September brings the changing of the color of leaves and for me, more notably, excursions to Colorado’s high country. Up there, the hormones are raging as the elk rut begins in earnest and the sound of bugling bulls is music to my ears.
This past weekend I initially struggled finding the big boys close enough to get good captures of but persistence paid off when I happened across the majestic 6 x 6 bull. He had himself a nice harem of a dozen or so cows and while some younger bulls lingered nearby, they weren’t any real competition for this guy.
As he moved the harem away from one of the interlopers, he held his head high, sniffing the air behind the females to determine if any were ready for mating. In doing so, he gave me this fantastic look.