On this, the last day of 2019, I’m inclined to look back on the year with a lot of gratitude. There were so many interesting things popping up in the viewfinder.
While it’s true, not everything went quite as planned…the annual spring trip to Nebraska to visit the cranes was quite the adventure. Blizzards, floods, and washed out, impassable roads, made it all interesting. But when all was said and done, I still had some great moments with these ancient birds and continue to appreciate their fortitude, stamina, and power, more and more every year.
This was the first year I have ever photographed Prairie Chickens. A lovely morning dawned in the Nebraska sandhills, exposing a lek filled with these amazing birds. They are vibrant, energized, little powder kegs…looking for a mate, and for a fight whenever the latter is called for.
The weird and rainy spring season make for amazing blossoms all around the area, and in our backyard the bird activity was vibrant. There were more Orioles, both Baltimore and Orchards than we have ever seen before. It was fun finding them among the crab apple and pear blossoms.
After a few years of contemplating a visit, we finally experienced the National Balloon Classic in Indianola…truly a fun experience, as was the finale, night glow with over 20 balloons lighting up the night sky.
The Quad Cities Airshow was back this year after a 2 year absence. It was good to see the Blue Angels flying over Davenport again. Hopefully this won’t be the last we see of this great event. After 30+years of some excellent aerial acts, you can only tip your hat and thank the Hoppers for an incredible run.
The Union Pacific Big Boy steam engine made it’s way around the Midwest, capturing the attention of tens of thousands of people. The people interested me almost as much as the train…I loved their excitement about it all. Kids, and adults too (of any age) got off the computers and away from the televisions and actually got out in the open air to see firsthand this massive beast of a steam locomotive. Old was interesting again…and it was cool.
We try to visit the Iowa State Fair every year for at least one day, and this time through, we stopped by the horse arena and watched some of these beautiful equines…and got a few photos too…I hope to do more of that down the road.
As fall came a long, we said our goodbyes, as we always do, to the amazing hummingbirds that grace our backyard…I used a remote controlled camera this year to get some of the my best close ups of these little birds and did a little video work too.
As I write this in late December, we are already seeing some eagles congregating…and hopefully early in the new year, we’ll see the typical temperature plunge and the build up of birds will start around the dams. Yes, it certainly can get cold, but that’s the key to good eagle numbers and the photographs that will surely follow. We’ll see how it all unfolds.
Here’s wishing you an amazing new year ahead!