Travels with an Old Man-1

I am out of school for potato harvest and decided to spend the day enjoying the outdoors.  I loaded my fly rod, shotgun, chain saw and camera and headed out at 5:45 in the dark.  About 10 miles out of town it started raining very hard and I almost turned around and headed home but then I thought, "If you wait for rain to stop, you may miss a life-time of experiences."

The rain had slowed to a misty wetness as I pulled into Sand Creek Pond #4.  The planters were hungry and I was enjoying them when other fishermen showed up.  The giggling told me some were teenage girls.  They went down the pond and soon the giggles turned into excited shouts - they were catching fish also. 

I found out that a young man was a very smart young man and knows exactly what to do with young women - pick them up at 6:15 in the morning and take them fishing.  They will never forget you.  Actually he and one of the girls are students of mine.  Here he is will a large rainbow - the girls also caught large fish.

The rain had subsided as I left the Sand Creek Ponds with the trees just starting to change into their fall colors.

I headed across the high mountain desert successfully finding sharp-tailed and sage grouse.  This is Split Butte, one of the dozens of buttes caused by volcanic eruptions.

As I climbed higher the clouds had dropped around the shoulders of Fog Butte - aply named.  There I was able to get a load of fire wood.

As I climbed higher and did some scouting for deer and elk, I found beautiful pockets of colored aspen.

After experiencing a sudden down pour, I found this Swainson's hawk trying to dry out its feathers in the wind.

What a great day spent in the wildness of Idaho.

Harvest sunrise

Harvest dust creates great sunrises and sunsets. 

A lot of bull

Yesterday afternoon I decided to go to Camas National Wildlife Refuge to try to locate some migrating avocets, but got side tracked by two bull moose.  I saw one about a quarter of a mile away and decided to stalk it and see if I could get some good pictures.  Before the day would be over there would be a lot of bull out there.

The one bull moose soon turned into two bulls and I watched them heading in a general southwest direction.  I located a small knoll with a few sage brush on it and made my way there.  At time the bullrush was so tall only their antlers would be showing.  When this happened I would work to another sagebrush to try to intercept them.

Their eyesight is not very good - probably a good thing when you realize how cute the females are - but their smelling and hearing are excellent.  I tried to move as silently as I could when I needed to move.  But here the two act like they smell something funny.

But they continuely move closer to me.  The larger one is suspious and moves away while the smaller one continues working his way toward me.

I start to get very nervous when he gets about 30 feet from me and I can hear the crunching of the veggies as he eats.  Finally he hears the camera and smells me; comes to attention and decides to leave.

He flashes me as he heads back to the other bull, who has decided to tak a nap.

When he gets to the larger bull he starts eating.  Then I realize there is a bull elk in the background watching this whole bachelor party, but not willing to join in.  You can see him if you enlarge the picture by clicking on it.

It was quite a bachelor party with a lot of bull there.  With two bull moose, a bull elk, a bull human and lots of bullrushes, I even saw a little bs come from the smaller bull moose as he got too close to me.  Just another wild day in Idaho.

Busy Summer

Oh, what a busy summer.  Two weeks without a post, so I am sneeking one in.  Guiding fishermen, fishing with family, getting in wood, working on a grant, keeping the garden weedless (almost), attending grandkids activities, attending weddings and building a few things keeps be busy from before sunrise to after sunset.

Someone asked me what I do in my spare time; I replied "sleep, if I can find the time."  But I always manage to find a few things to photograph.

Coming back from guiding a fisherman, I discovered a family of Mountain Bluebirds and stopped for a half hour to work them.  Here the dad sits in all his royal colors, trying to stay between me, the intruder and his family.

Meanwhile, Mom is catching bugs, killing them by pounding them on a hard surface and then feeding one of the four babies begging for food.

Occasionally Dad leaves his command post, catches bugs and feeds the hungry bottomless pits.

All this work is so hard, he appears to take a nap - not really - he is actually scratching an itch. 

And as I go to leave, he gives me a wave good-bye.

What a great way to enjoy the Wilds of Idaho.