Waterton Canyon: December 2015

Following my unexpected encounter with a bald eagle in TrailMark, I headed to Waterton Canyon hoping to run into some of the usually reliable bighorn sheep. I would not be disappointed.

I had perfect timing a little more than a mile in, catching a young male and female trying to cross the South Platte River.  They were discovering that the surface was not completely frozen.

The young lady went first, followed reluctantly but eventually by the boy.

I went up about three miles to where I've seen some big rams in the past, but ran into no other sheep.  I even asked a couple of runners coming back down the canyon if they'd see any, but they had not.

Fortunately, the two I'd seen cross earlier were apparently just joining a few others who were grazing on the opposite side.  I decided to scramble up the rocks a bit for a better angle than I could get from the road.

This fellow apparently did not expect to see me.

I spent about 10 minutes just watching the small herd munch and gradually move up the canyon.  The sheep are always good at navigating the rock walls.

The group eyed me warily, but never seemed to put out by my presence.

The only really young one gave me a Black Widow pose.  Cheeky bum looker!

A last stare -- an apparent reminder that I was on their turf -- and we parted ways.

Even without seeing any of the "big boys,"I got the dose of charismatic megafauna I was looking for!