Aransas NWR, March 2021

I set aside most of my one full day in the Corpus Christi area to visit Aransas National Wildlife Refuge.  I didn't appreciate wildlife refuges as much as I did national parks for a while, but I've come to seek them out almost as frequently in my travels -- especially if I'm hoping to see, well, wildlife.  Funny how that works.

I'm not a storm chaser by any stretch, but I really like the combination of ominous clouds and bare field in this scene from along my drive.

This Wild Turkey hen along the road seemed stuck on the wrong side of the fence, and quite sad about it.

Upon arriving at the refuge I hiked the Rail Trail, and spotted this American Bullfrog in the reeds.

The trail parallels a long, narrow slough that also has American Alligators.

I don't think I've ever seen a leaf that was almost completely white like this Netleaf Hackberry before.

I also hiked the Dagger Point Trail, and had my usual frustrating experience trying to photograph the songbirds that flitted about the forest.  This shot of a Black-throated Green Warbler was my best effort.

The loop trail itself is nice, and not a difficult walk at only about a mile in length.

I got down to the shore at one point and found more trash than natural scenery.  So I made some lemonade with this visual lemon.

I encountered LOTS of butterflies throughout the day.  Most of them were disinterested in landing.  I was fortunate to get a clean shot of this Monarch, because it didn't sit still for very long.

I stopped at an alligator viewing area where there was, indeed, an alligator.  But I was more intrigued by this Spotted Gar.  There's not enough context to tell from the shot, but the fish looked to be at least three feet long.

I got glimpses of other critters while driving and walking around, including White-tailed Deer, American Kestrels, and Whooping Cranes.  But no other compelling photos of anything.  The refuge did seem quite dry, so I wonder if there's more activity when things are wetter.  Whatever the case, I feel the same way about NWRs as other folks do about fishing and golfing -- a bad day at one is still better than any day inside!

Puerto Egas, Part I

I like being around water, especially when I'm taking pictures. But I'm not a huge fan of being in the water. You could maybe blame it on seeing Jaws in the theater when I was six years old. Or maybe needing glasses since I was eight, so when I went swimming I couldn't see very well. Whatever the case, it is what it is. So since I'd gone deep water snorkeling at Buccaneer Cove in the morning -- and seen a Whitetip Reef Shark, which was awesome -- I declined the option to snorkel again at Puerto Egas in the afternoon and instead chose to explore the coastline on foot.

The light was terrific -- clear skies, and getting late enough in the afternoon that the sun was no longer directly overhead.  That helped accent the textures of this dozing Marine Iguana.

Unlike the iguanas, the Sally Lightfoot Crabs were somewhat active.

I love their bright colors, and their eye stalks.

There's not a lot of color to Marine Iguanas.  But there is a lot of interesting texture in their heads and hides.  Black and white brings those details out.

I liked both of these views down the beach.  In the top one my eye tends to focus more on the water, while with the bottom one my attention is more on the layers in the rock wall.

Danelle loves the water, so she did decide to snorkel.  She was a little annoyed that when I saw this in the water, I chose to take pictures rather than trying to get her attention.  The iNaturalist community identified it as a Common Blacktip Shark, which are non-aggressive and typically don't threaten people unless provoked.  We can pretend I knew that.  She was also about 50 yards away in the opposite direction the shark was swimming.  And it looked to be less than five feet long.  At this point, I'm just trying to justify my questionable decision.

To my vast surprise, I saw a Galápagos Sea Lion that actually wasn't sleeping.

There we go.  That's more like it.

Then this big fella showed up.  And shortly thereafter, he also went to sleep.

Lots of these little Santiago Lava Lizards were running around the rocks.

An idyllic scene -- late afternoon sun, fluffy clouds, sparkling sand, and two sleeping sea lions.

Click here for more blog posts from my amazing visit to the Galápagos Islands!

Darwin Bay, Part III

The density, diversity, and disinterest of the wildlife were definitely the hallmarks of our short walk along the shore of Darwin Bay. Two months later, I'm still stunned by how much we saw in such a short time and small space.

I didn't realize it yet, but "sleeping" would be the default state of most of the sea lions we saw in the islands.

How tired do you have to be to have sand on your mouth and not care?

I have never seen a more dejected-looking bird than this young Yellow-Crowned Night-Heron.

A small lagoon had a Common Whiptail Stingray lazily swimming along its sandy bottom.

