused on the photographer
Boy, it has been far too long since I have had a decent chance to photograph one of these. My last couple visits to this pretty lady’s area have been unfruitful. I’m not worried though as these guys are masters of camouflage and I could have walked right under her and not seen her. I’ll have to give it another try here soon as I am missing seeing them. Taken in Adams County, Colorado.
If you love raptors like this owl, check out my 2018 Raptor calendar here.
Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep lamb learns to walk on water
Who knew they could do this, eh? 😉 Most of the herd started on the opposite of the South Platte River from me but it wasn’t long before they crossed over. The rams and ewes waded across with out creating a splash but the little ones were not too keen on the depth and speed of the water so they tended to bound across pretty quickly. I was lucky enough to freeze the action of this one as it leaped. Lighting was horrendous with deep shadows but it was fun to see.
Golden Eagle in hot pursuit of a meal
I found this good friend of mine in one of its favorite spots in the Colorado foothills this past weekend. It spent more than an hour sitting, waiting and observing but finally it started to get anxious and then took off like a bat out of hell. It flew at mach one down the hill (this image), across the highway and hit the ground hard and fast attacking a prairie dog. That final action was too far away to get pics of and, unfortunately for the eagle, it missed on its strike. Nevertheless, it was an impressive display.
These eagles are one of the largest and fastest raptors in North America. With wingspans that can exceed seven feet across and capable of speeds to 200mph, they are nothing short of impressive. It is little wonder that they are the most common official national animal in the world with Albania, Germany, Austria, Mexico, and Kazakhstan all choosing it to represent them.
Lonely tree reflections in the fog
Taken last Friday, thick fog settled in along the St Vrain Creek and adjacent ponds and lakes. It made for some pretty cool scenes although it caught me off guard as just to the west where I started my photo tour on that day it was perfectly clear.
I converted this photo to black and white although given the filtered light and fog, it almost wasn’t necessary as even with the naked eye the scene was very monochromatic. Taken at St. Vrain State Park, Colorado.