Three years ago we enjoyed a very active June, starting out at our home in south Florida followed by flights to Illinois and then Colorado, and a motor trip across the northwestern US through Wyoming, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and back to Illinois before flying home.
During the following weeks I processed more than 700 photos out of over 2000 which accumulated during the trips, and am now selecting some which reflect favorite memes: critters (especially birds), skies and landscapes, reflections, fences, and scenes which speak for themselves.
During our first week in Illinois we visited the prairies of Nelson Lake/Dick Young preserve and saw a good variety of recently arrived breeding birds, including...
Bobolinks:
Dickcissels:
Red-winged Blackbird:
Common Yellowthroat:
American Goldfinches:
MaryLou and I celebrated our 56th Wedding Anniversary at YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park, Colorado, hosting all of our descendants-- three children, eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, spouses and MaryLou's brother:
Because of a mix-up with the reservations we were assigned a cozy cabin, but it was a long walk away from the rest of our party who were clustered together. This actually suited us just fine, as our sleeping and waking patterns did not match those of the young crowd.
Our nearest neighbors were Green-tailed Towhees...
...Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, and...
...Violet-green Swallows:
Along Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountains National Park we saw a Hoary Marmot:
Following our 5 nights in the Colorado Rockies, we joined our daughter's family for a long drive in a rented SUV. We winded our way along the Needles Highway in the Black Hills of South Dakota, passing through numerous tunnels:
The Needles, a magnificent rock formation:
MaryLou and I posed at The Needle's Eye:
As we emerged from the last tunnel, a distant view of Mount Rushmore opened up in front of us:
At Mount Rushmore National Monument, we were awed by the spectacular carvings of four former Presidents, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Teddy Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln:
We stayed in Blue Bell, South Dakota, in Custer State Park, where we occupied adjacent cabins on the Wildlife Loop road:
View from Wildlife Loop just after sunset:
Highlights of the drive along Wildlife Loop included American Bison..
...a Whitetail Deer fawn...
...and a Pronghorn Antelope:
From there we traveled into southwestern South Dakota and spent two nights at Circle View Family Ranch in Badlands National Park. Our accommodations were primitive, but the scenery, wildlife and great breakfasts were totally enjoyable. Our lodging was a refurbished ranch-hand shack, the Tree House Cabin:
Our daughter's family stayed next door in the more luxurious Cowboy Cabin, which even had utensils and a kitchen sink:
From the porch of our cabin we saw (among many species) Lark Sparrows...
...Lark Buntings...
...Blue Grosbeaks...
...and Western Meadowlarks:
Driving through the Park, the views were fantastic.
A Bighorn ram grazed next to the road:
I must stop writing somewhere as it is impossible for me to do justice to the beauty we saw this month. In Florida it began, appropriately, with a "Mirrored" (anti-crepuscular or false) sunrise on the western horizon opposite the sun, on June 1...
... and ended with us back in northeastern Illinois, with a robin on a fence...
...and a walk in the short-grass prairie path at Nelson Lake (oil rendering, click to enlarge):
For several months Mary Lou and I made plans for a family reunion on the occasion of our 56th Wedding anniversary. We chose to locate it at the YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park, Colorado. This was also the site of our 50th anniversary gathering. We had stayed there in past years with our children, where we enjoyed a great variety of activities for visitors of all ages.
We reserved five cabins for five nights to house us as well as the anticipated 19 guests-- our three children, eight grandchildren and two great-grandsons, along with their loved ones and Mary Lou's brother Ray. We held our breath up to the last minute, hoping that all would be willing and able to endure the hardship and stress of flying and driving. It all worked out beautifully.
