Today About 11

It's 81 and been perfect all day. There has been few inclement days in the time since the last post. I have not seen any pictures or should say chances at pictures. What I see is the same things and all of you have seen that too and more than once.

It's different here. Don't misunderstand that where I moved from in NW Colorado is not very pretty now either. It's that time of year.

So I post video of no particular redeeming value whatsoever other than this is the way it was in my neck of the woods when I went for a ride this morning.

In over 20 miles excluding a 1.5 mile jaunt along the interstate came in contact with one vehicle.

I do have a possible scenario for a post. Time is getting short. Think I will leave here a week from tomorrow to hang out on the Front Range a couple days before flying out Wed morning. The scenario involves rock scrambling. We'll see.

Thanks for stopping by. There will be more posting coming up. Pretty sure anyway. That's the plan if there is one. 

Something New

It's a pretty small world out here but today riding my bike did a turn around and this is what I saw.  A  desert horned lizard more commonly known as a horny toad.

This is the first I've seen here. It was on a road that's why I saw it. Just a little guy but impressive none the less.  Click on it a take a close look.

There can't be many of these and it seems he's taking a chance. There are a number of predators who would like to make a meal of him.

It's always a treat to see unusual things on a often used route. Only because the speed was slow and even slow on a bike is too fast to see many other things. Walking is the best way to see the most.

Visitors

Knocking on the door. (click on the pictures) (twice)

Nobody home - let's move on boys and girls.

Stretch was resting.

From just  a bit ago. Quail are cool little birds as well. First time I've seen them here. There is also nearby a family or two of burrowing owls. No way can I even get an illustrative picture of these birds. Their flight is something to see.

I hope the quail come back a bunch more.

What Will Be Left

And also whose table we will be on. Some think we as a species and as a planet are/will come to an end. Their is debate of course on when this will happen. Sooner or later take your choice it isn't worth arguing about. No one knows so that makes this opinion just as valid as anyone's.

I think the earth is past the tipping point and humans cannot sustain themselves at this level given the circumstances we have now.

Whether you agree or not one thing is for certain - when humans start dropping these fellows will be there to play their part in the worlds ever changing ecology.  

There are three pictures here in an attempt to show the size. These don't seem to get much bigger and there are not great numbers like some of the others. Notice the undeveloped wings. This is not quite two inches long and comes in one other color I've seen which is a reddish orange.

 Clicking on the pictures makes them bigger twice.

This is something else though. Gross out city I tell you. A mature Mormon cricket. When small they easily pass for a grasshopper. This is actually the first time I've seen some this big.

The other day went out to the same place I saw this one and did not see any large ones. Yesterday I saw several about half the size and they were much darker in color. They did not survive and what was left was dark as well. The one below was about 2.5" and just plain huge. They get get up to 3" in length and can and have cause devastating infestations. I hate to imagine what that would be like.

Not sure where this guy is headed whether it's mature or what have you. This is where the brighter colors are these days is on the ground. Time for breakfast.

Sunday Stills - Roads

Welcome and the roads you will see here today are the roads around where I live. Because of lifestyle choices I spend quite of bit of time around home and on these roads.

When possible like to use recent pictures and these are but all were pretty bad and most have been manipulated just so you know. They become illustrative then and gives a cheap out on taking a bunch of crappy pictures.

The route taken on these roads in this series of pictures is marked with red dots in the picture below. The numbers on the same picture (in green)  below correspond to where the picture was taken on this route with that same number on the picture in the top left and that number is red. Too late now. This is a 20 mile loop all gravel except for a short stretch on the interstate.

The second picture is not numbered but is illustrative of distances driven here in the west.

To view this properly you have to click on the pictures to make them larger. That can be done twice. No animals here - I think it's pure road. 

To get to this spot where the gate is locked I take either a bicycle or a small motorcycle and drag them under the fence. It's pretty easy really. Call the cops I don't care cuz I'm not going around. 

Looking west.

These next five pictures all look to the west covering four miles.

This is just the second time I have ever ridden on an road like this. The first was here as well. I don't like it but you bang this mile and a half out quickly and it's not too bad.  There is not a road there that crosses the interstate. The next one that does is three miles further north and turns this ride into 30 miles.

