1 Adventure

Colorado Mountain Hillside In Summer - Oh Take Me Back!

I saved the best for last. I love this image, one of my favorites out of all the ones I took. It just came out exactly how I saw it. I could not duplicate this again (I tried). Anyway, this is looking up the side of hillside while perched on a trail on the side of a mountain. The wildflowers were amazing, such good texture. And finally the sky came out! I have trouble with washed out skys, and sometime I hit it, sometimes I miss it completely. Hope you enjoy.

Farrier Service - Shoe A Horse, Save A Cowboy!

Shoe A Horse, Save A Cowboy. Okay, I didn't really know what title to use for this image besides what it was. A professional farrier shoeing a horse in the rain. The Save A Cowboy part is meant to say, when you have a happy horse who isn't lame, you have a happy cowboy.

This image was the only one that came out. I really liked it. You can't see in the image but it was pouring down rain!! I pulled out the camera, afraid to get it wet and snapped this first image. Captured two more images, and those didn't turn out as the lense fogged up and it looked bad. So the camera did get wet, but it survived and this image was the result of the risk. I like how the big draft horse is so big in such a droppy position (its drugged) and the farrier is behind working on the hoof. Some of the horses we had were quite a bit shy about people working on them like this. Give them a magic 3cc shot and they don't move for a couple hours, saving the cowboy from getting kicked or worse when doing this tough work. These farrier guys were hard workers, this is not an easy job by any means.

If you are looking for a farrier service, may I recommend you visiting the Farrier Association website to find one.

Frank The Fox - Colorado Red Fox

This guy was a joy to hang out with some mornings during breakfast on a horse ride. He would run around the general property taking scraps and food from anyone that would give him so. Besides making a lot of friends, he garnered a few different names as well, but in the end Frank won out. He is apparently a Red Fox according to the sources I dug up. These guys are also present in Texas. They are either redder or predominately cream colored, and have a lot less fur in the summer. From the research I did, I think this Colorado Division of Wildlife website needs to be updated. It lists 4 main species of foxes, but not a whole lot else. I found evidence of many other kinds living in Colorado, everthing from black foxes, multi-colored variations and so on.

Interestingly enough, according to this website Foxes in Colorado have been on the rise over the last 10 years. They are now cohabitating in close quarters with humans on a urban basis. Cute, yes but not necessarily a good thing sometimes.

This was the best image I could get, and I think one of the best of him while I was in Colorado. It was very early in the morning so the sun is a bit intense at such a low angle. However, its rather sharp and he is positioned well. Enjoy!

Fly That American Flag At Your Local Rodeo

Enjoyed how the composition of this photo came out so well. It was a chance shot where I had to click the shutter at the right time to get it all in place as the whole scene is rather fast moving. I felt so patriotic after taking this picture. :-)

Carolina Wren - Birds of Colorado

Was a bit disappointed with how the quality turned out on YouTube. The original video is a lot clearer and better quality. Anyway, posting for your enjoyment nonetheless. Had some fun with these birds while I was in Colorado. Have always liked this type of bird and these were rather friendly and would land on my shoulders and arms while I was sitting there on a hammock. They zoomed around right over me with bugs and whatnot to feed their chicks.

These birds are Carolina Wrens according to the USGS website, or as best as I can determine from it. Had a little troubled deciding between a Bewick's Wren, Winter Wren, and Carolina Wren. They look so similar for the most part, you have to pay attention to all the detail. If you are an ornithologist and know for sure, let me know.

Correction: This has been identified as a House Wren, not a Carolina. I was close though.

Large Dandelion Flower Parachutes From Colorado

I really like how this image came out. So much texture compounded by the uniquely strange shape of the florets. Took this picture in the mountains of Colorado, in some of the higher elevations areas that received a large amount of sunlight every year. This type of dandelion was normally found in sunny open areas and not under the decidious trees. This particular dandelion (?) was very large about 5-6 inches in diameter. Imagine a normal one you would find in a backyard and multiply by 10 to imagine the size of it. When the globe of seeds where blown or carried by the wind the parachutes (or seed top) float very slowly down in a beautiful way.