My expeirence with a Red-Tail hawk

I have lived in Davenport for about 5 years and there has been a mated pair of Red-Tail hawks that live in the wooded area behind my home. They have always been very shy but every once in a while, they would allow me within 25 yards before flying away.

I have always enjoyed photographing them in their natural habitat and when I used to leave early for work, I would find them sitting at the top of the power pole behind my home and screech at me as I got in the car.

On this particular day, I went out for my casual walk searching for various types of wildlife when I ran across one of the hawks on the railroad tracks. I froze and went down to the ground to start snapping photos when it hit me that something was wrong.

I got up and slowly walked toward him and noticed that he would not fly away but I could tell he was frightened. I walked around him within 10 feet and still he did not move. And it wasnt until I walked behind him that I noticed what looked like an injured wing.

I immediately walked home and called the zoo who gave me a number to a wildlife specialist who gave me a number to the Raptor Recovery Center in Cedar Rapids, IA. The message on their machine before I left my message mentioned putting the animal in a cage or a box which I must say, really intimidated me because the size of this hawks talons were huge.

I had a small dog crate that I took with me and went back to the hawk. He was still there so I slowly moved up and placed the cage over the top of him and turned the cage on its side using a long stick to slowly nudge him in. He immedately went on his back as a defense move and grabbed the stick I was using with his talons. There was no way I was going to fight with him so I let him have it. While my heart pounded trying to get him in the cage, the female kept flying by wanting me to leave and screeching at me.

I brought him home to wait for the return phone call from the Raptor Recovery Center, but I had to take some photos at a park in Rock Island. As I was leaving the park, I received the call and planned to meet the person in Walcott, IA.

When she arrived (just before a huge thunderstorm hit the area) she examined the bird and noticed he had been starving for some time and did not look very healthy. She was going to take him back and try to rehabilitate him back to good health and then release him in the spot where I found him.

Unfortunately I was notified two days later that the bird did not survive. And upon examination, was found to have been starving due to a broken wing and the inability to hunt. Now, the female hawk has abandoned this territory and I have only seen one passing through. I sure do miss having them around and hope that one day soon, another pair will take over this hunting territory.

Bald Eagle Migration

Every year between the middle of December until early February the North American Bald Eagle migrates to the Quad Cities area from northern Wisconsin, Minnesota and Canada. During this time you can travel along the river and constantly see these magnificant raptors.

When the river freezes, the best places are near the lock and dams where the water is open. I especially like to hang out just wet of Lock and Dam 15 on the Iowa side. It is here you can see many eagles perched on the trees across the river near arsenal island.

At any time you will see between 1 and several hundred eagles flying over the water. Most of the time a few of them will be flying circular patterns and diving for fish. If you are lucky to see them approach you at a close distance, they will look at you intently as shown by the image below.

It is said that a bald eagle can read a newspaper from 100 yards away. As they glide effortlessly using the wind, they constantly scan the water looking for an unlucky fish. Once they locate their prey, the wings fold back as their feet retract like a landing gear on an aircraft and they twist their body to dive. Just before hitting the water they flare their wings to stop in midair just as their razor sharp talons dip into the water to grab the unsuspecting fish.

Although not all attempts are successful, when you can see them catch one, it is quite rewarding.

Destination - The Colorado Rocky Mountains

One of the best places in the world to view fall foliage is Colorado. The terrain is so diverse and the amount of aspen groves within this state make it one of the more desired places to visit in the fall. The ideal time I have found is to be the last week of September or the first week in October although depending upon the weather, the golden foliage could last longer or be cut short.

The first week of October I had to travel to Denver for work. I took the weekend prior to rent a jeep and journey through the state for a day and a half. But since I didnt arrive until the afternoon, I only made it as far as Silverthorne. I did however get to travel up Mt Evans. Man was it cold.

Mt evans has the highest road in North America that travels up to 14,000+ft. This road is not recommend for the those with weak proportions and a fear of heights as there are hardly any guardrails and the only thing separating you from the flat road and a long tumble down the mountain is simple driving skill and control.

