Our snowstorm has me thinking about springtime and the warmer days and photo opportunities it brings.

Last year, COVID caused the Forest Service to shut down Mount Evans, preventing me from visiting these high-altitude denizens. I am hopeful that this year things will have improved enough that they will allow it to open.

So, for this image, I go back to Labor Day weekend 2019, the last opportunity I had to visit the rarified air of Mount Evans and the mountain goats. This handsome fellow was really quite the poser and gave me some nice captures as he looked toward the early morning sun.

While mountain goats have become a somewhat iconic symbol of Colorado wildlife, they actually are not native to the state. Six transplant operations from 1948 to 1972 brought 50 or so of them as game animals and tourist attractions. They now number in the thousands.

As we finally start the slow climb out of winter and begin to see temperatures rise, my mind is wandering and jumping ahead to late spring and summer above timberline.

One of the highlights is always a visit with the mountain goat herd on Mount Evans. They are awesome creatures and tons of fun to watch but, of course, it is the little ones that steal the show.

Oftentimes they are bounding around acting like “kids” but they do occasionally take a break, as was the case when this picture was taken on July 4, 2019. With its mom grazing nearby, this little one laid down and rested, looking quite cute as it looked at me.

Last year, the mountain was kept closed due to COVID in what was, in my opinion, a questionable decision. Hopefully this year the National Forest Service will allow visitors again and I can get in some much-needed time with these high-altitude residents.

This is the time of year when I normally get anxious to head to 14,000 feet and see the newborns so I am deeming this #MoutainGoatMonday.

Notice though that I say “normally get anxious.”

Traditionally, Memorial Day weekend or soon after Mount Evans opens up. Unfortunately, Colorado has decided to keep it closed until at least July 1 due to the coronavirus.

While there is a chance I might see a mountain goat somewhere else above timberline before then, it isn’t very likely. So, my annual mountain goat fix will have to wait and be filled by images like this one from last summer.

Just go for it!  Indeed, this little mountain goat kid had no problem doing just that.

While only a few months old, these little guys show no fear and are just as adept as their parents at handing the rocky terrain of their home. Taken on Independence Day at the top of Mount Evans in Colorado, this particular pair was very rambunctious on this morning.

They were constantly leaping from boulder to boulder, pushing, shoving and just having a grand time. It of course was highly entertaining to watch and looking at the pics now, I can’t help but be anxious to get back up there again. Of course it is four months or more away before the road even opens so I have a long wait.

Kind of hard not to say, “Awww” when you look at that face!

The mountain goat kids are always a big highlight of the spring and summer and always entertaining to photograph. They spend much of their time bounding around and playing with each other but every now and then they settle down. When they do, you can get some nice portraits of the little ones, like this capture.

Taken back on July 4th, it had just finished a rousing session of play with another kid. Taken on Mount Evans in Colorado.

What a poser! This handsome fellow looked fantastic yesterday at 14,000 feet and is very worthy my pic for #MountainGoatMonday.

The road to the top of Mount Evans will be closed after today so I knew if I wanted to see the mountain goats before next spring, it had to be now. My destination was set and I was greeted with some pretty nice weather given the altitude. At 40 degrees it was chilly but the wind was actually not that bad, a rarity up there.

Not truly goats, these handsome creatures are found from Alaska down to the Rocky Mountains of the United States. Found at high altitudes, they are sure-footed climbers and built to withstand the alpine areas that they typically inhabit.

Mountain goats are actually not native to the Centennial State. They were brought here over six transplant operations from 1948 to 1972 as game animals and as tourist attractions. Those 50 or so mountain goats grew to numbers in the thousands today.

Two mountain goat kids have a bit of a game of king of the mountain recently. The sun had just crested the horizon casting everything in a beautiful, golden glow. This pair took it as a sign to begin playing and they were a ton of fun to watch. Taken on Mount Evans in Colorado.

This mountain goat nanny seemed less than thrilled about the blustery winds atop its 14,000+ foot high home.

The last vestiges of its winter coat were holding on tightly and billowing in the wind behind it. Of course wind at that altitude is pretty much a given with few breaks and daytime temperatures consistently chilly if not cold, even in July.

Not long after I was on Mount Evans getting this picture, word came from Colorado Parks & Wildlife that they were having issues with people and the mountain goats. Bad human behavior including feeding the goats, getting way too close to the animals, trampling the alpine tundra, etc have all been witnessed lately. It is a shame and folks need to respect the creatures and the landscape up there!

With conditions finally improving in Colorado’s high country, I took advantage and headed to Mount Evans on Independence Day. As always, the highlight was the mountain goats and in particularly the new babies.

It is amazing how fast they learn to maneuver the rocky terrain and they are highly entertaining as they bound around. This little one was keen on jumping from rock to rock while its mom licked minerals from the ground below.

With the weather here in Colorado slowly starting to turn warmer, I can’t help but be anxious to return to all the places and critters of the high country. The mountain goats of Mount Evans are always a highlight and I always make it up there a few times each year.

They are so beautiful and the kids are cute and entirely entertaining. There are down times, such as this, taken last July around mid-morning. The kid had been playing with its friends for much of the previous two hours and finally decided it was time to take a break. A spot on the tundra among the wildflowers and boulders was a good place for them to lie and made for a nice capture.

Mountain Goats are actually not native to the Centennial State. They were brought here over six transplant operations from 1948 to 1972 as game animals and tourist attractions. Those 50 or so Mountain Goats grew to numbers in the thousands today.