Crops & Clips: Flashback to peripatetic June, 2016

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):

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Linking to Misty's  CAMERA CRITTERS,

Linking to Eileen's SATURDAY'S CRITTERS,

Linking to SKYWATCH FRIDAY by Yogi, Sylvia and Sandy

Linking to WEEKEND REFLECTIONS by James

Linking to BirdD'Pot by Anni

Linking to Our World Tuesday by Lady Fi

Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday by Stewart

Linking to Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday) by NC Sue

Linking to ALL SEASONS by Jesh

 Linking to Fences Around the World by Gosia

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Please visit the links to all these memes to see some excellent photos on display

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South Dakota Black Hills and Wildlife Loop

Following five nights celebrating our family reunion in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, we joined our younger daughter's family on a road trip back to Illinois. We entered South Dakota by way of Wyoming en route to Blue Bell in the Black Hills of Custer State Park. 

We occupied adjacent cabins in a Ponderosa woodland at Blue Bell Lodge, just off the famous Wildlife Loop:



Anxious to tour the Loop before dark, we made 6:00 PM dinner reservations at the restaurant but waited over an hour before being served. The food was wonderful despite the terrible service. There was no time to drive the Loop's entire 18 miles, but the wildlife viewing was spectacular.

Hundreds of American Bison wandered freely along the road. Fences and cattle guards control their rotation between huge grazing grounds:







Pronghorn Antelopes abounded:





As dusk approached, White-tailed Deer became more numerous. Many of the does had fawns:







Ten-point buck in velvet:



Feral Donkeys, descendants of Wild Asses released by early settlers, approached our auto, apparently looking for treats offered by tourists despite prohibitions against feeding the wildlife:





All too soon, darkness descended and we made our way back to the cabins. This was the scene a little after sunset, under a waxing Strawberry Moon. This is the Algonquin Indian name for the full Moon in June. This year it coincided with the Summer Solstice, a "once-in-a-lifetime" event. (Better make that "twice in my lifetime" as the last time this happened was in 1967 but the next will not occur until 2062):



Birding was not a main pursuit, but during a brief walk around the cabins I found Red-breasted Nuthatches:





Early the nex morning, A Wild Turkey with five poults walked next to a neighboring cabin...







...and a Cottontail Rabbit huddled near the road, perhaps thinking I could not see it:



While I was taking in the beauty of a mountain stream which ran by the Lodge, a deer suddenly crossed the water towards me:



On the way to our next destination, we drove the length of Needles Highway, a winding road through magnificent rock formations and narrow tunnels:







We visited Crazy Horse Memorial, an ambitious granite statue being carved out of a mountain, billed to become  world's largest sculpture, once it is completed. It honors the legendary war hero of the Lakota tribe, whose most famous victory against US troops was the Battle of the Little Bighorn (General Custer's Last Stand -click for more information. )

The carving was started in 1948 but has made slow progress. Only the warrior's face has been completed so far. His head will be 87 feet (27 m) high:







The smaller (60 ft/18 m high) faces of four US presidents are carved on Mount Rushmore, only 17 miles away.  It is an awe-inspiring sight:





On our way to our next stop, Mount Rushmore could be seen in the distance:



Our last glimpse of Mount Rushmore through a gap in the trees as we headed east towards the Badlands:



For the "reflection" meme I must hearken back to a photo I took before we flew to Colorado. A few doors from our daughter's home in Illinois, this silo cast its image on a small pond:



Pale Coneflowers bloomed on the Illinois prairie:



= = =  = = =  = = = =  = = = = =

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
________________________________________________

Please visit the links to all these memes to see some excellent photos on display
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