Big Sky Country, indeed!

Spring in Wyoming

Another dramatic sunset sky

Usually about this time of day the more spectacular sky is the eastern one, where moisture builds up by day's end over the mountains.  The western sky is typically only interesting if there is cloud cover.

Painted Badlands

The Sunset is playing tricks again

These ultra low light rays might trick one into thinking it's early fall out at the cabin. It's mid-February, but I like the effect just the same.

Sunset Surprise

Wasn't quite expecting the sunset sky show tonight, but I'm certainly not complaining!!

Quarter-mile Shadows

These are the longest evening shadows I've seen at the cabin!

Full Moon + Alpenglow = Serenity

Let's see if this post... Posts. It's from my phone, and it's also a panorama.

Spun Gold

...or, a Moooovable Feast.

I thought skies like these only happened in the movies...

... specifically, post-apocalyptic movies. This sunset was breathtaking.

Stalker Alert!

Kathmandu stalking his afternoon mouse.

Glad the sun finally broke through!

After a few days of grey clouds, most folks in the area become a little stir crazy. On this day the clouds broke on the western horizon just as the sun was setting, creating a wonderful splash of golden light looking eastward.

A Few Fall Photos

I was in Jackson, WY last week and while the National Parks were closed, I was able to spot some wildlife and changing leaves!

Just Another Beautiful Sunset

Meet Hawkeye

I don't always make home visits, but when I do,  I make my presence known!!"

Recently, on my evening walks around the ranch with my dog Djinni, I've noticed a bird of prey of some sort seeming to trail behind us.  I have assumed it's because we probably scare up some variety of vermin that makes for easy hunting (mice, weasels, skunks, opossums, raccoons, snakes, mule deer, white tail deer, lots of other birds, etc).  I especially love the "skree" call that he makes.

I came back from hiking yesterday and Kathmandu (my cat) was sitting on the deck. He must have been out when I left. Imagine my surprise when I saw this giant bird of prey sitting on the railing of the deck. I thought he must be after the cat and hurried to get Kathman inside. But the bird didn't move!!

He jumped down on the ground, and I thought about what to do. I figured he'd just swooped in and tried for the cat, but maybe hit the deck instead and was stunned. I approached him very slowly to see if he was injured and was surprised at how close he let me get. Finally, I reached out to him so I could move him to the shade. He was panting, and had some blood stains on his chest feathers along with remnants of a meal on his beak, so I figured he'd eaten. He kept letting me get close so I picked him up (he was very light) and moved him to the shade. He flapped his wings a few times and looked like all of his body was functional, so I suspect he wasn't injured. He hung around for a while, and I'd occasionally approach him...at one point he walked out onto my arm. (In hindsight I should have been wearing sleeves, or gloves.)

I made a few calls and was lucky - on a weekend - to be put in touch with Susan Ahalt.  She is a licensed raptor rehabilitation expert in Cody and she gave me lots of good info. (Her blog, Ironside Bird Rescue, has great images and stories about her efforts.)  Besides lots of good information, I learned he is a redtailed hawk.  She mentioned two other potential options that might result in his unusual behavior - that he could be starving (since he was light) or even poisoned.  We sort of ruled out poisoning.  Since he'd just eaten and was otherwise fully functional (and beautiful), I feel hopeful that he was just stunned. His craw seemed full and he had meat on his beak. I would hope that with all the field mice, weasels, muskrat, other birds, coons and skunks and what-not that it'd be easy enough for him to be able to hunt.

If he seems to hang around as though he is looking for food, I have instructions on capturing him (it's easier than you'd think!) and transporting him to Cody.  I am hoping that he is happy and healthy and just honored me with a little introduction and visit.  I saw a young red-tail flying near the cliffs across the creek this afternoon, and for now will choose to believe that was my new friend, "Hawkeye".  

Perfect Trout Stream

Reflections

Last weekend I did a little camping in the northern part of the Big Horn National Forest.  The weather was perfect, as was the scenery, but the first was crowded with end-of-summer folks, so I headed back to my cabin for some peace and quiet!

Duck, duck, cloud

Just a Girl wearing Boots hopping on Rocks

Wyoming Adventures

At the end of July, I flew my niece and nephew out for a visit.  Really, it was to share with them the things about Wyoming that I love so much - specifically, the plethora of outdoor activities.  I started with a basic itinerary over about 8 days, but it was soon packed with adventures - including a bingo game to identify Wyoming wildlife during driving times.  We had a blast, so I thought I'd post some of the big take-aways here:

Total miles driven: 1,321
2 States

• Montana
• Wyoming

4 National Forests

• Big Horn National Forest
• Teton National Forest
• Shoshone National Forest
• Custer National Forest (MT)

1 BLM area
2 Native American Indian Reservations

• Crow Indian Reservation (MT)
• Wind River Reservation (Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho)

2 National Parks

• Grand Teton National Park
• Yellowstone National Park

Things we did:

• Horseback riding at a friend’s ranch
• Rode a Tram to 10,400 feet Rendezvous Peak in the Tetons
• 2 boat rides
• Hiked about 13 miles
• Tubing at the creek next to the cabin where I live
• Swimming
• Whitewater rafting
• Visited 2 museums
• Explored downtown Cody, WY and Red Lodge, MT
• Went to the Cody Nite Rodeo - and Kyle joined in the Calf Chase
• Visited 2 playgrounds

Wildlife we saw:

• Hawks*
• Eagles
• Osprey*
• Sandhill Cranes*
• Chipmunks
• Grizzly Bear
• Brown Bear
• Skunk*
• Pheasant*
• Horses
• Pronghorn (antelope)
• Cows*
• Mule deer*
• White tail deer*

* animals we saw at the cabin where I live

Our adventures started and ended at the Billings, MT airport, but we were able to plan a big loop through the region:

Finally, in no particular order, here are some highlights of our trip: