Roadtripping for Wildlife

It’s the time of year when cabin fever starts to set in and I’m desperate to get outdoors any time the weather complies. This past weekend, I foreswore being hunched over my computer working on the Unnamed Unicorn Project in favor of tromping around in the sunshine chasing elk at the Jewell Meadow Wildlife Refuge. Even if I make an even poorer wildlife photographer than I do a landscape photographer, a road trip and fresh air are wonderful for the creative process…

 

This last one is really not an image that I normally would have included. The sunlight and shadows were playing havoc with exposure times and it’s just not a great shot. But I loved the pose of the bucks here and it underlines the fact that no matter how jaded I might be, I have never gotten over the giddy excitement of sighting wildlife in my proximity- Look! There’s an elk/bunny/salamander/pelican/guanaco/eagle/bear/wild horse/butterfly/raccoon/a thousand penguins! Every time.