The Forest in May

Clouds have settled onto our neck of the woods, dropping rain on us for most of the day, for the past several days. Because it's rain rather than snow, it feels as if we've entered springtime. However, just to keep us on our toes, it's supposed to change to snow in the next few days.

We've been out playing in the forest during hard rains. Shyla doesn't mind the rain at all, as far as I can tell. She has wonderful Labrador coat that keeps the water from getting to her skin. Her enthusiasm encourages me to get moving, even when I have to fight the urge to stay in the warm and dry house.

To my amazement, the rain seems to give Shyla extra energy. In the midst of a fairly long mountain bike ride today, she got an intense case of the zoomies. She tucked her butt and sprinted in circles around me, as I labored up a steep hill at a snail's pace. I laughed out loud about her happiness and her incredible athletic ability.

Every now and then, the clouds part and we can see further than 20 yards away from us. As you can see, at our elevation, we are literally "in the clouds" at times. In this case, the clouds were across the valley from us but at the same elevation as us.

I'm guessing that the wildlife are glad that this is rain rather than snow. It is usually snow in early May.

In particular, I've been seeing the same mountain lion passing trail cameras near our house for more than a month. I'm beginning to think that she has kittens stashed somewhere nearby because mountain lions don't usually spend so much time in one area except when they have small kittens. I hope that they're in a well-protected den so they can stay warm and cozy!

Here's to sunshine sometime in the not-so-distant future!

Halloween in the Mountains

Halloween is a quiet holiday around here. We never get trick-or-treaters at our house - our road is too rural for kids to walk (or even ride in a car) from house to house. So, we didn't buy any candy (for the first time) this year. That probably means that we'll actually get trick-or-treaters!

Halloween is always in the midst of the hunting seasons here. While I love having the beautiful elk around, there's a tension in the air until the hunting seasons end. Then, we heave a sigh of relief, put away all the orange gear, and feel more relaxed when we're in the forest.

We were shocked last night when two deer didn't run from us during our evening hike (they usually flee from us during hunting season). Perhaps they know that they are in a relatively safe place. Based on size, we thought that this one was born last spring. Her spotted coat has given way to a winter coat.

And, this one was probably her mother. Mom looks pretty tough. I'm not sure I'd want to mess with her. I hope she and her daughter stay hidden for the next few weeks.

Shyla has become quite good about leaving alone the deer and elk who we see during our mountain bike rides. I can call her away from them in a few steps. Dead stuff seems to fascinate her more than running wildlife.

Today, Shyla's main nod to Halloween was a funny face she made this morning - her dracula face!

And a trick - so that she could earn a treat!

Shyla doesn't like costumes. Moreover, people (especially children) wearing costumes scare her so we stay away from town on this holiday. And, while she'll tolerate me putting a hat or other costume on her - she never looks happy about it so I've stopped doing it.

But R was glad to wear an orange hat in celebration of Halloween! What a dude.

For us, Halloween is usually the true beginning of winter. The time changes back to standard time so our "evening" hikes become "afternoon" hikes. And, usually the snow starts flying regularly soon after this holiday. The Divide sure looked wintery today!

Happy Halloween!

Solar Eclipse!

Our pack stopped everything to watch the partial solar eclipse this afternoon. As you know, it's not safe to look at the sun without eye protection. R was ready!

Shyla kept cheating, peaking out from the glasses with one eye.

My camera was ready too. I had a solar filter from back in 2012 when we saw the annular solar eclipse on K's last trip to the desert.

We saw the second half of the eclipse today. Here, the moon was taking a large bite out of the sun. You can see that there were sun spots - several of them - visible through our funky glasses and my special lens filter.

The sun was fairly high in the sky for when the eclipse was maximum but some clouds drifted across the sun at times.

The next one looks like a Halloween decoration! Spooky dark clouds gathered at the bottom of the sun. You can also see the shadow of the moon "rolling" to the left compared to previous photos.

As the eclipse was winding down, the sun was also setting. So, the sun took on a honey-like beautiful color and thin clouds added a touch of mystique.

As the sun dropped in the sky, the clouds over the Divide started changing colors.

At the very end of the eclipse, there were no clouds obscuring the sun, and the sun sat just barely above the Divide. You can see the tiny bit of shadow of the moon in the upper left of the sun.

Finally, about 3 minutes before the sun dropped below the mountains, the whole orb blazed again! The entire sequence of photos was over about an hour.

And patient Shyla sat glowing in the setting sun's light after the eclipse was over.

It was a fun and relaxing afternoon, seeing something that is so rare. In the next decade, there will be only three solar eclipses visible from anywhere near our perch in the mountains so I'm glad we took the time to sit out on K's rock (where the banner photo was taken) and watch this eclipse.

Sunset - The Labraduo and the Mountain Lion Duo

One evening recently, the Labraduo and I were enjoying a quiet evening hike up on our plateau.  R waved goodbye to the sun as it dipped toward the horizon.

