A marmot was playing amongst the large boulders off of the Arapaho Glaciers Trail in the Front Range Mountains of Colorado.
Marmot in Yellow Meadow
Marmot Sunning Himself on Granite
A lone marmot enjoying the sunny day on a granite rock. He was not too concerned with Teig and I hiking on the trail to Arapaho Glaciers in the Colorado Rockies.
Momma Porcupine in a Tree
For the second time in as many weeks we ran into a porcupine on a trail north of Vail, Colorado. She was huge and a mamma walking toward Teig and I. She couldn't recognize us until she was about 25 feet away. Luckily, Teig was on leash at the moment and their was no altercation. I let her move to a nearby tree and climb up about eight feet before getting this photograph of her where she felt safe. She was gorgeous.
Sloan’s Lake Resident
This guy was up in one of the trees around Sloan's Lake in Denver Colorado. He was enjoying the sun on a winter’s day.
Bull between Bugles
This large bull Elk was in between bugles during autumn rutting season in Rocky Mountain National Park. What a wonderful experience for us to watch and listen.
Bull Elk Resting in Grass
A large bull elk relaxing on a late September morning in the high Colorado Rocky Mountains.
Bison Lounging at the Great Salt Lake
A small herd of bison were lounging on the beaches of Antelope Island in the Great Salt Lake. This island is a state park and a wonderful location to explore Salt Lake. Ogden Utah is located across the lake.
Colorado Rocky Mountain Goat on Mount Democrat
On our way to the summit of Mount Democrat (14,155 ft), we met this guy hanging out in the rocks checking out the hikers. It is always fun to run into these goats above treeline on the way to the summit of a fourteener. Quick Fact: they are not a native species to Colorado and are descendants of transplants from the Rockies north of Colorado for game hunters in the 1940's.
Llama Running Along Fence
This llama was super curious of Teig and I when we got out of our truck to photograph the storm over the distant vistas. He kept an eye on us the whole time to make sure we didn’t trespass on his turf.
Strolling through the Tall Grass
Mule deer walking through the grass after a quick spring snowing event at Rocky Mountain Arsenal outside of Denver Colorado.
Stars, Milky Way and and Night Eyes
The Milky Way is amazing, especially viewing it above 11,000 feet in the Colorado Rockies. On this summer evening I was shooting the night sky in complete darkness. I was out in the forest alone and heard a bunch of rustling near me, totally freaking me out. I booked it back to camp which was a couple of hundred yard away. I came back a got my camera a short time later with a extremely bright headlamp. When I got home and processed the shots I found out it was just a few deer feeding in the grass on the mountainside. When you are out in complete darkness by yourself, you can get rattled and spooked by noises in the dark. By the way, Teig was asleep in the truck back at camp.
Lone Rocky Mountain Goat
A lone mountain goat grazing on Mount Evans on a summer day as the it was beginning to snow. This is typical even in August above 14,000 feet amsl in the Rockies of Colorado.
Bull Moose at Maroon Lake
This bull moose was roaming Maroon Lake above Aspen Colorado. This is the location where people get the iconic images of Maroon Bells and this guy was creating excitement and some havoc with the photographers. I was definitely enjoying the scene and watching him run off some of the folks.
Lone Pronghorn in the Utah Sage
Exploring the backcountry of Northwest Utah you find a plethora of wildlife. Pronghorn Antelope are common in the area and I came across this guy alone in a remote valley near village of Lucin. I loved the vision of the sage, grass and him just standing there checking me out. I would say we had mutual interest in each other.
Buck Above the Denver Skyline
A group of whitetail deer were feeding on one of the promotories on North Table Mountain as we were exploring off-trail on a gorgeous January day. They heard us coming and this buck watched me taking photos before he took off down the side cliffs. It was awesome to see him so beautiful and strong in front of the skyline of downtown Denver, Colorado.
Lone Wild Mustang at Preserve
A lone mustang at the Sand Wash Wild Mustang Preserve in Northwestern Colorado. This horse was very calm and relaxed before dawn when I came across him in the preserve. He let me photograph him and even stood erect and tall when I did.
Lone Wild Mustang at Preserve
Longhorns Grazing on Wyoming Grass
The couple of Texas Longhorn steers were grazing on grassland near Devils Tower National Monument in Northern Wyoming. It caught me by surprise to see them out on the prairie grassland mixing in with the American Bison.The Texas Longhorn was fashioned entirely by nature in North America. Stemming from ancestors that were the first cattle to set foot on American soil almost 500 years ago, they became the sound end product of "survival of the fittest". With the destruction of the buffalo following the Civil War, the Longhorns were rushed in to occupy the Great Plains, a vast empire of grass vacated by the buffalo. Cattlemen brought their breeding herds north to run on the rich grazing lands of western Nebraska, Wyoming, the Dakotas, and Montana. Thus, the Great Plains became stocked largely with these "bovine citizens" from the Southwest.
Longhorns Grazing on Wyoming Grass
Asserting Dominance
While exploring the area around Sage Creek in Badlands National Park we came across this large bull American Bison. He was a good 30+ yards from us but was showing typical signs of dominance and “I am the big boy on the block”. He was rolling in the grass and dusting up the area around him. He was grunting and dropping his head. I heeded his display and moved in the opposite direction. These guys are so interesting, massive and mesmerizing to see in the wild. I really enjoy just watching them do their thing. South Dakota has numerous wild herds and is a fantastic place to check them out. I am so very happy that we didn’t hunt them to extinction and have instead reintroduced them to the wild in our wildlife refuges and parks.
Asserting Dominance
Bighorn Sheep in Zion
Bighorn Sheep on a steep incline on the east side of Zion National Park in Utah. These sheep are a big draw for park goers and with the beautiful landscape as a background can make a great photograph. Being a Coloradan and seeing these sheep often, this landscape inspires grand visions of what these animals can climb and survive on. I love the Bighorns and am always excited to see them thrive in the wild.
Bighorn Sheep in Zion