yesterday was that ONE day in Nebraska that we get every year in early Spring that is so nice, warm, and wind-free that it makes you forget all the terrible, awful things you said about living in this state in Wintertime. yes- it has been a long, cold winter indeed. everyone has cabin fever, is grouchy, and can’t take the bone-chilling cold any more. which is why we should all be thankful for the one day we had in yesterday: calm, 70 something sunny. and while I’m not into nature photography, nor do i have the equipment for the genre, it was still a great excuse to leave town for half a day and enjoy the weather with friends. not an official PPN event (we were invited to join in the fun with a special Grand Island photog group), but it’s always great to shoot with fellow photogs regardless of what it is we’re shooting.
destination: Wood River, Crane Trust
sandhill cranes are in central nebraska right now by the thousands on their way North for the Summer. they stop on the Platte River every year to fatten up and basically have themselves a little Spring break. they are noisy and awkward looking, but I’m proud to say that Nebraska has the highest respect for these birds. We are the only state that protects them; all other states hunt and kill them. boo on them.
after some crane education, rules, and etiquette training, we traveled to this little blind where we had to stay quiet until after dark, so not to frighten the cranes. they tend to be pretty skittish and there are dozens of crane enthusiasts that look forward to crane season all year, so we didn’t want to ruin the experience for today’s group by having the cranes move farther upstream or anything.
yay for friends who let you borrow their kick ass lenses!
clearly my lenses are wussies and aren’t meant for shooting birds.
above is a pano shot and below is the same shot zoomed in so you can see specks (aka the cranes)
and in case you don’t know, here is what a sandhill crane does look like.
(next 2 photos from google)
