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Sandhill Cranes' Majestic Flights

11/10/2023

Driving into the Salt Plains Wildlife Refuge—late in the morning—I thought I had missed the estimated 25,000 plus birds at the refuge. Many times, I had attempted seeing the fall arrival, but drought in the area or the mistake of believing the entire area was closed for the hunting season had prevented me from the experience.

When I was arriving this time, I thought I had missed it again. After all, numerous flocks of birds were exiting the refuge, flying over my vehicle. Numerous. So, I stopped on a dirt road and took some pictures of the sky, including the one above. So disappointed that the sight of the waterfowl gathering had escaped me yet again...

Rushing into the refuge, I expected to see nothing more than a few birds, but when I got to the parking lot, the noise hit me. A cacophony.

In the dictionary, cacophony is described as harsh and discordant. I would describe the bird calls as a symphonic cacophony in nature.

Before practically running the quarter mile or so to the lake where the birds were, I dropped my camera, but I knew it wasn't going to be broken. I just knew it. It seemed to have fallen to the ground as gently as if the rush of wings overhead had softened its fall.

Finally, the birds were in front of me—a larger flock than I could have dreamed of.

A secret almost, that everyone knows about...migration. But a large example of it before my eyes. The cranes were still flying over me, seemingly unconcerned that someone was in their world.

I felt it important to return a second time, earlier in the morning, to see the birds before they took their morning flight.

This time the temperature was slightly above freezing, and it seemed that different bird species were in the area. Luckily, I had l remembered an important rule...dress for weather ten degrees colder than you think it will be. The cold didn't bother me much.

The irony is that I had considered taking a birding tour about 500 miles away and likely I wouldn't have seen such a magnificent display as the one I saw not far from my home. I'm glad I kept trying, and maybe I appreciated it more because I took so long to get there.

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Sunrise...Is it worth it?

10/24/2023

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Not being a morning person, I once woke up early, looked outside and thought What a beautiful sunset. Only, it was in the eastern direction. I just wasn't used to seeing it...

More recently I have been waking before dawn, and sometimes I even make it out of bed in time to really experience a sunrise. Is it worth stepping out of your comfortable bed to see what is happening around you, even if you might have to make an effort to view something besides your routine world?

Plus, you never can plan in advance just how the morning will turn out. Sometimes it rains, or is foggy, or too cold, or things just don't fall into place. But on occasion, a sunrise appears to be giving you a blessing, and it is.

And it's worth taking a moment to reflect.

So my vote, even though I am not—and will likely never be a morning person—and usually prefer that extra sleep—is that sunrises are worth it.

The little Plover on the left is voting to sleep in, and I understand that also.

Photos from my sunrise collection.

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Prairie Dogs...

8/25/2023

Hollow Tree Kittens to the Rescue!

8/23/2023

In my area, a cat left outdoors is called a barn cat. One night we noticed a cat sneaking around, and the next thing we knew, a young cat was staying outside. She was little more than a kitten. Of course, we started feeding her.... just regular cat food. Over time, we did a good job. She started looking chubby.

It wasn't long until we discovered she'd had three kittens. I think they were born on April 1st. A birthdate I can remember.

Yes...they weren't exactly barn kittens, they were hollow tree kittens. Cookie, Otis and Barney.

Of course, I adored watching them grow. And little Cookie more than held her own with her two brothers.

(In the past, I have found unexpected feathers in the yard. I suppose it is all the hawks in the area.)

But, while I was sitting outside, watching the birds a week and a half ago, Cookie sped by me, in a straight line, heading for the woods. It was strange but I didn't really connect that something bad had happened. My husband went to investigate. Her two siblings were on point, and a copperhead was in their sights.

A lot of shouting ensued as my husband tried to get the other two kittens away —and hollow tree kittens are not trained to respond to commands.

I didn't know what to do. My husband directed me to get him a nearby shovel. This was a short shovel. Not one with a long handle. I did, and I saw my husband stabbing at the venomous snake, trying to keep the cats away. From my view, he was practically on top of it. Husbands don't respond to commands either.

He killed the snake.

By this time, Cookie had struggled back into the yard. Her eyes were shut, and she was quivering. She'd been bitten. She opened her eyes, and I was flooded with relief. It seemed she could still see. But she was terrified of us and everything else.

