Tag: Wild Turkey

Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge – Day 2 Sunset Photography

Having found no better and more convenient place for sunset photography during my mid-day exploration of the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, I decided to hike back to Little Baldy again for sunset.

Wild Turkey in campground

I had already seen a flock of wild turkeys wandering freely and nonchalantly around the campground and as I left my campsite, I noted a dozen or more along my route.  I had already mounted my wide angle lens and had no other lens with me, so I could not get a close up photo of these wild birds.

Wild Turkey in campground

These photos are not very good, but I wanted to include these as documentation of the wildlife in this area.  These wild turkey do not seem to be bothered much by humans, although they will scurry away, when approached too closely.  I suppose their lack of great fear of humans is a result of this being a wildlife refuge, where no hunting is permitted and contact with humans is common.

When I arrived at Little Baldy, I worked my way around to the western side and picked my way up the slope, looking for different view points from which to shoot today.

Little Baldy western slope in sunset light

From atop a large granite feature, I shot along the edge of Little Baldy as the sun sank low in the sky.  Then I worked my way towards the top of Little Baldy.

Sunset on Little Baldy
Post Sunset on Little Baldy

The sun was already sinking below the horizon, when I got near the top of Little Baldy.  I managed to snap a few photos before the golden hour ended, but most were similar, even though I tried moving around as fast as I could to get various perspectives.

Possibly, I might have gotten better and more varied shots, had I gone to the top first, rather than shooting from the side of Little Baldy.

Tomorrow I will begin the next leg of my journey towards my primary destination of this road trip.

Ken

 

Durango, Colorado, August 2022

After departing Santa Fe, New Mexico we headed to Colorado, stopping for a couple of nights in Durango.

I had anticipated spending most of our time in downtown Durango, allowing my wife to shop to her hearts’ content; but she was not interested in shopping here.

Our motel was near the Animas River, with a walking/bicycle path along the river.  We checked out that path, but discovered that it was not a great walk at this location, being completely open with no shade and it was warmer in the sunshine than we expected.  There was a pedestrian bridge on this path with good views of the river and that was as far along this path as we ventured.

We drove a few miles into the downtown area, intending to have dinner at one of the many restaurants there, but we could find no available parking.  After a number of circuits through downtown, we abandoned it and finally found a decent Mexican restaurant in a small shopping center off of the main roadway between our motel and downtown.  We enjoyed our dinner at outdoor seating at that location and judging by the number of Hispanic customers, it appeared to be a popular restaurant with the locals.

There are numerous parks in Durango and long pleasant walking/biking paths along the Animas River, which we checked out the full day we had in the area.

Animas River 1, Durango, CO
River Rocks
Animas River 2,  Durango, CO
River Floaters

I noted that the two youngest kids in the front of this raft were more interested in me than the river.  It must have been the phone camera that I pointed at them.

Kayakers
Modern Art

There are modern art work pieces in the parks.

Modern Art

We drove around the local area to check out the countryside, driving up into a national forest and along numerous backroads.  Along one of these roadways, I spotted a large rafter or flock of wild turkeys, maybe a couple of dozen.

Wild Turkey – iPhone image

On to Silverton next,

Ken