Groups of Sandhill Cranes in flight can best be seen around sunrise and sunset each day, as the birds head from their overnight roosting sites in the river to their feeding sites in the nearby fields and vice versa. And if you don't get views of the cranes, you still get a sunrise or sunset out of the deal. :)
My first night I tried the CPNRD Alda Viewing Deck. Cranes and humans were gathering well before the sunset, and the cranes were unfortunately choosing to roost quite a ways upriver. So I shifted my attention from the water to the skies, looking for silhouettes of birds in flight against the colorful sky.
I love how sometimes shooting at a 90-degree angle to the setting sun can give you beautiful gradients of brightness and color.
I was so focused on the river that I almost missed the show just slightly to the north, where the sky was really ablaze and a small pond offered a brilliant reflection.
The next morning I tried the CPNRD Plautz Viewing Deck. I was glad for some advice I received to get there 90-75 minutes before sunrise, because there was still one parking spot left when I arrived.
After a chilly wait while the sounds of the cranes grew louder, the light revealed that they were also roosting a good distance away from the deck. So back to silhouettes against the sky it was.
Fortunately, silhouettes are cool.
That evening I tried the Fort Kearny Hike/Bike Trail Bridge. The cranes decided to roost elsewhere, but a couple of crossing deer were a nice consolation.
Like I mentioned, even when the cranes don't cooperate you still get the sun on the horizon. Some days that's all I go out to shoot for anyway.
If I want close-up shots of cranes in their roosting spots, I'm going to need to spring for a "tour." That's just a euphemism for paying for access to a blind. Something to consider if I decide to return in the future!
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