I continued driving SD Route 240 through Badlands National Park looking for other photography opportunities.
Yes, my collar is the latest fashion here.
Near one pullout there was a small herd of Bighorn sheep posing for the park visitors that had begun to filter into the park. It might not be appropriate to refer to these Bighorn as “wildlife”, since they do not pay much attention at all to the visitors, do not appear aggressive (at least, these ewe and lambs) and can be approached fairly closely. Yet, I put on my big zoom, just to be able to shoot from a distance without getting so close as to possible startle or cause them to move away.
Basking in Sun and Nature’s GardenUndercover OperatorCan you hear me now?Bighorn LambShutting out the tourist hoardNo, I’m not getting up to pose.
Today’s journey through Badlands National Park will continue,
Since my arrival in the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, I had seen numerous free roaming bison, but they were always too far away and/or laying about in grass, so that I could not get good photos. As I was leaving today, I hoped that I would spot more bison in situations where I could capture a few descent images. I already had my 80-400mm lens with a 1.4 extender mounted to my camera, just in case.
Indeed, I did begin to see bison as I drove along one of the refuge roadways on my way to the exit. However, these were again too far away to successfully photograph.
Finally, I came to a location where I could see bison behind a fenced off area. The bison were close enough to the fence line that I could photograph them, but I would have to hike across an open field to get to the fence. As I prepared to do that, I noted a group of bison on my side of the fence. Going to the fence line would put me too close to those bison, so I had to nix my plans.
Scanning the area, I noted a small herd of bison on the opposite side of the roadway that were far enough away that I could stand beside my van and photograph those. Initially, I tried handholding my big lens, but that proved difficult and awkward, so I mounted it on my tripod. I began to shoot that small herd and watched as they slowly walked in my direction.
Grazing
I soon realized they were heading directly towards me and were soon going to be too close for comfort. I quickly retreated into my van, dragging my tripod and camera behind me.
By the time I was safely inside my van, there were bison crossing the roadway just in front of and just behind my vehicle. I began to photograph the bison from inside my vehicle.
Crossing Guard
The bison did not seem to be concerned about my presence, but the one above stopped to stare at me or my vehicle.
Follow MeResoluteWatchfulBison FamilySecurityGot a Tissue?Got Insect Repellent?Walking in Tall GrassBleh
After the bison had wandered away a safe distance, I started my van and continued on my way.
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 BaldyPost 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.
Before continuing my journey towards the Grand Canyon North Rim, I took time to drive to the end of the road in Caprock Canyon State Park, stopping at a few locations to get iPhone shots.
Caprock Canyon PanoramaRed Dirt
The fine, red clay soil seems to permeate everything here.
Gypsum Crystals
There were gypsum crystals frequently exposed on the surface of this mostly desert like environment.
Desert Green
The effect of the recent rains were clearly visible in the greenness of the scrubby vegetation.
Caprock Canyon State Park, Texas
At the end of the park road was a tent campground and a trailhead into the canyon. I’m thinking this might be the most interesting hike in this park. If I stop here again and have time, I will plan to hike this trail.
After encountering a rattlesnake on my previous days hike, I was much more wary while strolling about today. I did not see another rattlesnake while walking about, but I did see a small one crossing the paved roadway as I arrived back at the camping area. There was also a bison standing at the trailhead of the hike I had taken the previous day.
Ready to Hike
I do not know why this big fella was hanging out by the sign, but it was still here, after I made a loop through the campground, before heading out on the next leg of my journey. Maybe it was waiting for a hiking companion.
This post was prematurely published due to a mistake by the author, during the editing and preview process, getting my blogs out of chronological order and maybe causing confusion of followers. Consequently, I’ve made a few edits, trying to correct poor writing and/or errors and now I will republish this item and hope there are no more glaring errors. My apologies for the confusion.
After setting up in the campground at Bandelier National Monument, we drove down into the canyon to the visitor center and made a scouting hike upstream along the stream that runs through the Frijoles Canyon. Actually, the stream is referred to as the Frijoles River, even though it is usually just a narrow stream of water. I suppose at times of heavy precipitation, that little stream can become a raging river. We hiked an undetermined distance, but I’m guessing maybe about a mile along the river before turning back.
We decided that the photographic opportunities would be slim along that trail, unless there was early morning frost or maybe snow cover to provide more interest.
We returned to the canyon the next (first) morning of our stay here with our cameras, hoping for better photographic opportunities than we had seen on our scouting hike.
The park gate opening and closing times limit the access time to the canyon, so golden hour photography was not a possibility during our visit. This might not matter, since the canyon walls limit the time of the sunlight arriving and exiting the canyon. Some times of the year may be better than others.
Unfortunately, we did not get snow, nor even a heavy frost. Nevertheless, we continued hiking and trying to get a few interesting photographs. I was mostly unsuccessful in my efforts and I have chosen not to present any of the results of my attempts at creative photography here.
Early on the hike, we came upon several deer that seemed curious about us, but not concerned. I suppose they were accustomed to humans.
