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| Hiking | 0.50 Miles |
40 AEG |
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| 40 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | I'm skipping over my Whitewater Draw days so I can get the Autumn Chasing days posted. Will post Whitewater Draw later after I finish those photos. I left Whitewater Draw the day after Thanksgiving and meandered my way towards my camp for that night. First stop on the meander was a place I haven't been in about 10 years.
My memory must be shorter than I realize or this place has changed a ton since I've been here. The campground where I stayed is still there, but there is a lot more dispersed camping areas than I remember. And the creek! There must have been some severe flooding over the years for the creekbed to change so drastically. Last time I was here, I walked up the creek all the way to a nice waterfall, but this time I was stopped not far from the campground by a dam and a canyon! And the creekbed is way wider than it used to be even before that! It was like experiencing it all for the first time.
This time of year, this high in elevation, it was a pretty quiet place and there was still some Autumn happening along the creek. I found a nice little dispersed camping spot to park and started walking up the creek. I think the local fauna was appreciating the quiet as well, I encountered a small rafter of turkeys that didn't see me for a bit, so I got some pics. There were about a dozen or so total. A few other birds around but they weren't as cooperative. I turned around at the new dam type structure? and walked the road back to my truck.
I stayed at the truck and made some breakfast before leaving for my next destination. Before I was even done eating, I noticed some more turkeys on the other side of the road, making their way past me down a gradual slope. As I continued to watch, I became astounded at the sheer number of birds in that rafter. They just kept coming and coming and coming. I could do nothing but estimate, but I'm guessing there were at least 50 birds. I suspected they were heading for the creek and would have to cross the road, so I used my truck as a blind and hoped they would cross before they were out of sight. And they did, right where the road turns a corner. Long zoom, but it was pretty amazing seeing all those birds. I think it should have been called a party instead of a rafter, as they were all still alive the day after Thanksgiving and they were certainly celebrating when they hit the road. 
It was a good morning and a good start to my day. I drove back out and headed for my next destination, another area I hadn't been since 2017. Also to see a long-time friend, catch up and do some more laps.
Will post one more triplog for this day. |
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Autumn Foliage Observation Light
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| Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty & well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, totally worn out & proclaiming, "Wow What a Ride!" |
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Route Editor
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