And I was in awe of the deep red color that the setting sun brought out in Shyla's fur.

At almost the same time, a mother mountain lion and her kitten were in the middle of a long walk nearby. I caught footage of them at five trail camera different sites (about 600 photos and a minute of real video). I think I've figured out their favorite route!

Today, I'll share just one set of photos that is kind of funny. Here, mom is walking up a gully. She has a GPS and radio collar around her neck and tags pinned to her ears for a study she's in. She looks small. My guess is that she's a young mother.

Because she was in a shaded area, my camera went into infrared mode, glowing with a soft red flash and yielding black and white photos. Mom seemed to notice the soft red glow of the camera.

She licked her lips while she waited for her kitten.

Her kitten appeared behind her. My expert friend and I are guessing the kitten is somewhere between 4 and 8 months old.

At another camera, Kitty showed us her underside, and I'm pretty she's a girl (you'll see all the footage over the coming week or so). Kitty also focused on the camera.

For an instant, they both alerted on something else - maybe a sound in the forest. The kitten doesn't have a collar for the study (yet).

The curious kitten stared at the camera.

Her eyes squinted, as she seemed to contemplate it. I actually wish it didn't attract their attention at all. I have one camera with an invisible flash (no red glow), and I might move it to this site.

Then, Mom decided to leave, and the kitten started sniffing a spot often marked by wild cats.

Very interesting, she thought...

Then, unfortunately for me, she really focused on the camera.

With determination, she moved toward it.

And then the camera captured a whole series of photos like this one - a closeup of cat fur as the kitten rubbed very hard against the camera.

After a little while the kitten backed away, but you can see that the camera view is now skewed.

Indeed, the camera then fell to the ground, face down.

And that was how I found it. You can imagine, after the recent theft, that I felt very anxious when I glimpsed the camera lying on the ground. But, I quickly figured out that it was probably a wild animal's work because the strap holding the camera case in place had been broken. The cable lock between the camera and the tree was still intact. Phew.

When I looked at the photos, I laughed out loud. The antics of a kitten!!!!

I feel so privileged to be able to see the lives of our most elusive animals up close and personal. 

A Stormy Start to our Trip

Our trip started out in the midst of rain. It was raining at home when we departed, and the weather wasn't much different at a favorite campsite of ours. At least they were pretty clouds...

On that first night, for the only time while we were at the campsite, we could see the stars for about an hour. Because I knew the Perseid meteor showers were ramping up, I decided to pull out the camera for some star photos. I love seeing the Milky Way and shooting stars, all in one instant!

Then the clouds started to return, obscuring parts of the sky. Within a few minutes, we couldn't see more than 10' away from us. We were literally camping in the midst of the clouds.

The next morning, it wasn't raining but the Divide looked threatening, by any standard. This photo is on one of my favorite mountain biking trails. Over the days that we spent camping near it, this was the sunniest that it ever looked. I spent almost every instant on this trail pedaling like a maniac, trying to avoid being struck by lightning. I exhausted myself, but I saw the trail without any major mishaps.

We're thinking of visiting that area again soon to enjoy some sunshine rather than perpetual views of the trail like the next one. I found the clouds to be gorgeous but also very scary for someone riding a bike above treeline on the spine of the Continental Divide.

We did have some brief moments of sunshine near our campsite, making the wildflowers shine like candles in the night. We'd all run outside to have some fun in the fleeting sun.

Shyla leaped with joy during those respites from the monsoons.

And R sprinted with abandon (which makes me smile because his elbow seems so strong right now).

Then, as fast as the sun had broken through, a new storm front would appear on nearby mountains. We were perched so high in our campsite that we could see storm fronts coming our way in all directions.

Then the front would creep to the edge of our meadow before the skies above us opened up, again.

It was truly a lesson in life at high altitude. We tried to patiently wait out the storm cycle, knowing that eventually the weather would be sunny and nice. However, we finally gave up when every view of the horizon looked like this one. Again, it was beautiful, in a dramatic way, but it portended another day of thunder storms ahead of us.

We eventually decided to break camp to try to find better weather. We were treated to a pretty meadow vision on that last evening before we departed.

On the morning that we departed that camp, we did a quick run/bike ride before going to town to find a cafe with wifi where we could search for a sunny part of Colorado to visit.

Our decision seemed perfect when our final morning outing from that campsite involved deep fog and the heaviest rain we'd seen yet. Yes, the trail in that photo is on top of a mountain - although it's impossible to tell due to the clouds hugging it.

Our strategy of searching out good weather ended up being successful. The photos from yesterday's post were taken about 8 hours after our rain-soaked run/ride with zero visibility. Our search led us to find an island of sunshine and wildflowers. Sometimes it pays off to scrap your "plans" and follow the sunshine! We had great weather for the rest of our trip because we continued to follow the sun!