My final destination was to be the Maroon Bells near Aspen. Little did I know that the drive from Silverthorne to Aspen would reward with some great scenery.

Once I arrived at the Maroon Bells it was better than any photo I have ever seen. Apparently this place is the most photographed place in Colorado.

There had been snow overnight so the mountains all had snow on them. Driving down the road there was still snow on the trees that were in the shadow of the mountain side which created such a beautiful landscape.

After spending a few hours here, I drove up to Glenwood Springs and through the canyon on the way back to Silverthorne. Then ventured north to only God knows where but ultimately I headed to Rocky Mountain National Park. The view atop Trail Ridge road was spectacular.

While I was on top I seen a small herd of Elk, so I ventured out in the cold to take some photos. As I turned around to walk back, there were in front of me 3 bighorn sheep. So naturally I started shooting although my hands had gone numb from the cold. What a sight with the mountains in the background.

Unfortunatley I had to leave some time as it was getting dark. I had to drive back to the airport in Denver to return my rental car. When I arrived, my gas guage said 0 miles till empty. By this time my eyes had started to play tricks on me.

The Quad City Airshow

One of my favorite holidays of the year is the Quad City Airshow. Now you may say that the airshow is not a real holiday but for me, it is.

Every few years they have a night show in which they have an airshow that starts at 6pm until 10pm. This year happened to be one of those years.

As always, the thunderous roars of turbojet aircraft with afterburner is always my favorite. There is nothing like having your ribcage rattled by the roar of a screaming fighter jet. Another favorite of the fans is Shockwave. This jet powered semi is a real treat to watch after the sun goes down.

While the night show is always held on a Friday night, Saturday and Sunday holds the regular airshow schedule. Somehow it is always scorching hot and for some reason many people thing that drinking alot of alcohol will help them feel better. I just dont get it.

The funny thing is the crowds racing back to their vehicles just before the airshow ends thinking somehow that they will easily be able to leave the airport grounds without getting stuck in traffic....NOT. The best way to deal with this is allow yourselve plenty of time. When everyone leaves, take the time to walk around and view the static displays. By the time you walk back to your car, all the heavy traffic will be gone.

Utah Day 3 - Is there anyone left in the world?

After waking up to the silence of the southern Utah desert, I wondered what happened to the rest of the world. It seemed as though I was the only person left. I walked over to the edge of the rim to see the expanse of the desert just before sunrise. And although I was a bit nervous about mountain lions, I was having a great time.

I ate a quick breakfast before heading to Big Water Utah and then on to Page Arizona. The primitave road going down the edge of Grand Staircase NM was a bit scary but again, I was having the time of my life. It was just wonderful being the only person for many miles to experience these sights.

I ended up pulling over at this spot and made a grape jam sandwich. I pulled out a bottle of water and washed my hair then brushed my teeth.

Once I arrived into Page I stopped at the Glen Canyon Dam to take some photos. Then it was off to horseshoe bend. Whoa.. talk about getting dizzy. This spectacular place yieled visual rewards more than was expected. Of course the 1/2 mile hike on a sandy trail was an inconvenience in the hot Arizona sun. Then came the edge. Those with vertigo, I would not recommend this place to visit. One slip and thats all folks!

I met another photographer from Scotland who was also visiting. He took this photo of me taking a photo of Horseshoe bend.

When we finished, it was off to Antelope Canyon. I chose to go through the upper canyon wondering if I could get a photo of the light beams. This canyon is operated by the Navajo Nation. You pay the fee and hop on a pickup truck for a 10 mile drive through a sand filled basin until you reach the canyon enterance. You are required to have a Navajo guide with you at all times while in the canyon.

This place was wonderful although jam packed. After a while I wondered if there were going to be any fights between photographers. Because the canyon is dark, it requires long exposure times. The problem was on one side several photographers were setup for long exposures and on the other side unkowingly walking to these photographers people would walk right into the cameras view ruining the exposure. But for the most part, everyone behaved themselves.