We tried to catch her. She ran into the woods again, half-hiding in the leaves.

A friend had taken a dog to the vet after the dog was bitten by the same type of snake, and another friend had been bitten himself. Anti-venom is usually given to people. But pets are more likely only to receive antibiotics on the bite site, and perhaps an over-the-counter-type allergy medication.

And I said a prayer for her. Copperhead bites are not usually fatal to humans, but...she was not even five months old. And the snake wasn't far from where I'd been sitting. She could have saved me from having a venomous bite.

The next morning, my husband took food outside. Little Cookie popped out of the woods. One part of her face was slightly swollen, and she ate like the little champion she is.

My guess is that the snake didn't release a full dose of venom. We could see one mark just below the ear and the swelling was around that area. She appears to be completely over it now.

Barn cats may keep mice away, but tree stump kittens are my favorite.

I can't believe I complained about my husband feeding the kittens tuna along with their favorite cat food.

And when my husband said he forgot to buy more canned cat food, and would be going back out for it, I said, "Can't you give them tuna?" Luckily, he remembered the sardines I asked him to get for them.

Yellowstone—2023 Part I

8/12/2023

A few things I did right on my second trip to Yellowstone.

Saw the lower and upper falls.
- It's only 50 steps to get to the view in the photo once you are in the parking area and at the top of the view. The falls are taller than Niagara. I also saw Moose Falls which is small, but beautiful.

Saw a grizzly...eating flowers. Really, she was. The radio collar on the neck tells me the rangers know where this bear is. I think it was Bonita.
Enjoyed the different temperatures and the Grand Teton Park as well.

For me, it was the adventure of a lifetime.

But I must admit, the first time I went in 2022, it was nice, but it didn't work out well. I had very little information because the trip started when I heard myself telling someone I was going to go to Yellowstone, and I had no idea those words were about to leave my mouth. Then, I heard about someone else having an adventure and I decided I should try to make my goal of going to Yellowstone come true. A short time later...about the time it took to text a friend and ask if she wanted to go with me, I was thinking seriously about the trip. I looked up flights and soon was booking airline tickets.

The first visit was more of a chance to dip my toes into the river (which is legal and safe at the location where I stopped.) I planned to get reservations for a hotel and a rental car and let my whims guide me.

That didn't exactly work out as expected.

The park had flooding and I wasn't sure what to do. I had been planning to go in through the North Entrance—which was closed.

I travelled around the upper edge of the park after driving that direction on a whim...and went in through the West Entrance for a few hours. I was fortunate that I found my hotel again, and that the allergies which went mountain-high at the dinosaur museum (in Bozeman) waned soon after I left, that the hail didn't damage the vehicle, and that I wasn't involved in the horrific dust storm... I could go on...

It was one of those vacations that I was thankful didn't involve paramedics. I kid you not. The number of near misses made it a vacation I don't expect to forget.

Yet the hot springs fascinated me, and I wanted to go back, even though a foot in a shoe had been found in the park a few days after I left.

The second visit was much more of a vacation and less of a survival experience.

Hot springs. Animals. Waterfalls. Photo opportunities at almost every turn, and not the kind that end up on the Tourons of Yellowstone posts.

Yellowstone isn't a theme park. It's perhaps the best of nature, and it can be the worst of it. And it is hard to remember common sense when a grizzly is in front of you. Or when you're seeing a landscape beyond anything you've ever seen before.

So glad I took a second look and was able to experience Yellowstone.

Part of the antler arches in Jackson, Wyoming and Moose Falls in Yellowstone.

Yellowstone USA 2023 Part II

8/12/2023

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What I did wrong and think I would do differently if I were to return...

