April 29, 2026

This evening I decided it was cool enough and windy enough to go walk at the river.  I hadn't been down there in a long time due to being too warm and skeeters coming out.  There were a lot of people and the nonstop traffic noise sure didn't make for a peaceful walk.  Plus, between jets and planes it was just way to noisy.  There was not a single bird on the pond and very few otherwise.  Maybe they don't like all the people around either.  Anyway, I likely won't go back until next winter...if then.  I like solitude and quiet and you sure can't get it there.  Nikon P950

 April 28, 2026

Today I went up by Ridgway to do some timelapses.  I hadn't done that in a long time and wanted to try it out on the Nikon Z50II.  It worked well.  I first was at the upper end of the lake for a couple.  Then I drove part way up Owl Creek and did another.  The wind was blowing everywhere, so there were a few jitters in the filming.  It was a good day anyway.  I didn't take any photos, so the shots here are screen captures from the timelapses.  Another wonderful afternoon in God's great creation.

 April 25, 2026

This evening was another P77 run. A storm is coming so I thought maybe the wildlife would be more active earlier. That proved to be true. Though we saw all sorts of critters we couldn’t get photos of all due to the brief time we saw them. We saw: red tail hawk, lots of deer (40-50), ducks, elk, a young bull moose, a coyote, and lots of nice scenery. It was a very peaceful, blessed evening. 

 April 24, 2026

We took off today up Cebolla way. On a whim we decided to take the Huntsman’s Mesa road. The lower part is not too rough. But the upper area is not technical but it is very rocky. We often were only going under five mph. We saw lots of deer…probably 40-50. It was completely dry and dusty even at 10,000’. It is way too dry for this time of year. Anyway OnX showed a road from the top down to the Lake City highway. We followed it out to a cliff and there was no more road, even though the map said there was. So, much to our sadness we had to backtrack all the way back the way we came. What a bouncy workout. We won’t go on that road again. We actually ran into a guy with an Audi wagon up there with a mountain bike on the back. How he made it without tearing that car apart we'll never know. It was a newer nice car…what a way to treat it. We stopped at Subway in Gunnison for supper and came home. 

Uncompahgre Peak - highest peak in the San Juans

 April 23, 2026

Today I went with Allen turkey hunting up Transfer. We didn’t see or hear any. Of course the wind was blowing so it was hard to hear anything. We saw an unusual coyote about 75 yards off the road. It stood and watched us for a bit then sat down on its haunches and kept watching us. It then laid down and just watched. Allen finally decided to open the truck door and that sent it running away. We ended up coming back down Hwy 90. That transfer is sure not getting any smoother.

 

 April 21, 2026

Today I did a quick hike on the Buck Trail.  It was pretty soggy up there, but nice and cool.  I even got sprinkled on a bit which was a treat.  The bears are awake.  One had walked up the trail in the mud.  I couldn't get a rear paw photo as I couldn't find a rear print.  But, I also didn't see any claw marks on the prints, so wondered if it couldn't be a mountain lion track???  If so, it was a pretty big cat.  I'm pretty sure it was a bear as it wasn't rounded enough for a cat.  Anyway, it was a fun brief outing.

 April 20, 2026

We did another P77 run tonight.  Saw some deer and elk and of course the incredible mountains.  The snowpack right now for the Gunnison River basin is 18% of normal.  Very sad indeed.

We couldn't get elk photos as they were hanging out right under a power line - not very photogenic.  The others were pretty skittish.  We saw one group of what appeared to be three bulls.  They were big and light colored.  They ran across the road in front of us and over the hill.  About a mile up the road we saw them again still on the run with tongues hanging out.  They had covered a mile in rugged terrain as fast as we did in the Jeep.  It was a beautiful blessed evening.  I love how the aspens glow this time of year.  Thank you Lord!

 April 18, 2026

This evening we headed up to P77.  I figured it would be too muddy from the snow and it was.  So we went on down to the Big Cimarron.  We went up just past Silverjack.  We saw quite a few deer, some elk and a few turkeys.  The tom turkey was showing off for the ladies.  That road was only damp in a few spots.  I switched cameras and am going back to a Nikon Z50 II.  Inexpensive and good quality.  What a blessing to be so close to such beautiful scenery.  We take it for granted too much.  God is good!