Tag Archives: Elk

Elk on the Run

Sangre de Cristo Sunset

Not a huge morning for photography… But it was a fabulous morning for a hike with the big dog. I chose to tackle the high ridge again today because I know there is a herd of buck mule deer up there that have been eluding me for some time now. Unfortunately, today was no different. I was looking hard for the animals when we cleared the top of the ridge but didn’t see any sign that the beasties where there today. All of a sudden from behind a grove of trees I saw the backs of the deer as they high tailed it for the safety of the dense woods with no chance whatsoever of a picture.

It was a beautiful sunrise though, the distant mountains were obscured a bit by smokeMountain Wildflowers and haze but the effect on the nearer mountains created a nice effect. There was also a good crop of wildflowers blooming everywhere, probably what is tempting the mule deer herd so.

Finally as we neared the end of  our trek I noticed a herd of elk in the distance. I had hoped that they would stop and look at me, but they were definitely in a hurry to go somewhere! Seems every time I see elk these days they are on the run. I thought I was being quite stealthy and I don’t think they knew we were there but they were in a hurry

Elk Running in the Colorado High Country

anyway. I suppose they feel quite nervous out in the open and they were just trying to get to the safety of the wilderness as quickly as possible! I did get this shot of three of them going the other way and I’m thinking it has a good chance of being successful in the stock photograph world!

Perhaps I will outsmart the deer tomorrow… in the meantime I’m going to get a good meal in my belly!

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Beautiful Morning in the High Country

Deer in the Rockies

I have to say, it was a spectacular morning in the high country of Colorado today. Sun shining, not too hot, nice breeze 🙂 And the wildlife seemed to like it too, there were quite a few out feeding on the nice green mountain grass… thanks to all the rain we have been getting lately. I think I have heard somewhere recently that they have declared the drought “over” 🙂

Saw a beautiful buck up by the mines but he saw us first and vanished without a trace, with no chance at all for a picture 😦 Also saw this young buck and a doe mule deer that weren’t quite as skittish and then a rare treat with a couple of elk. The elk were on the move so this was the best shot I could get of them traveling in the other direction. At first I thought it was just a couple of cows but now on the computer I can see the lead animal is a big bull elk. Looks like his antlers are coming along nicely for the fall rut… only a couple of months

Deer in the Rockies

away!

The elk were too distant for a print so I haven’t uploaded that one to my website, but the deer can be found in the wildlife gallery as wall art on metal or acrylic sheets, stretched canvas and traditional framing and matting.

Elk Running in the Colorado High Country

Summer Struggle

Elk in Fresh Snow

Summer is the worst time of the year for my wildlife and landscape photography. I work so late and the sun rises so early that’s it is almost impossible to get out for a sunrise session. Later in the morning the sun beating down from straight overhead pretty much washes all the color out of a scene and the animals are all avoiding the heat of the day hiding deep in  the forest.

I try to make the best of it though, I still have hundreds images that I have flagged for upload to the stock agencies that are still waiting patiently on my hard drive for some attention! This image was one from the day after our huge “bomb cyclone” blizzard. I still remember this day, the elk had gathered near the summit where the snow had mostly blown away and access to the mountain grass easiest. There were about a dozen that I have uploaded to stock including this one. Don’t think I will put them on my website website as prints though, I have similar images already for sale there in the “elk” gallery.

Elk in the Sunshine

These elk appear to be having a relaxing morning! I saw them grazing on the mountain

Elk Herd in the Wilderness

grass near the edge of the dense pine forest. For some reason they saw me but did not retreat into the safety of the trees, but slowly walked along the edge of the wilderness while I snapped away using my big 400mm Canon lens. Usually they disappear like ghosts into the forest the moment they spot me. This was my favorite one with the rugged snow capped Sangre de Cristo mountain range in the background  🙂

Elk Herd and the Sangre de Cristo

As always, this image and more are available on my website as wall art on glossy metal or acrylic sheets, stretched canvas and traditional framing and matting. Cool household, tech and gift items are also available with #swkrullimaging artwork on them! Click the link if you want to see more!

Is Winter Really Over?

Elk in Fresh Rocky Mountain May Snow

Three days of snow in May and the storm clouds have finally dispersed. A beautiful hike through the fresh snow in the back country and I’m wondering if we will finally be able to say goodbye to Old Man Winter for the season! I guess the elk were probably hoping for the same… when we cleared the ridge I saw them basking in the morning sun that we haven’t seen for days 🙂

Storm Clouds on Pikes Peak Colorado

 

 

May Snow

Fresh Spring Snow on the Sangre de Cristo

I thought I might be done walking through snow for the season, but it doesn’t seem so! Heavy late April snows have once again blanketed the high country with a mantle of bright white. It looks good on the Sangre de Cristo though! Just as we cleared the top of the ridge today’s storm clouds parted just long enough for me to grab this shot of the rugged range to the south.

Elk were resting in the soft snow at the edge of the wilderness we call the Pike National

Elk in the Snow

Forest. They seemed to be so enjoying the early morning sun that I didn’t have the heart to finish my hike right past them so we just cut our trek short. A couple of the majestic beasts stood up for a better look but as we headed back down the mountainside I took one last look back and they were settling back down.

I would not have gotten any closer for a better capture anyway, all I would have accomplished would be to have caused them to run. My goal besides getting nice pictures of course, is to never cause the animals to run. There are a ton of prairie dog holes and loose rocks that can cause serious injury to these animals if they have to run. That’s why I get so furious when people let there dogs chase them, I don’t know what people have against a little forethought these days 😦

Well anyway, as usual, these pictures and more are available for purchase as wall art and royalty free stock imagery on my website. If you like, please check it out!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Colorado Wildlife

Elk Herd with the Sangre de Cristo Mountain Range

For a wildlife photographer it’s been a very good few days. Deer all around, bighorn sheep at Cottonwood Lake and and the Cripple Creek elk herd early this morning. The elk were not too far from the trailhead when we arrived so we had to be stealthy exiting the truck. Got off a couple of shots before they noticed me and headed over the top of the mountain. The plan then was to sneak around the north side below the summit and come across from behind the trees.

This time the plan came together. When I crossed over the summit the elk were spread out in the big meadow at the top with a row of pine trees between me and them. Even with Big Dog along we were able to approach the trees and get a bit closer before causing too much alarm. Eventually we did attract their attention again and they began slowly meandering towards the safety of the dense forest. I took that as a cue that we were as close as we were going to get so I just stopped there and snapped a few images in some nice aspen trees as they continued their daily migration. As we made our way down from the summit  I looked back and was glad to see that my photography had not unnecessarily disturbed the majestic beasts. They were lingering on the edge of the trees, still enjoying their morning meal 🙂

Also thought I would include in this post a couple of images from the road trip to Cottonwood Lake near Buena

Elk Herd with the Sangre de Cristo Mountain Range

Vista, the lake was beautiful in the frozen alpine winter. It will be a while before spring reaches that elevation! The final image in this post is the Platte River near Denver as it flows out of the mountains on it’s journey to the Missouri River in Nebraska.

As always, these images and more are available for purchase on my website as wall art on glossy metal or acrylic sheets, stretched canvas and traditional matting and framing. These can be found in the wildlife collection. I put the lake in the Rocky Mountain Winter collection as well as the Bodies of Water collection. Don’t forget that my pictures can  be ordered on a variety of cool gift items, handy tech gadgets, apparel and stationary! Just click on a image to see the product pricing and options!

Bighorn Sheep in the Mountains

Cottonwood Lake and Cottonwood Creek

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Platte River in Waterton Canyon