Focused on taking a picture of the Prismatic springs instead of soaking up the view.
- It's a brief but brisk walk up to the sight, and thankfully my guide said I needed to go. When we were struggling to go uphill, the guide told us that the next part of the journey would be where we earned the view. Gulp. I thought I had already traversed far enough to earn the view. But it's downhill all the way back. Great plan!
Didn't buy the travel guide first.
- Bought the Field Guide by Kurt F Johnson, and immediately enjoyed it. Great guide! Also got two copies of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks published by Fodors because I thought it was so full of information that I wanted a friend to see it. Another friend recommended the tour app which is relatively inexpensive, and I already have the road closing text alerts on my phone.
Didn't take hand lotion on my trip into the park itself.
- Had sunscreen I didn't need because I wore a hat and it rained so much of the time, or I was in the car. But plan on using sunscreen.
Didn't take hand wipes into the park, plus a bag to store the used ones.
- Some of the bathrooms are primitive and they see a lot of traffic. The soap containers can be already empty.
Didn't really talk to the nice ranger.
- He was pleasant, and it was shocking to see a true ranger in true park dress, and standing behind me. But someone had just mentioned tossing a toy into the hot pools. If you want to meet a nice ranger, my tip would be to mention breaking the law. They just seem to pop up behind you or in front of you at that point.
Didn't grab my raincoat.

FYI: I used a long lens for the photos. But for many pictures a cell phone will work just fine...or even better than a camera. But remember, if you upset the animals or fall into a thermal pool, you might not get a chance to repeat the experience.

Be safe, and keep the wildlife happy!

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Wichita Wildlife Refuge

4/16/2023

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The Wichita Wildlife refuge was something I didn't think I'd like, but after I went, I knew I would want to return. And I did—again and again. It gives me the feeling of stepping back in my nation's history.

Plus, I'm seeing parts of nature that I'm not familiar with. I knew that elk shed their antlers, but didn't think of them growing a new set of antlers each year.

I knew that bison could be dangerous to people, but I didn't expect them to fight each other, and use their massive heads as battering rams. Many times.

I knew that Rio Grande Turkeys could strut and preen, but I didn't know they would also disagree.

They were loud and so involved in their battles that they didn't see me.

But The dove peacefully waited as the temperature rose, and their breakfast appeared.

These photos were taken on the same day—but if not for the person with me who was trained in wildlife management, I wouldn't have seen the turkeys or many of the elk. The grassland prairie ecosystem is about 3 1/2 hours northwest of Dallas, Texas, and 1 1/2 hours southwest of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, in the South Central USA.

I'm glad I discovered the refuge, a place which has been home to different animals for thousands and thousands of years.

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February 26th, 2023

2/26/2023

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Sliding Downhill Can Be an Uphill Battle

12/10/2022

Imagine stepping out of a vehicle. And imagine a call I didn’t have to make but could have: Hello. I’ve fallen, and I can’t get up. There’s ice. I am in fact…lying on it. I’m actually melting it with my body heat. Apparently, my boots are better for hiking than ice. I’m not hurt because I was able to hold onto the vehicle door as I slid to the ground. Didn’t dent anything. But this ice is cold, and I almost stuck to it there for a second. I can’t manage to pull myself back into the vehicle because my feet keep slipping out from under me, and I’m still lying here. Yep. Can’t get up. I’m kinda sliding around on the ice. Yes, I did wait to go out after it warmed up. Yes, it’s 25 degrees, well, 24, but it was colder this morning. And, my clothes are getting wet because I’m melting the ice but I can’t seem to slide myself up as well as I slid myself down. I was just running an errand important to me. Perhaps essential. Don’t worry, I’m fine now, I scooted myself across the ice to a spot where a patch of grass gave me some traction. I’m on my feet, and I have help now. Why was I out? Well, I’m at the lake. Taking pictures.

Sadly, the above really did happen, and I didn't get the photos I'd hoped for.

The Writer's Pause

11/13/2022

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What is referred to as "writer's block" is closing in on me and I'm not sure of what to do, but I plan to step back, take a break, and then I'll be able to see the road in front of me.

Almost like coming to a roadblock, enjoying the pause, and then going forward to a place you've not seen before.

The trick may be not to call it writer's block, but a pause before inspiration strikes. And sometimes you just have to enjoy the view in front of you even if you can't go forward at the moment.

Photo Note: The bison are at the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve

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Sandhill Cranes' Majestic Flights

Sunrise...Is it worth it?

Prairie Dogs...

Hollow Tree Kittens to the Rescue!

Yellowstone—2023 Part I

Yellowstone USA 2023 Part II

Wichita Wildlife Refuge

February 26th, 2023

Sliding Downhill Can Be an Uphill Battle

The Writer's Pause

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