Deer, Bandelier National Monument, March 2021Deer, Bandelier National Monument, March 2021
A second deer, going in the opposite direction of this first one, came along and they each eyed each other in an appraising manner, before continuing on their way.
Deer, Bandelier National Monument, March 2021
There are many Native American ruins and cave dwelling in the canyon with many near the visitors’ center. Having toured those on previous trips, we continued along the trail towards a more distant ruin called the Alcove House. My son had visited the Alcove House during a previous visit, but it was not open when I was first here, so this was my first time to see this area of the park.
To get up to the Alcove House ruins requires climbing a number of ladders and steps up the canyon side.
Ladder & Sign, Bandelier National Monument, March 2021
Much of the area at the final destination is roped off, which limits photographic compositions.
Native American Ruins in Bandelier National Monument, March 2021
In the afternoon, we made a scouting hike of a loop trail through Tsankawi, a Native American area near White Rock, New Mexico that is a part of the Bandelier National Monument. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my iPhone along, so I did not get any scouting photographs, which is too bad, since I think I missed opportunities to get photographs under a more interesting sky than we had during later visits.
I had a small window of time in which to visit Colorado in September, 2020, hoping for good fall color in the Aspens. It is always difficult to determine the best area to target for the best fall conditions with all of the variables that affect the fall foliage and the weather and/or other environmental conditions that may impact travel. After much online research and consultations with others, I decided to check out the nearest area, Rio Grande National Forest, to me first, and if that did not look promising, to move on farther north into Colorado.
Since it is a long road trip from my home in Texas to Colorado, I like to make it a two day trip to avoid very long drives. A convenient stop over location for me is Lake Meredith National Recreation Area northeast of Amarilo, TX. While I would like to drive a bit farther on my first day, there are scant camping choices farther north in the Texas panhandle, without driving much longer than I would like.
There are several campgrounds around Lake Meredith, with only one having a few reservable sites. If I expect hot weather, I will reserve a site so that I can have electric for running the air conditioner in my camper. Otherwise, a free campsite is fine, since I can get by with my own water and battery power. The campsite I target, also has nice restrooms and showers, which are available to all campers.
In mid-September the night time temperatures in this area of Texas are cool, so I took a chance on finding a free campsite, which I expected to be in plentiful supply in the middle of a week. Friday and Saturdays are always busy here, but mid-week is usually not crowded.
When I arrived, there were plenty of free campsites available, but many of the reservable sites were filled.
Free Campsite at Lake Meredith NRA. iPhone photograph.
After settling in, I walked the loop around the camping area to stretch my legs, after the long drive. One of the campsites on the opposite side of the loop had a group of 6-8 large deer grazing. The deer seemed wary of my watching them, but they did not run away.
Deer in Lake Meredith National Recreation Area Campground. iPhone photograph.
I had only my iPhone with me, so I could not get good close up shots. The image above is a zoomed in iPhone shot, so it is low resolution.
I had a long drive on the second leg of my trip, so I got an early start for the second day of my drive. I was not sure where I would find a spot to camp on the second night, either, so I need plenty of time to search for a suitable overnight spot before dark.
My oldest son and his wife were also planning to meet me somewhere on the third day of my trip. So I first had to not only verify the suitability of the fall color in the Rio Grande National Forest, but secondly to find a suitable campground for all of us, if we decided to stay in this area. Otherwise, they would drive north and I would have to drive to meet them elsewhere.
I arrived near the edge of Rio Grande National Forest about mid-afternoon, so it was looking good for having plenty of daylight for scouting out a campsite. On the discouraging side, I saw much freeze damage (brown, shriveled leaves), caused by an early season storm that came through a few days earlier, on the Aspens between Walsenberg, CO and my destination.
The drive became much slower, when I departed the paved route and went into the forest via Forest Service Road 250, which was rough, even though fairly well maintained. There were also many downed trees from the strong winds that blew through in that early season storm. The fallen trees had mostly been removed from the main portion of the road, but some still hung low overhead or protruded into the roadway and had to be avoided. (I have a long superficial scratch, aka Colorado Pin Stripe, along one side of my vehicle as a result of moving over a little too far, to allow room for an approaching vehicle).
The fall color was spotty, with some good patches, but many trees were still green or just beginning to change. I was not convinced that I would remain here.
Bad News? iPhone photograph.
After seeing the sign in the photo above, I was also concerned about finding suitable camping areas. There are free, dispersed campsites in unrestricted areas, but these can be small. So even though I might fit into one, my son might not be able to easily get his vehicle and trailer into one of those.
It was also hunting season, so many of the free camping areas were crowded with hunters’ tents, trucks, RV trailers, flat bed trailers, and horse trailers. After much driving around, I finally went back to a dispersed campground off of FSR 247 past Platoro Reservoir that I had passed up earlier, where there was still some open space in the camping area.
Dispersed Camping, Rio Grande National Park. iPhone photograph.
