Lately, on my morning walks, I've been doing pretty well with my elk sitings. This morning was no different.
I spotted these two bulls from about 500 yards. It just so happened they were on the powerline we follow back to the wooded are I walk most days.
At 200yards, I put the dogs on a sit-stay and proceeded with the cell phone camera ready to take pics if I could get close enough.
as I crested the hill, I could see both of the bulls but, I knew i wasn't getting closer. so I snapped a couple cell pics and hoped they turned out, they didn't really look to good. Here they are but, they were a good 50 yards away so even after I zoomed them on the phone the pics are lacking.They were still feeding in the first pic. the second pic is as the bigger bull busted me.
About a 1/2 mile away and I spotted a big cow. So I put the boys on another sit-stay again. I moved with brush between myself and the one elk I had seen. As I made my way over toward them, I saw a few other elk on the powerline strip.
Just as I came through the blackberries, 10yards in front of me and, laying facing straight away from me, were 7 calves. I took one pic right before I could see there ears in the tall grass and then tried to take as many as I could as they got up and left. Most of these calve pictures I am standing 10 yards or less. When they all first started standing up, it was like none of them knew the drill yet. There were actually 3 that turned and looked and didn't even get up with the first 4 of them. I'm guessing if I were a predator, I'd have eaten very well today.
The calves that stayed after they saw me did eventually realize to run.........but which direction was not decided as a group and it was a free for all.
Of course, there is always one in the crowd that just doesn't get it. This guy just stuck around and I almost had to chase him off, so he wouldn't be left behind by the herd.