The aforementioned lagoon: likely postcard material with the right lighting and clouds.

This Great Frigatebird chick looks like it knows something I don't.  I find that unsettling.

Dabbling in a little high-contrast black-and-white.

And a little more.

Unlike the earlier chick who appeared smugly satisfied with itself, this one looks slightly squished by its undoubtedly well-meaning mother.

I love the light and gentle expression on this Great Frigatebird.  I wish I had bumped up the ISO and slowed down the shutter speed to get a greater depth of field so a little more of the shot was in focus.

And that, finally, is all the selects from our time in Darwin Bay.  Three blog posts' worth of shots taken in less than hour!  And we still had 4 1/2 more days to spend in this amazing place!! 

Click here for more blog posts from my amazing visit to the Galápagos Islands!

Emerald Lake

I caught a glimpse of Emerald Lake last year on the drive back from my Hasley Pass hike. Ever since, I'd wanted to get back and spend some time there. This past Sunday, I did just that.

One thing that's always served me well -- if a group of people all seem to be looking at something, stop and find out what it is.  This time it turned out to be thousands of minnows all gathered in a shallow section of the lake near shore.  I guess it was to take advantage of the warmer water and avoid predators.

My late morning arrival meant that I was dealing with some harsh light.  Too bad, or this patch of various wildflowers would probably look much better.

The lake was playing host to two activities -- fishing, and just taking in its beauty.

The rocky western shore of the lake seems to see less foot traffic.  Walking paths were a little harder to pick out.  But the views from that side were worth the effort.

The light may have been severe, but the weather overall was perfect.  Warm and with just a gentle hint of a breeze.

Like any place that attracts people, Golden-mantled Ground Squirrels could be found.  I love how they seem to hope for a handout without coming right out at actually begging for one.

I wanted to better capture the setting, so when I finished walking around the lake I drove a little farther up Forest Road 317 for an overview.  I was fortunate to find a spot with a little fireweed in the foreground to provide a splash of color.

One last view that seemed like a required shot, then I headed back to Crested Butte.  A beautiful spot I was glad to finally visit!

Three Lakes Loop

Being in Crested Butte this week made a hike very likely. Bluebird skies on Tuesday sealed the deal. A quick perusal of the 65 Scenic Day Hikes book pointed me to Three Lakes Loop -- just a 40-minute drive and three-mile trek. Destination set, I headed out around noon.

The sunlight in early afternoon was as harsh as I've ever tried to shoot in.  And when you don't carefully clean all the dust off your filter, you get even more lens flare than normal.

The trail guide stressed the importance of checking out a waterfall just past Lost Lake.  And I'm thrilled that it did.  They were completely in shade this time of day so I had no contrast issues.  The water was still flowing briskly.  And ice was just starting to form, adding some terrific visual elements.

I must have stayed here for half an hour, trying to get just the right angle to capture the beauty to which I'd been led.

This is my favorite of the bunch -- motion from the falling water, crisp detail in the ice crystals, and even a splash of color from the algae still growing on the rocks.  And I didn't slip on any ice getting to this vantage point, which was a nice bonus.

Spots like this one are probably my favorite thing about hiking this time of year.  The early stages of winter's grasp starting to tighten can be mesmerizing.

An avalanche scar opens up the view on one stretch of the trail to showcase Lost Lake Slough, Marcellina Mountain and the Ruby Range.  During peak foliage this must be stunning.

A short side trek to Dollar Lake is worth the time.  And if you don't take the time, it's really only a two-lake loop.

A small school of what I assume are trout swam lazily through the clear water.

My first time here, I thought this was Lost Lake.  But it's technically Lost Lake Slough.  I'm surprised it doesn't have its own name, instead being referred to as the byproduct of another body of water less than half its size.

The sun had started to drop when I finished the loop around 3:00, but was still high enough that I couldn't get a decent shot with both Beckwith peaks in it.  So here's just East Beckwith Mountain.

Driving back to Crested Butte along Kebler Pass Road, I stopped to capture the color and reflections in some beaver ponds.  If I'd been paying closer attention I might have gotten a shot of the resident beaver, too.  He noticed me first, dove under water with a splash and then gave me an indignant tail slap before entering his lodge.

And speaking of his lodge...

I waited here for a bit hoping he'd come back out.  But like most wildlife photography opportunities, it was a one-time deal.

For a time of year I generally consider to be one of the least attractive from a landscape standpoint, this was still a beautiful little hike!