Friday April

Elk Migration

I've done something a little different with this photo. It is a panorama made from four photos put together but instead of making it as small as possible I left it quite big, and if you click on it you should be able to see the elk better in your browser. I'm looking for comments as to whether you like this, or if three or four similar but different photos posted separately would be better to see this. Sorry not to have better pictures to share of such a stunning experience. This doesn't show them going further, high up and over the mountain. If you'll notice there are several probably ancient game trails that you can pick out.

Today Gina and I drove to Jackson for my appointment with Dr. Ward from the Huntsman Clinic. We had such a great day going together. I started off here about 6:45, just before the sun came up. There was enough breeze to make the 14 degrees feel pretty chilly. Doc was feeding his cows, and they were all aligned along their feed ground with their little calves close by when I drove out.

As I turned through the cattle guard and headed toward the mailbox I looked back toward the ranch just as the sun washed the front of the house with a warm glow against the still dark background of the hills and fields. It was so beautiful and I sure had a feeling of "homesickness" tugging at my heart knowing the days for seeing that scene are dwindling. I've always hated to leave home on a trip, regardless of how I love to travel and see new country, and this was similar to that except more so. Such a strong feeling of that being our special home for so many years, now the place that has always enfolded us and kept us safe and warm. I've lived at this house longer than any other place in my life, and surely loved it more than any other.

It was just about then that I had - I won't say a voice speaking - but certainly close to that in a strong thought that we were going to have a very special experience today. And I thought back, I would enjoy that so much.

Lots of deer, birds and hawks along the way, some antelope, the multitude of herons on their bulky stick nests in the aspens and cottonwoods on Boulder Creek. I got to Gina's within the hour. We picked up Kay's artwork at her house to take to the Gallery, and on past Rookies.

A ways up the road where that big gravel pit is there was a herd of all buck antelope trailing across the sagebrush. They usually get kicked out this time of year when its time for the does to have their kids. I guess somewhere over 50 of them, but the long line of them traveling along was so beautiful. We should have stopped for pictures and I regret not doing that but we were past them almost before realizing what a gorgeous sight it truly was. Well, if that had been the special experience it would have been wonderful, but it wasn't.

The snow through the valley and over the Rim was a whole lot less than 10 days ago when I last went. Many areas are becoming bare. Still deep snow in Bondurant but a noticeably diminished there too. We got to about where we often see the mountain sheep and didn't see any. Gina was having to watch because I was driving. In a few minutes she said there are some elk. I thought, "oh, a little bunch of elk", I said "oh that's nice" or something to that effect. She said again, "There are a bunch of elk". "How many?" She said, "A lot. It's a big bunch". Thinking we were already way past them, I said, "shall we stop?" and then I got the idea that YES she wanted to stop. We pulled off the road and she said, "I think its the whole feed ground". Even then we still didn't know how many there actually were.

As we got out of the SUV we could hear the yearlings chirping and whistling. We climbed up the small hill at the side of the road that was obscuring the view and OMG(osh), there were 6oo or 700 - or more - (?) elk strung out in lines from about a quarter of a mile above us for two or three miles, as far as we could see. They were trailing behind one another and had split along several trails, one up the gulch and another along the side hill under some of the cliffs. The ones in back were bunched together not far from us. Gina said the light buckskin colored ones in the back were the bulls. The three files came together again further up the mountain, and they just kept going on up and up climbing into the distant peaks where the sun was glowing off the snow at the ridge top. It was as if they were traveling into the light and disappearing into the glow and the distance.

We took pictures but I knew my little camera zoom would not do this justice. And usually I take more pictures, but only got seven this time. I also didn't get any higher up the mountain where they were going over the top - not sure why not except that it was so far away I knew it wouldn't show much. Wish I had now. Gina had a better zoom on hers and got great photos of some of the closest elk. I bet you can go to her blog http://www.horseback41.blogspot.com/ and she will have some better photos than mine.

Well, That had to have been the special experience, and as we turned back to the car I told Gina about the thought that had come to me this morning. I was certainly grateful to have seen such a sight, and good for Gina for spotting them.

Since its getting late and its been a long day, I will put a couple of the elk photos and continue the rest of today on tomorrows blog. I'll let you know then what the doctor said. He spent an hour with us. I had taken 4 typed pages of questions and he answered all of them.