Yes, he has a few grey hairs on his muzzle, but his eyes are just as keen as ever. He’s chased cattle and gathered sheep and has been my constant companion of late. He can’t speak, but he can talk. He talks with his eyes, or with his ears, and he’s been known to tap…
Uitwaaien
Uitwaaiend. The dutch word for “going out in the wind to clear your head.” Plenty of opportunity for that today in central Wyoming. Over the years I have developed a practice when those windy days start to get on my nerves. When I notice I am walking with my head down, sort of hunched over…
Heading into Winter
We’ve had some amazingly mild weather the last few days, with the forecast predicting days in the 60’s. It’s not rare to have these bursts of warm weather in October and November, but they are by no means dependable. It causes a kind of sneaky anxiety, knowing it won’t last and we are sure to…
Cowboy in Training
One of the most valuable aspects of rodeo is how skills are passed down from one generation to another. Oftentimes moms, dads, uncles, aunts, and grandparents are competing right alongside their children, nieces and nephews, or grandkids. Even if they aren’t competing on the same team, they are traveling together to events. Another asset of…
Owl Attack
My sister was out for an evening jog the other night, when a large bird swooped down on her head. She said it was like getting hit with a brick. She called me soon after it happened. I could hear a little shake in her voice. We wondered about what kind of bird it was….
Curious Pronghorn
During the Pronghorn’s brief mating season in September, they are a little less wary and getting a decent photo is a bit more likely. Even so, they are usually heading over the hill by the time I get my camera out. A quick little whistle can often make them stop and look back.
Falling Yellow
As summer winds down and fall approaches, the majority of wildflowers are shades of yellow.
Beautiful Simplicity
There is a beautiful simplicity in the way a horse moves across the land.
Day in the High Country
The mountain treeline is my favorite place to be on a hot summer day. Temperatures are at least 15 degrees cooler up there and any reprieve from the high nineties is welcome. I had plans to hike a trail to a destination, but once I got there I just wanted to wander across the open…
Shades of Yellow
We have had one of the wettest springs I can remember in a long time. Nice little rains keep coming- almost daily. It’s always interesting to see how the spring weather pattern determines which plants will dominate the landscape. This year it seems to be the annual mustards (members of the Brassicaceae family) and Yellow…
Pronghorn: Icon of Wyoming
Perfectly adapted to the sage brush steppe, Pronghorn, Antilocapra americana, is an iconic wildlife species of Wyoming. Visitors are often surprised when they see pronghorn, saying they “look like something from Africa.” Pronghorn are the second fastest land mammal on the planet, able to reach speeds exceeding 50 mph. Sagebrush is a staple of their…
Water is Life
As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, Wyoming is a headwater state. Straddling the continental divide, Wyoming feeds four major river basins: the Missouri-Mississippi, Green-Colorado, Snake-Columbia, and Great Salt Lake.1 Given the low rainfall in Wyoming’s lower elevations, we all keep a close eye on the mountain snowpack. The mountain snowpack will, for the most part,…
Wyoming Life 