The weather was fine, with cool nights and warm days. Four of the cabins were clustered together along a ridge with beautiful views of snow-capped peaks and verdant valleys:
As luck would have it, a scheduling glitch caused the facility to relocate our own cabin about a quarter mile away from the others, down-slope in a woodland. Note the bear-proof waste container at the door of our "Aspen" cabin:
This turned out to not be bad at all, as we enjoyed a measure of solitude and we also were spared the duty of hosting the evening gatherings which the younger crowd kept going until well after our bedtime. I was out exploring very early every morning, enjoying the sights, sounds and smells of the wilderness. Just outside our door, two bird houses were attached to tree trunks. One was quaint and rustic:
It was occupied by a pair of Mountain Chickadees with at least one nestling as well as a fledgling:
In the other bird house, aptly-named Violet-green Swallows were busy bringing in nesting materials:
Another pair of swallows nested in an abandoned woodpecker hole in an old Aspen:
Mule Deer roamed near the cabin. The bucks were in velvet:
A small doe eyed me cautiously from a grassy opening, her generous "mule" ears outlined by back-light:
Pygmy Nuthatches were abundant in the Ponderosa Pines:
Slate-colored Juncos (Gray-headed subspecies) sang vigorously from treetops. Like this one, a fair percentage of the small birds were banded, thanks to the active research which is conducted at the YMCA:
A Ruby-crowned Kinglet appeared briefly and displayed its namesake headdress:
A Hairy Woodpecker foraged on an Aspen which showed distinct scars from a bear's claws:
Colorful Cassin's Finches were busy finding food among the Aspen leaves:
An American Crow spied on me from a high perch...
...while another ventured into the shadows, where my murky photo needed tuning which brought out some vivid background colors:
Our daughter's "Byenbye" cabin became the center for gathering and entertainment. We returned there after a a nature walk with some of the younger crowd:
One of the granddaughters sighted a Mountain Bluebird atop one of the cabins along the way:
This is the "Byenbye" Cabin. Its deck proved to be a great spot for nature photographers:
Granddaughter Mary (and younger granddaughter Cari) captured some excellent shots of wildlife and scenery. I am encouraging them to start their own photo blogs:
These are my photos from the deck. I must admit that several taken by the youngsters are better than mine! A Green-tailed Towhee put on quite a show:
The YMCA prohibits hummingbird feeders because they attract bears. The Broad-tailed Hummingbirds found many inconspicuous tubular flowers to provide them with nectar:
We drove up above the treeline on Trail Ridge Road. Among the furry residents of the alpine tundra were a chipmunk which appeared to be blowing "bokeh bubbles"...
...and a Hoary Marmot:
In the distance, a small herd of North American Elk browsed near an ice field:
Nearer, two elk walked along a ridge:
A Clark's Nutcracker was almost out of camera range:
Of course I must show off more of our grandkids. Here, our granddaughter Cari leads a pony carrying great-grandson Jayce:
Graci takes aim at the archery range while her sister Cari nocks her arrow:
Granddaughter Rachel displays her beautiful smile:
Her sister Elizabeth was afraid of heights but conquered her fear by riding a full-sized horse for the first time:
Grandchildren Mary and Glen return from a trail ride:
Now that I have bored you with "grandpa talk" I will let you see all four generations of the Schneider Clan (with Mary Lou's brother Ray also in the photo)...
...and, of course, a special vintage rendition with our eight grandchildren:
My only "reflection" this week is that from a rainbow, which also refracts and disperses light. This was the first earthbound rainbow I have ever seen, at 5:00 PM on June 13, 2016. It is an iPhone 6 photo enhanced by layering 3 different exposures for HDR effect. This rainbow appeared suddenly during a brief local downpour. We were above it looking down into the valley:
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Linking to Misty's CAMERA CRITTERS,
Linking to Eileen's SATURDAY'S CRITTERS,
Linking to GOOD FENCES by Tex (Theresa).
Linking to SKYWATCH FRIDAY by Yogi, Sylvia and Sandy
Linking to WEEKEND REFLECTIONS by James
Linking to BirdD'Pot by Anni
Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday by Stewart
Linking to Today's Flowers Friday by Denise
Linking to Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday) by NC Sue
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Please visit the links to all these memes to see some excellent photos on display
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