Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR, October 2026

I was reminded of two truisms about wildlife photography on Saturday.  First, golden hour light is the best light.  Otherwise uninteresting scenes become something magical right after sunrise and right before sunset.  Second, animals are also more active during those times.  I can gripe about why it's inconvenient to shoot at those times, but that won't make more animals appear or the light better outside those times.

The Mile High Wildlife Photo Club knows these things.  That's why when we planned an outing to the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge yesterday, we met at 6:40 a.m.

And I'm glad we did. :)

Nine of us gathered and split into different vehicles.  I hopped into the back of one, which afforded me the opportunity to move from the left to the right side of the car depending on where the shots were.  Like this little White-tailed Deer lady having some breakfast...

...and this other doe doing the same.

The American Bison were out in force, although a good distance away and not in great light.

The deer, while far fewer in number, were closer and bathed in golden sunshine.

Prairie dogs are always plentiful.  On my visits now I'm mainly looking for group shots or cute behavior.  This trio gave me both.

I'm not exactly sure what the birds are on the back of this lone bison.  I suspect Brown-headed Cowbirds.

The light on this Red-winged Blackbird revealed some stunning colors and textures.

I love how there's just enough texture in the clouds to add a little extra visual interest to this otherwise stark scene.

We got an unexpected sight when a group of bison passed running full tilt.  The dust they were kicking up works well with the backlight.

This Ferruginous Hawk had attracted quite a bit of attention, as we had only seen one other raptor on two circuits around the Wildlife Drive.  Three cars had stopped to take its picture, which not surprisingly it eventually tired of and flew off.

By 9 a.m. the sun was high, the light harsh, and we'd seen about everything we felt likely to see.  Two hours at the right time of day sure presented more quality sights than we would have probably seen in significantly more time later in the day.  So a great visit!

Related Links:

• Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR, June 2026
• Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR, April 2025
• City Park & Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR, July 2019
• Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR: Mule Deer and Sunsets
• Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR Hawks: December 2015
• Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR: November 2014
• Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR: May 2014
• Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR: October 2012