Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR: Mule Deer and Sunsets

My visit to Rocky Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge was off to a great start with my pair of hawk encounters. As the light faded and I continued my drive, I had a couple of more great photo opportunities still to come.

The first was with a small group of mule deer just north of the Wildlife Drive Turn-Around at the end of 64th Avenue.  They were back in the trees, too far and too obscured for great pictures.  So I sat and waited.  I had the luxury of time -- no plans, nowhere else to be.  And lo and behold, their grazing eventually brought them closer and closer to me.

Of course, everyone else who had stopped to shoot them had long since driven off -- something I'm far too often guilty of myself.  This was to be a case study in the benefit of being patient with wildlife when the opportunity allows.

The prize of the group was an eight-point buck who wasn't just back in the trees.  He was lying down so that only his antlers showed, teasing us.  And like the rest of his little herd, he eventually got up and began to feed.

Slowly the group came toward me and then kept going, past me and across the street.  I was shooting from inside my car at this point so as not to spook them, and had to quickly (and awkwardly) shift to my passenger seat for the best view.

One little fawn hurried to keep up with the others.

Once the deer had crossed the light for continuing to try and shoot them was all wrong.  So I went off in search of a good view of the looming sunset.  I hiked a short way along the Bluestem Loop until I reached this view.  While nice, I thought there must be a better spot.  So I returned to my car and headed back west along the Wildlife Drive.

I had it in my head to try the Ladora Loop for something with the lake in the foreground.  I do love my water reflections.  But power lines really hurt the view.  So I returned to the Wildlife Drive and caught sight of the Denver skyline, beautifully backlit by vivid oranges and yellows off the mountains.  This was the spot.

Speaking of power lines, this shot originally had six of them.  I dusted off my long-dormant Photoshop skills and did, I think, a respectable job taking them out.  Software is scary.  But this scene is definitely NOT scary. :)

Four stops, three of which yielded some wonderful photos.  A terrific Colorado winter day!