Onward to Colorado

Today, Sat May 29 it is 50 deg, we've finished our refuge chores..... and it's time to bid farewell to our "home away from home". Now that spring is arriving .... look, no snow... it's green and everything is starting to flower !!!

We'll be on our way to Creede, Colorado and volunteer with the USFS thru August.

Wish us a safe journey,
jac and bv

One last update on our furry & feather'd friends !

Can you believe it's almost time for us to depart the Camas Refuge. We're in the final stages of wrapping up various projects..... then, weather permitting we plan to leave Sunday May 30. What a grand opportunity !! We've met some wonderful people, worked on beneficial projects & as a bonus..... been offered the opportunity to watch the antics & learn behavior of various refuge wildlife. I've a ba-zillion photos.... but for now, will just share a few zillion (not edited yet) !!!!!

Now you see us >>>>

<<<<< now you don't !

First baby ducks of the season being protected by mom !




Same for the geese..... when threatened by other birds, animals or noise..... the parents either lay over the babies, or one strikes out at the problem.

BV spotted this short-eared owl in the grass.... the wind was blowing so hard one day..... the birds were grounded !

The shovel-nose, aptly named for it's large broad beak was hard to photograph as it always flew away immediately when it heard our vehicle. I got lucky one day.... the female was nesting and the male as shown here stayed grounded to protect her.



Of course we're still following the elk herds ! The guys are all running together & winter coats are being shed.... but no sign of baby calves as of yet !!!


One day 3 coyotes were sneaking onto the refuge.... we called the manager.... but it is not a big concern at this time..... "survival of the fittest".... and they are mainly coming in for rodents, mice & small animals.... not the bird eggs !


For the first time, swans are nesting at the refuge.... 4 pair have stayed but no sign yet of young ones.


Then there is the Ruddy Duck !!! BV's favorite of them all...... very, very hard to photo as it swims, flies or dives underwater .... never staying still ! When excited.... it shakes it's head & blue beak up/down so quickly the photo is blurred. Again - we were lucky... just recently they moved ponds, were nearer the road and stayed still for a few "seconds". They are beautiful in the sunlight !

Deer peak out of the brush on occasion...... as do various other birds of prey.....

My favorite bird..... the owls !!! It has just been a blast finding them..... and have my pictures actually turn out fairly well! Their expressions have been funny, serious and even threatening.

The red winged blackbirds, feathered grebes have finally posed ......

And the lone refuge moose graced us with it's presence the other day .....

Thanks everyone for being patient while reading this long blog.... those of you who enjoy the outdoors & wildlife and know how hard it is to get photo's...... understand my excitement !!!!

Boys and their toys.....

What do the following have in common : a pile of metal, cutting torch, welder, grinder, hammer, level..... some ingenuity ... and precision work ????

A new headache rack for our Dodge Diesel Truck !! In their off time .... BV assisted the maint supv in building this rack ..... Farrel is an expert machinist and can repair, weld or build just about anything out of metal.

Of course.... the boys did a great job !

Winter again...... did I miss summer !!

From rainbows after an early evening shower........

to awakening the next day to 31 deg ... and finding out that not only have our water lines frozen .... but also those in the farmer's fields !! Neither rain, nor snow or a nice summy day.... will keep us from our appointed duties..... in this case, more clean-up work along the waterways.

BUT, while the icicles & frozen vegetation make for a nice touristy photo op..... this wishy-washy weather is not appreciated by the local farmers ... fresh crops & frozen water.... not a good mix !!!

Tomorrow ?? Who knows !

Springtime... for a few days !!!

Ahhhh.... a few days of springtime !!! We've been pretty busy with helping at events and duties around the refuge.... so here's an update: Every day we still read the water guages at the ponds even tho the creek has slowed & there has been no measurable rainfall;

Had a potluck at the refuge managers house .. BV grilled his famous bacon-jalapeno-cream cheese wrapped shrimp and chicken... tho we all wore long pants.... guess who had on shorts ???

BV is still working with concrete..... more safety posts to install around the fuel tanks, then prime & paint yellow;

May 15 the refuge hosted Nat'l Migratory Bird Day where we had exhibits, presentations, booths and a tour of the refuge. One rescued owl and I became very close friends !!


AND we actually had a day of warmer weather so we played our first round of golf on May 13 in Idaho Falls..... it was 52deg and BV decided to wear shorts no matter what !!! I still wore slacks..... we had a great time ... only rained on us a bit. Yes, f0r those who want to know, he won ... but only by a slim margin !