This was in a high elevation area and it had become cloudy and colder. I walked around the campsite, checking out possible photograph viewpoints, and began to feel the effects of the altitude. So I decided it best to restrict my physical activity this evening and give my body more time to acclimate before moving around too much.
I believe that the mountain peak on the right side of the image above is Conejos Peak and this campsite is just before FSR 247 crosses the Adams Fork of Conejos River.
With no cell signal, I communicated with my son via messages on my InReach Explorer GPS device, expressing my concern about the suitability of this area for our purposes.
This post is getting lengthy, so I will continue later. Stay tuned to see what evolves.
After shooting wildflowers in the meadow adjacent to Teal Campground and Williams Creek Reservoir, I decided to try getting images of the Canadian Geese that were usually feeding and swimming around near the reservoir shoreline.
I do not often try to photograph wildlife, since I’m usually not prepared for that type photography, and when I see wildlife unexpectedly, I am usually too slow to respond. The wild animals have scampered away and the birds fly or swim away before I can get a photo.
However, today I had my big lens (80-400mm) mounted already, so I was at least partly prepared. Even though, I still could not get close enough with the big lens without frightening away the geese, I could at least crop the D850 images and still get a reasonably good image.
Goose, Williams Creek Reservoir, Colorado. Nikon D850, 1/1250s, f/11, ISO 1250, 80-400mm at 400mm (before crop). Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO modules.Goose, Williams Creek Reservoir, Colorado. Nikon D850, 1/1250s, f/11, ISO 1250, 80-400mm at 400mm (before crop). Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO modules.Goose, Teal Campground. Nikon D850, 1/640s, f/11, ISO 1250, 80-400mm @ 400mm (before crop). Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Modules.
As I attempted to get closer, the geese did as they usually do and took to the water.
Geese in Williams Creek Reservoir. Nikon D850, 1/1600s, f/11, ISO 1250, 80-400mm @ 400mm (before crop). Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Modules.
Please do not fly away, stay tuned for more at Teal Campground and Williams Creek Reservoir,
An interim stopover on my journey from Ridgeway, Colorado to the southeastern corner of Colorado in July, 2020 was Thirty Mile Campground. It is a long, slow drive on rough county/forest service roads to the campground. This campground has sites that one can reserve and others that are on a first come first serve basis. There were only a few sites available, when I made my reservations prior to my trip to Colorado. I wanted to be sure that I had a place to stay at least one night, so reserving a site assured that I would not have to search for a free site in the forest. I thought I might be able to get one of the free sites, if I decided to stay a second night; but the campsites were all full or reserved on the day that I arrived and there were no reserve sites available for a second night. I would have to wait until the second day to find any available free sites, if I wanted to stay a second night.
My campsite in Thirty Mile Campground, Colorado, July 2020. iPhone Photograph.
Thirty Mile is a nice campground and my site was just inside the campground along the Rio Grande, where it was pleasant to hear the rushing water in the river. After checking into my campsite, I took a walk along the river to check out possible locations for photography late in the day and/or early in the morning.
The river is pretty, but there seemed to be limited possibilities for photographic variations along the river. This is a popular place for anglers and many of the people in the campground were there to fish for trout in the Rio Grande.
I watched a doe grazing on the opposite side of the river, shooting a number of photos and videos with my phone. The doe did not seem to care that I was watching it. One of the unedited videos can be seen here.
After my walk along the river, I drove along the road past the campground to check out the scenery along the Rio Grande Reservoir, which is a very long reservoir. The road beside the reservoir is mostly a narrow one lane road with periodic pullouts, where vehicles can pass each other. It was a rainy, overcast day, which created some photographic opportunities.
An iPhone shot through windshield on a rainy day along the Rio Grande Reservoir, Colorado. iPhone Photograph.
I drove almost to the very end of the reservoir before turning back. Near the end, the water shallowed, revealing the trace of the river going into the reservoir. In the upper end of the reservoir there was colorful vegetation and I got lucky when a break in the clouds allowed sunlight to highlight some of that vegetation.
Near the upper end of the Rio Grande Reservoir, Colorado. iPhone Photograph.
During my drive back towards the campground, I stopped to shoot with my iPhone at a few locations.
Wildflowers and Boulders beneath cloudy sky along the bank of the Rio Grande Reservoir, Colorado. iPhone Photograph.
There were a few scattered wildflowers and large colorful boulders, some covered with lichen, in various shapes between the roadway and the reservoir.
Boulders and a mountainside along side the Rio Grande Reservoir, Colorado. iPhone Photograph,Sportsmobile framed by boulders with a mountainside in the background, along the Rio Grande Reservoir, Colorado. iPhone Photograph.Pointy and flat top boulders along the bank of the Rio Grande Reservoir, Colorado. iPhone Photograph.Wildflowers sheltered against a large boulder along the banks of the Rio Grande Reservoir, Colorado. iPhone Photograph.
The next post will have DSLR photos taken along the river and along the reservoir.
