Christmas Week

 A few more random shots from this week. The top one is a view along the North Fork headed to Yellowstone. It is a section of 50 miles of spectacular scenery any time of year.

The dramatic sky called for a black and white shot of the unusual house in Wapiti. The owner died by falling from the roof while working on it many years ago and it is slowly falling apart. Doesn't it look like it must be haunted?

I have seen this pair of eagles sitting in the same tree along the Clark's Fork the last few times I have gone to Billings. I never have the right lens with me when I go by but I still think it is a beautiful shot with the mountains in the background. The lower eagle is a little harder to see - he is near the center of the trunk about 1/3 of the way up from the bottom of the picture.

Bighorn Sheep

 Today we had to go to Cody to run a few errands so I talked Ken into driving out the North Fork first to see if the bighorn sheep were around. Sure enough we saw a few groups with the biggest being the one including this ram and about 10 ewes.

 I think he was telling me what he thought of having his photo taken!

Week in Review

 With classes being as demanding as they have been for the last month or so, the only chance I get to photograph wildlife is on my daily commute back and forth to the college. Luckily for me, that is really not a problem around here! The backlit pronghorn buck above gave me a rare chance to snap his portrait as he stood trying to decide if I was a threat or not. They are much more accessible this time of year as they gather in herds - they obviously feel there is strength in numbers. One of the amazing things about this guy is the shininess of his horns. That is because he most likely just shed the old covering so these are sparkly and new. You almost never find shed antelope horns (although I have found pieces of them before.) I suspect the reason is that they shed just the husk, not a solid horn, and I think they are kind of like fingernails in makeup so they simply disintegrate soon after being dropped.

This beauty to the left was sitting in a cottonwood tree alongside the Clark's Fork River two days ago. His beak seems to be huge in comparison to the size of his head!

 Yesterday we loaded up the snow machines and headed to Pilot Creek for a day of backcountry skiing.  I don't know how it works but even though we have no snow at all down here, Cooke City has a whooping 65" base already. The snow was perfect for skiing - knee high powder with a solid base. Getting to the area we wanted to ski was not so much fun - the trails have not yet been groomed and we just about beat ourselves to death riding the snow machines over the bumpy roads for a dozen miles or so.

It did not stop snowing the whole time we were there so the photos ops were not plentiful. At one point I had a short window when I could actually capture Republic Peak in the background.


I thought this snow snake to the right deserved to be photographed before it plunged under its own weight.

Bridal Veil Revisited

 With final projects well underway at the college, I feel like I have been chained to the studio and my computer for the last few weeks. Therefore when today presented itself as sunny and bright we decided to take the opportunity to hike to nearby Bridal Veil Falls even though the thermometer was hovering in the single digits.
The falls are absolutely gorgeous at any time of year but especially so in the winter months when the water vapor on the top turns to ice. Very few people seem to visit this spot - which is pretty well hidden if you don't know its location - even in the summer but this time of year you are pretty much guaranteed a private showing.

The falls are not that easy to photograph because of their location back a relatively narrow canyon. But the view when you get there is worth it, in my opinion. In this first image I have merged five separate photos to create a panorama. The size of the original image is more than 40 inches high and 23 inches wide.

 I was determined to photograph this icicle before we left. I think its steely appearance and the reflection of the sun in its crown is pretty amazing.

The last photo is here to give a little perspective on the size of the falls. Ken is almost 6' tall so you can see that they are actually pretty impressive in their size!

 After weeks of above normal temperatures it seems that winter may have finally arrived. Yesterday morning I looked out to see a beautiful sunrise enhanced by the presence of fog over the plains to the east.

Today the pinyon jays were out in force enjoying the handout at the feeder.  These birds are so easy to photograph as they are amazingly human tolerant.