23 Sep 14. The New Limelighter's have a song which I believe is called "All God's Creatures" but I could have it incorrect that has as part of the chorus the lines "All God's creatures have a place in the choir, some sing low and some sing higher . . . . . ." which came to mind on our visit hear as a result of listening to the elk bugle, the coyotes and wolves communicating amongst themselves but also being answered by the local pooches, the chirping of grasshoppers, and the singing of birds, both Mountain Blue birds and Sand Hill Cranes, of which the latter nest in our back yard area and the former likely all over the area. Missing are the Bison but hopefully they will arrive shortly. Also around but I've yet to hear them participate in the choir are Red Foxes, two of which were making their presence known last night. One very friendly guy called Freddy made his way to visit on the night of first arrival, then came by for a handout of Blue Grouse courtesy of a neighbor who had been enjoying a successful hunt earlier in the day. Part way through his meal he was joined by an unwelcome associate and after a delightful (to us) game of circle chase, he drove off the visitor. He was back tonight but very briefly. Tomorrow it is off to Swan Valley ID to see the Big Tooth Maples, which I been mistakenly calling Bear Tooth Maples. Hopefully the weather will afford us some nice red colored hillside shots. Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 500; 1/10 sec @ f / 5.6; hand held.
24 Sep 14. Monday's plan was to go into town and get some supplies to work on framing some photos and then to enter the park to do a bit of exploring. On the way home we decided to take a short drive to visit a park near where we are staying but went left when we should have gone right. That took us on a 5 mile drive around and above Lake Hebgen to what was effectively a dead end. Going both ways we encountered plenty of chuck holes and pools of water which of course thoroughly bathed the under carriage of the SUV. A couple miles from home the check engine light came on which had happened a year ago under similar road conditions and then corrected itself after a serious car wash so we decided to just spend the day puttering around the house. Tuesday morning we stayed home and worked on several items that needed taking care of as well as getting the beast a good washing. When that didn't work we called our mechanic in Seattle who said don't worry about it but get the codes checked if you have the opportunity. We couldn't get that done but a nice individual at a NAPA store said it was likely a clogged O2 sensor and not to be concerned. So back home we went and instead of visiting Swan Valley as planned completed all our chores. On the way out to dinner the light once again went out, so tomorrow it is off to Swan Valley bright and early. With luck, we'll get some decent waterfall shots before reaching the valley followed by the vibrant red leaves that the area is known for in the tourist books. The shot you are seeing is a property directly behind the condo that sits below a nice stand of aspen. As we were returning home from the Lake Hebgen "tour" the sun broke out for a few minutes brilliantly lighting the trees. The area to the right in the photo is where the Sandhill Cranes nest. Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority ISO 200; 1/800 sec @ f / 5.6.
25 Sep 14. Yesterday was a long day making the trip to Swan Valley. It began with an early rise to see the purple mountain majesty framed in a majestic sunrise in the front yard and closed with a cantata by the wolves under a fully stared night with the big dipper spilling over onto the meadow aside us; couldn't have asked for much more! Somewhat of a contrast to the preceding several days but all of which have been nice, some just nicer than others. Our drive around the area on Monday under some potentially threatening conditions presented the aspens in differing arraignment of yellows, depending on the game of tag being played by the clouds with the sun. As part of the journey we took the switchback to the top of Horse Butte some 7,000 feet looking down upon Lake Hebgen. As we wove our way to the top the aspens would pop up in small groves occasionally being strongly back lit which I couldn't resist shooting every time it occurred. This is one such shot taken with the lake in the background, the tall summer grasses in the foreground now golden, and the storm clouds hovering in the background, all rendered in colored pencil courtesy of the new plug-in from Topaz. Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 200; 1/320 sec @ f /10.