Headed south and you can see the Spanish Peaks in the distance.

This is a county road and sometimes they go through the middle of where people live. 

 People aren't too friendly out here but that is normal. We are actually neighbors and I know for a fact we have mutual friends. They tend to go away when you come through. I understand.

 

Headed south with these two landmarks for hundreds of years looming  in the distance.

Seven miles due east all downhill.

This is actually called The John F. Kennedy Memorial Highway. 64 miles south is the New Mexico state line.

The end.

The Eyes Have It

Walked back to this wetlands area early this morning where yesterday was able to capture some decent pictures.

I've seen guys like this before. Click on the picture and take a closer look. The eyes are pointing straight up. Back in da boat they were green. Maybe this one will be green later. What they do is hover and then go straight up and come back down to where they were before.  


A new guy on the block with the dark deep red for eyes but looking closely they may not be the eyes.


I have several pictures of the same but I think this is better and think these eyes would be the perfect shade of green for a really poor scary insect people eater movie.


Lookee here - he's dining.


There was an inland sea here those millions of years ago. This was one of the reasons for today. In a way this picture seems appropriate. The ones flying back then would probably be trying to take a chunk outta ya for lunch.


I do pay attention b b b b b but I almost stepped on this bull snake's tail. I then payed more attention. He did not move as it was warm up time. No eyes here but they were had.




Cross posted @ The Picture Place

The End Of A Mountain Range

This is Greenhorn Mountain and has an elevation of 12,352 feet. It's named for this.
From Wiki-

The name comes from a name Cuerno Verde (Green Horn) given by the Spanish of the Provincias Internas to two, father and son, Jupe Comanche band mahimiana paraibo or war chiefs. The younger Cuerno Verde was known to the Comanches as "Man Who Holds Danger." On September 3, 1779 younger Cuerno Verde, along with his son, medicine man, 4 principal chiefs and 10 of his warriors, was killed near the Greenhorn Mountain by the men of the expedition of Spanish troops and native American allies (Apache, Ute and Pueblo) under Juan Bautista de Anza.

Also Greenhorn is at the end of a small mountain range called the Wet Mountains.

A  saved Google image that shows the Wet mountain range that extends from Canyon City to here. The pictures are taken looking west and is what I see where everyday.

March 21 Early

Sun just came up. Birds are and have been singing for several weeks. It's 17 degrees and headed into a huge warm-up. Spring is getting very close.

The Other Side Of Wind

Is not having any like this. 60+ out. It doesn't get much better and looks like today will be the same. YES!!

Yes The Wind Can Blow Here At Times

It sure can.

Geode Central

A couple weeks ago went for a hike to the east three miles to the top of this mesa. Crossed the Huerferno River where you see cottonwoods.

We're on the river bottom and you can see there is not much water that flows. At one time water flowed around here a hundred years or less ago.

A while back a six mile stretch of pcv was run to get water to where it was needed from a well that produced enough to make it worthwhile. Our well is 22ft deep and is hand dug.

Quite a bit of fossil activity going on.

 A small drainage on the way out to the mesa. We were talking last evening and it seems like one cottonwood tree can consume as much as 300 gallons of water a day. Years ago most trees were cut down in place like this just for that reason is my understanding.

Here is a concentration of geodes along the way but not the mother load.

This is on top now and looking to the north and the Hueferno River. There are some petroglyphs here and appears to be fairly  deep.

The center of these is certainly crystalline in nature but not as pristine as you associate generally with geodes as a whole.  Some do have color. What I find so interesting about these that people can not comprehend for some reason is the size and how close to round many are as you'll see.

Everything you see here is a geode.

These things are huge.

I thought we had quite a few around our place but it's nothing like this and have never seen so many hanging on the side of a drainage like this.

On the way back and the peak looking west and a bit south is Mt. Mestas

This is Greenhorn mountain a landmark for the area and lies at the very end of the Wet Mountain range.

This was quite a way from where the other geodes were. This one was ready to fallout of the bank and I one handed it slightly and it did.

Back at home and by gosh there's geodes here too.

I think this video does a better job show how many there really are. Turn the sound down because there's wind noise and me breathing, This is illustrative only and not very long.