Well enough of that, I stopped at Mcdonalds and had some real food :) Then it was off to Zion and Vegas. Unfortunately the north rim of the Grand Canyon was still closed for the season but the road passing by yielded a couple of views of the mighty California Condor.

Zion National Park was an amazing landscape filled with unique rock formations. Even better were the sunsets.

I never did make it to the Desert National Wildlife Refuge north of Vegas and instead stopped overnight at the Valley of Fire state park. The one thing I did not anticipate was sleeping in warmer temperatures. But also, I had to leave the windows closed due to critters such as black widows, scorpions and other icky insects. As a matter of fact, there was a juvenile rattle snake near my camp spot. And at the toilets, there were many bats flying near the lights eating up the flying bugs. You could hear their ultrasonic squeaks as they flew for an intercept.

Utah Day 2 - The Adventure...

Day 2, I woke up to a crystal clear and yet cool morning. I walked out near the rim of the canyon and took ...well a whole lotta photos. As I was walking around I could hear coyotes sing, although I never did see them.

This photo, you can see me standing on the edge of the canyon...whoa.. gave me the willies!

Got back in the jeep and headed to town to get gas and some snacks to nibble on. Only took 30 miles to get to Hanksville. This town has a population of 300 counting cats and dogs. Otherwise, the closest town is Green River to the north, about an hour away.

I drove south and crossed back into Capital Reef NP from the south side of the Henry Mountains. Most of my travels were along dirt roads. One of my stops along the way was Escalante. Just before getting into Boulder, I seen a slab of rock with the weirdest iron deposits laying all over. Some were the size of a pea and others were large boulders. Black and round..it was solid iron laying on top of sandstone. Just plain weird.

The difficult part of this day was the drive through Grand Staircase National Monument. I took the road less traveled of course, but didnt know what I was in for. I took Smokey Mountain road. This road was part of the way dirt, sand rock and solid rock. It took 4 hours to drive 70 miles. I came upon a part of the road that was a solid slab of sandstone at a steep incline. Luckily I had a 4x4.

I reached the south edge of Grand Staircase NM along the rim just before sunset. It was spectacular!! I could see the town of Page Arizona in the distance. With the moon shining bright above, it was a wonderful and quiet evening with no one anywhere near me.

Utah Day 1 - The long road trip

Arrived in Vegas just before noon. Rented a jeep Grand Cherokee....with a sunroof. YEAH!!! The trip to Hanksville Utah took about 7 hours over roughly 430 miles. After pulling off the interstate things became interesting. First was a herd of so many deer, I couldnt count. Of course they were cautious of me, but a neat sight of course.

Just before reaching Hanksville, I traveled through Capital Reef National Park. What a neat neat place. When the sun starts to set, the rocks change colors dramatically. The first photo is the goosenecks. Whoa..watch your step.

Dont be in a hurry to get anywhere fast. Utah has alot of open spaces. It does take time to get from points A to B. After about 30 minutes or so, I came across Factory Butte. To my understanding this has been turned into a recreation area for dirt bikes and ATV's which, being someone who is not a rider, is disappointing. In my own opinion, it takes away from the natural surroundings by scarring the terrain with tire tracks and loud noises. But when nobody is around, you can actually hear your ears ring from the silence.

So...When I got to the dirt road turnout from the "Trail of the Ancients" highway it was dark. I had to drive 11 miles in the dark on this trecherous dirt road where I almost hit an owl. When I finally arrived at Burr Point, the moon was shining bright and lit up the canyon very nicely. Burr Point is at the rim of a canyon near the dirty devil river. It is about an 1800 foot drop at the rim and, well is quite breathtaking.

I fell asleep for the night and woke up around 3AM. I got the camera and shot a photo of the moon setting behind the Henry Mountains. Beautiful!!!! I went back to sleep for a while and woke up just before the sun rose. I opened the sunroof and snapped a photo of the stars.....again Breathtaking!! Click on the image to enlarge.